Epicurus ~ Free Will, Determinism, and its Importance Today
The Dilemma of Free Will
Growing older means coming to terms with the idea that we are not in control of certain things in our lives. Whether that be missing an important interview due to a sudden sickness, or getting into a car accident on the way home from school; It is an undeniable fact that we are not as in control as we presume. Sure, we may have not gotten sick if we had dressed warmer, and maybe that accident could have been prevented had we gone a different route, ultimately regardless of our choices certain things seem predestined to occur. This is the dilemma of free will, and for centuries philosophers and scientists have attempted to find a solution for it. The big question is, do we have a choice for our actions?
This article will focus on Epicurus, the first philosopher to discover the free will dilemma and offer a libertarian solution to it.
Who is Epicurus?
Epicurus was an ancient Greek philosopher and sage who started writing around one generation after Aristotle. Epicurus was born in 341 BCE in Samos Greece, and passed in 270 BC in Athens. He is known for the creation of the philosophical school of thought known as epicureanism, and it was through exploring this school of thought that he “discovered” the free will dilemma.
Epicureanism
Epicureanism is a school of thought that rejects determinism (the doctrine that all events are ultimately determined by causes external to free will) and advocates hedonism (pleasure is the highest good) in a restrained practice, prioritizing mental pleasure over physical. While today Epicureanism is more closely linked to the idea of reveling in a pleasurable activity such as indulging in fine foods, Epicuris’s definition emphasized the importance of quiet pleasure and freedom from pain, mental anguish, and anxiety.
Epicureanism on Free Will
You may be wondering how this specifically relates to free will. His framework of epicureanism focuses on one's pleasure and freedom. In doing that. he believed that freedom and determinism were incompatible; thus, he denies determinism by believing in freedom of one's self. This is further solidified by his opinions on determinism by explaining the two paths in which determinism should be true.
Logical Determinism
Epicurus explains that determinism could be achieved by the logical law of bivalence. It is either that all proposals about the future are true or false, and if false the event will not occur, however, if true it cannot fail to occur. Epicurus rejects this bivalence because as he states predictions that are yet to be made by humans are neither true nor false. Therefore, determinism cannot exist as a bivalence of future events, hence determinism is not possible.
Physical determinism
Epicurus theorized that the universe was composed of voids and atoms. If following determinism then everything including our actions could be explained by this. If we, our bodies and souls, consist of atoms, then how could our actions truly be up to us? Epicurus explains that as atoms moved there would be occasions when they would swerve from their predetermined path causing new chains. He called these swerves causa sui, meaning uncaused cause. Epicurus explains that these swerves are our actions, and though they are on a predestined path, our actions can create new paths limited to the original path.
Though we now know that atoms are not on paths that swerve but are rather constantly in motion, Epicures’s theory remains true. In that, the paths of large objects are statistically determined however still have randomness. Disproving determinism.
Why Exploration of Free Will Matters
Though critics may argue that Epicuris’s stance on determinism and free will is flawed, it is undeniably one of the most influential theories and first explorations of free will in philosophy. Conversations about free will matter as they ultimately are interconnected with important societal issues. For example, though I may be in control of how I am writing this article, drinking tea, and listening to music; I am not free from the fact that I was born in Canada to Vietnamese immigrants and am the eldest in my family. Such things may seem obvious but it is only in acknowledging our limits in free will that we can truly have freedom.
Epicurus and the test of time
Has Epicurus’s philosophy stood the test of time? I believe that Epicureanism and his stance on free will have. Epicurus developed hedonistic ethics, metaphysics, and epistemology. Though some of his theories and philosophy have changed over time, without his influence these branches of philosophy could not have existed the same. Additionally, I resonate with his philosophy on free will; because though each individual may have their parameters to which they make decisions, ultimately we are in charge of our futures. Though it is a bit romantic, I believe it still holds today.
Conclusions
To conclude, Epicurus believed that we had free will. His epicureanism rejected determinism and overall laid the framework for further branches of philosophy. It is important to recognize that we all have free will and yet are limited to our environment, and it is this truth that may help us live a more fulfilling and free life.
Sources:
https://www.informationphilosopher.com/solutions/philosophers/epicurus/
https://www.rep.routledge.com/articles/thematic/epicureanism/v-1/sections/free-will
https://academic.oup.com/book/39974/chapter-abstract/340285672?redirectedFrom=fulltext
https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/epicurus/
https://academic.oup.com/book/472/chapter-abstract/135247950?redirectedFrom=fulltext