Lecture Six: Free Will
Professor John Dupre Gifford Lecture Series: Lecture Six
Professor John Dupre Gifford Lecture Series: Lecture Six Recording.
In his final lecture, Professor Dupré turns to the human individual. If, as argued in the first lecture, humans are open-ended processes, does this offer a solution to the age-old problem of free will? Professor Dupré argues that, with important qualifications, it does. The most important qualification is that while humans do indeed have powers to make a difference in the world, these powers do not derive solely from their intrinsic natures, but equally from their social embedding. So the conception of free will defended offers little support to the individualism that has dominated so much recent political thought. Rather, it can help to point us towards recognition of a proper blend of the powers of individuals with their responsibilities to the social order from which their powers substantially derive.
To view the presentation given in the lecture, please click the link below:
To watch a recording of the lecture, please follow the link below:
- Video: Professor John Dupre Gifford Lecture Series: Free Will
- Final lecture of a six-part series presented by Professor John Dupre