Assess the claim that Free Will and Determinism are compatible

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Critically assess the claim that Free Will and Determinism are compatible [35] There is an important relationship between freedom and moral responsibility. I should be ready to accept the blame for the things that I freely do wrong. If I'm made to commit an immoral action, then I’m not blameworthy. If I'm forced at gunpoint to drive a getaway vehicle from a bank robbery, then it isn't my fault. Even if I'm forced at gunpoint to give money to charity, I'm not praiseworthy. Moral blame/praise can only be attributed to actions that are freely taken. Freedom is defined as the power to act, speak or think as one wishes.In general terms, Determinism is the view that all events and actions in the universe are the effects of other causes. Hard determinism relies heavily on the credence that as we are not free at all to act in a different way, we cannot be held morally responsible for our actions. As Aristotle maintained, "nothing happens without a reason". Honderich develops on this but relies on principles of Physics, namely Quantum Physics, to argue that determinism is much more complex - for instance, people may migrate across the planet and undergo profound social changes, yet their values dont seem to alter. Clarence Darrow, A hard determinist lawyer, successfully defended Loeb and Leopold for murder and cleared them of the death sentence. His plea was that they were indeed guilty of the crime, and should be imprisoned to protect society - but they weren't to blame. He used the idea of heredity and that they were socially conditioned in this way as a defence. This prolific case raised the issue of whether human beings are predetermined by nature or nurture to act in a certain way. Both Darrow and Honderich's form of Hard determinism becomes problematic when taking into account that human beings cease having any responsibility for their actions, meaning that nearly
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anyone can be condoned for any crime.Starkly opposed to Hard Determinism is Libertarianism, with which the idea of free will is wholly advocated. Proponents of this position, such as Kant, hold that we are all free and should therefore, take full moral responsibility for our actions. Likewise, Jean-Paul Satre declares "man is free, man is freedom" - a deliberate oxymoron to his other saying that we are "condemned to be free", this emphasises the great weight of responsibility accompanying human freedom. Obviously we are unable to do things such as choose our parents or choose where our place of birth/death ...

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