How Free Are You?: The Determinism Problem

Honderich, Ted

ISBN 10: 0192831399 / ISBN 13: 9780192831392

Published by Oxford University Press, 1993

Readable copy. Pages may have considerable notes/highlighting. ~ ThriftBooks: Read More, Spend Less. Seller Inventory # G0192831399I5N00

Synopsis:

This is a concise introduction to one of the central questions of philosophy that should be of interest to students and general readers - are humans subject to determinism of do we posess free will, and thus responsibility for our actions? The first six chapters of the book deal with the rival claims of the two theories and investigate whether either of them is clear, consistent, complete and demonstrably true. This inquiry in itself amounts to a complete philosophy of mind. The last four chapters deal with the implications of determinism and its significance in our public and private actions. Honderich examines the doctrines of compatibilism, which argues that humans are subject to causation but nevertheless free; and incompatibilism, which sees determinism and freedom as mutually exclusive. This debate has been one of philosophy's main battlegrounds for centuries, with thinkers as distinguished as Hume and Kant in opposite camps.

About the Author:
About the Author:
Ted Honderich is Grote Professor of Mind and Logic, University College, London. He is the author and editor of many books on philosophy including A Theory of Determinism, Violence for Equality, and The Oxford Companion to Philosophy (forthcoming).

Bibliographic Details

Title: How Free Are You?: The Determinism Problem
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Publication Date: 1993
Binding: Paperback
Condition: Fair
Dust Jacket Condition: No Jacket