Is Free Will An Illusion?
Let’s think about this case: you realize that you are thirsty. So, you decide to drink a glass of fruit juice.
Here is the question: Why did you decide to drink fruit juice? Where did this decision come from?
Most people would say that you chose to drink a glass of fruit juice is comes from your free will. Free will just make a decision without any forces or not being influenced by anyone or anything.
So if you want fruit juice and no one’s threatening to kill you if you don’t, you’re exercising free will. But really, you didn’t decide to get that glass of fruit juice — at least not consciously. Perhaps you felt thirsty, but that’s a biological function that you can’t directly control. And have you ever think why fruit juice exactly? And why now?
Such decisions don’t originate from our conscious minds. We don’t know what we intend to do until we actually do it.
Researcher Benjamin Libet in his experiments found that he could detect activity in parts of peoples’ brains that signaled movement before they decided to move. While participants thought they controlled their own movements, their brains had already decided to move their bodies before they were even aware of it.
This means the underlying reasons behind our actions or decisions are hidden from us. The only way we could fully control our decisions would be if we had complete control over all our brain activity.
The feeling that we control our thoughts and behaviors is an illusion. Our thoughts are inspired by deep biological processes that we simply can’t control, like our genetic makeup.
Think about that: Do you control the billions of bacteria in your body? Not at all. So why, then should we think we are responsible for an equally random set of processes that occur in our brains?
So if our thoughts, actions, and decisions are inspired by brain processes we can’t control, shouldn’t we go couch-potato and do nothing all day?
Not exactly. We do have awareness, and we can think deliberately.
If you realize your back hurts, you might unconsciously move in your seat to get more comfortable or change your seat. You can’t, however, unconsciously plan a trip to the physical therapist. This is a conscious decision you have to make yourself. So if we’re aware of a sensation like pain, we can be motivated to do something about it.
This isn’t exactly free will, however. The mechanics of the process that triggers the realization that you are experiencing pain and then making the decision to see a doctor are still mysterious. You didn’t create the pain; you didn’t create the thoughts about seeking help. Those thoughts simply appeared in your mind.
But we do exercise some sort of control. Even though our actions are predetermined by biological mechanisms, our choices are still important. You can’t know why you wanted to choose fruit juice instead of water, for example, but it still matters that you did.
