A Review of Edwards's "Inquiry into the Freedom of the Will"Tappan, Henry Philip
Religion
A Review of Edwards's "Inquiry into the Freedom of the Will"
Tappan, Henry Philip
Edwards, Jonathan, 1703-1758. Freedom of the will; Free will and determinism
But obviously we do not alter the relation, when we change the terms. If
liberty lie in the stated antecedence of volition to effects, and if
liberty is measured by the necessity of the relation, then when the
antecedent is changed, the relation remaining the same, liberty must
still be present. For example: when a volition to move the arm is
followed by a motion of the arm, there is liberty; now let galvanism be
substituted for the volition, and the effect as certainly takes place;
and as freedom is doing as we please, or will, "without considering how
this pleasure (or will) comes to be as it is;" that is, without taking
its motive into the account. So likewise, freedom may be affirmed to be
doing according to the galvanic impulse, "without considering how" that
impulse "comes to be as it is."
If we take any other instance of stated antecedence and sequence, the
reasoning is the same. For example, a water wheel in relation to the
mill-stone: when the wheel turns, the mill-stone moves. In this case
freedom may be defined: the mill-stone moving according to the turn of
the wheel, "without considering how" that turn of the wheel "comes to be
as it is." In the case of human freedom, freedom is defined, doing
according to our volitions, without considering how the volition comes
to be as it is; doing "according to choice, without taking into the
meaning of the word anything of the cause of that choice." (p. 39.)
If it be said that in the case of volition, we have the man of whom to
affirm freedom; but in the case of the wheel and mill-stone, we have
nothing of which liberty can properly be affirmed. I reply, that liberty
must be affirmed, and is properly affirmed, of that to which it really
belongs; and hence as volition is supposed to belong to the spiritual
essence, man; and this spiritual essence is pronounced free, because
volition appears in it, and is attended by consequences:--so, likewise,
the material essence of the wheel may be pronounced free, because motion
belongs to it, and is followed by consequences. As every being that has
volition is free, so likewise every thing that hath motion is free:--in
every instance of cause and effect, we meet with liberty.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account