PHI

What forces shape our world?

Is our free will an illusion? If we look at our lives, many of the things that we do are caused by factors in our past, or by some internal aspect of our character. Perhaps every choice that we make is determined by previous causes. I propose, however, that determinism is an illusion caused by an incorrect definition of cause.

It is true that every event has a cause. In this respect, our every action is caused by something. There is a chain of causes leading up to every decision that we make, and if we could only know all of those causes, it seems that we could predict every choice that we make. The illusion of determinism, it seems to me, comes from our ability to look at the chain of causes in our lives. When we look back in time, we can see all of the causes that have made us who we are. We were born in a particular family and society, given a set of genes from our parents, educated with a set of moral and cultural norms. It seems like we are destined to this fate.

However, it is a mistake to view these causes as necessary, that is, as unavoidable. We could have been born somewhere else, with other genes, given other norms. Furthermore, in some cases, we decide to act in opposition to our genetic predispositions and social norms. This choice, it seems to me, indicates that although there are many factors that shape our lives, these causes do not force us to act in certain ways. The illusion of determinism arises from our habit of looking backwards along the chain of causes, instead of looking forwards, and noticing the impossibility of predicting which effect will follow from a combination of various causes.

Background information

Koyaanisqatsi: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PirH8PADDgQ

Plausible Futures (Foresight Institute) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bZte_eDc2Q

“How is Technology Changing us?” video by Daryl Culp http://www.elearntube.ca/video/271/How-is-technology-changing-us

"A Vision of Students Today" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dGCJ46vyR9o

In physics, although great strides have been made through the theories of Einstein (gravity), Bohr (the atom), and others, the basic elements of the universe seem to remain mysterious. Heisenberg’s “uncertainty principle” also sheds doubt on the ability of human beings to discover the fundamental nature of matter, since observing this deep-down level seems to modify it by that very action.

In the field of biology, the discovery of DNA and the role of genetics further consolidated the hold of evolutionary theory. But this theoretical advance regarding the smallest elements of life must be set within the growing clamour of the environmental movement, which studies the large contexts in which life moves, the great cycles of our planet. As well, both of these developments bring the ethical dimensions of our increasing knowledge to the fore.

Albert Einstein, “The World as I see it” http://www.aip.org/history/einstein/essay.htm

The Galileo Project: http://galileo.rice.edu/

“The Mind of Isaac Newton” http://www.ltrc.mcmaster.ca/newton/home.htm

E=mc² http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=4144497206440839046

David Attenborough narrates a BBC video demonstrating Darwin's "tree of life" notion:

http://www.wellcometreeoflife.org/interactive/

David Neff, “The Pope, The Press and Evolution” http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/1997/january6/7t1018.html

Immersed in technology

Our lives are given new possibilities by technology. The new shape of our existence, generated by machines and materials that structure our daily existence, challenges our identity as humans and as Christians. In a world where our life is surrounded by things made by humans, what does it mean to be God’s creation, redeemed and forgiven?

From the clothes on our back (made up of artificial fibres) to the roof over our head (shaped by human minds and hands, covered with chemicals), we are surrounded by technology. Human beings make tools, machines, and artefacts to help us through our daily lives.

Technology makes our lives easier, but it also shapes our identity. Think about how a house fosters a certain pattern of living. Its air-conditioned and furnace-heated comfort keeps us inside when the weather is uncomfortable. The electricity running through the walls powers many tools that now seem to be more necessities than conveniences, because they support our fast-paced life.

. Optional readings:

Nicholas Carr, "Is Google Making Us Stupid?

http://www.theatlantic.com/doc/200807/google

Madeleine Bunting, "Hard Labour

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2004/feb/27/gender.workandcareers

Laura Kipnis, "Marriage is made in hell

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2003/sep/07/gender.politicsphilosophyandsociety

Allan Gregg, "Identity Crisis

http://allangregg.com/?p=43

A revolution is not a bed of roses.

Fidel Castro

The revolution is not an apple that falls when it is ripe. You have to make it fall.

Che Guevara

“I would rather die standing up, then live life on my knees.”

Che Guavara

Jeramy Townsley says: "Whenever one person sees another person attempting to acquire some object, those around him/her will also begin to desire that object and attempt to acquire it" (Townsley 1). Rene Girard introduces another concept: the mediating object in the desiring relationship. He argues that "the antagonists will no longer imitate each other's desires for an object, but each other's antagonism."

If we misunderstand these subtle cues, though, this kind of feedback can easily lead to violence if it gets out of control. Some might feed off this negativity. Any response is better than no response (like any publicity is better than no publicity). Literature might be a more complicated form of social control. When we read stories about conflict we learn from them (even if there is no obvious moral, the ensuing complications reveal something about the consequences of such actions). Aristotle would say that even reading about conflict can be cathartic (it purges the emotions of which it speaks). Sometimes this can be a form of communication: a kind of feedback that is in some sense a punishment that may be an evolutionary adaptation to solve societal interactions. If we echo negative actions to each other, maybe we learn to avoid them in the future.

a. Malcolm X, "By any Means Necessary

http://weblog.liberatormagazine.com/2010/12/malcolm-x-ascended-extremism-in-defense.html

text: http://www.blackpast.org/?q=1964-malcolm-x-s-speech-founding-rally-organization-afro-american-unity

b. Video: Desmond Tutu on the Truth and Reconciliation commission http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRDBWoV_hA0

c. Nelson Mandela

ii. http://history1900s.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?site=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.time.com%2Ftime%2Ftime100%2Fpoc%2Fmagazine%2Fthe_sacred_warrior13a.html

1. Locke http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/waking-up-to-the-enlightenment.html

2. Communist Manifesto: http://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1848/communist-manifesto/

3. Movie trailer for Richard Attenborough, “Gandhi” (1982)

4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxYQ4CXoIwg&feature=PlayList&p=8B00655E5A21C62C&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=29

i. Billie Holliday, “Strange Fruit”

1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4ZyuULy9zs