Free Will
A Very Short Introduction
2nd Edition
Will be published approx. on 28. January 2027
Book
Paperback/Softback
176 pages
978-0-19-886282-6 (ISBN)
Description
Very Short Introductions: Brilliant, Sharp, Inspiring
Every day we seem to make and act upon all kinds of free choices - some trivial, and others so consequential that they may change the course of our life. But are these choices really free? Or are we compelled to act the way we do by factors beyond our control? Is the feeling that we could have made different decisions just an illusion? And if our choices are not free, is it legitimate to hold people morally responsible for their actions?
In this Very Short Introduction Thomas Pink looks at a range of issues surrounding this fundamental philosophical question and explores free will through the ideas of the Greek and medieval philosophers up to present-day thinkers. Throughout, Pink examines the history, changing culture, and future of free will.
ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
Every day we seem to make and act upon all kinds of free choices - some trivial, and others so consequential that they may change the course of our life. But are these choices really free? Or are we compelled to act the way we do by factors beyond our control? Is the feeling that we could have made different decisions just an illusion? And if our choices are not free, is it legitimate to hold people morally responsible for their actions?
In this Very Short Introduction Thomas Pink looks at a range of issues surrounding this fundamental philosophical question and explores free will through the ideas of the Greek and medieval philosophers up to present-day thinkers. Throughout, Pink examines the history, changing culture, and future of free will.
ABOUT THE SERIES: The Very Short Introductions series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.
More details
Series
Edition
2nd Revised edition
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Edition type
Revised edition
Dimensions
Height: 174 mm
Width: 111 mm
ISBN-13
978-0-19-886282-6 (9780198862826)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Thomas Pink is Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at King's College London and is author of Self-Determination (2016).
Content
1: The Free Will Problem 2: Freedom as Free Will 3: Reason 4: Nature 5: Morality without Freedom? 6: Power and Causation 7: Motivation 8: Freedom and its Place in Nature