Why is the question of free will relevant for our lives?…

Why is the question of free will relevant for our lives?…

Why is the question of free will relevant for our lives?

2.     Explain the importance of answering the question whether addiction is a disease or a choice. What attitude towards addiction follows from each of the possible answers? Do our current social policies and legal system see addiction as a disease or as a choice?

3.     Which of the answers is supported by the recent scientific studies on the biochemical responses of the brain?

4.     Explain the analogy between addiction and hijacking. Do you find the analogy persuasive?

5.     Explain the idea of a category mistake. Why does the author of the article think the idea of a “hijacked brain” is a category mistake?

6.     Why does the author think the question whether addiction is a choice or a disease is a false dilemma? What is the author’s explanation of addiction? Do you agree?

7.     Which philosophical position in the debate about free will do you think the author takes? Is she a determinist, a libertarian, or a compatibilist? Why?

article from the NY Times philosophy forum The Stone