Determinism misrepresented
Few doctrines are as widely misrepresented as determinism, despite how simple the doctrine is to state: “Whatever happens is necessitated by the conditions that come before it.”
Consider two examples from among many I could give. When I enter “determinism” in a Google search, I get this “AI Overview”: “Determinism is the philosophical idea that all events are caused by previous events or natural laws, and that humans cannot make free choices.” Not so fast. Did you see me mention free will at all in my statement of determinism above? Granted, a minority of philosophers mistakenly think that determinism implies the absence of free will, but even in that case the implication must be argued for; it’s not part of the doctrine itself.
Study.com tells us that “Determinism is the belief that events that transpire are entirely out of one’s own control.” First, the belief that some events are out of your control is uncontroversial. You have no control over the outcome of the Battle of Waterloo. Second, determinism emphatically does not say or imply that all events are out of your control. Determinism leaves you in control of your decision to continue reading this post or not. Determinism says that your decision will depend on whether you want to continue reading, which is the only thing that having control over your decision could sensibly mean.
