Aristotle and Free Will, Essay Example

The issue of free will and determinism has been of considerable interest to many scholars. The main contention that arises out of this is whether human beings are free or their actions are determined by circumstances that are out of his, or her control. The other issue that arises here is whether actions taken are voluntary or involuntary.

The evaluation of actions taken by a person is determined by whether the actions are voluntary, involuntary or nonvoluntary. What Aristotle means in this text is that human actions come out different causes. There are those actions that a person is compelled to do by outside forces without free will. The issue of ignorance also arises where some actions are taken out of ignorance. These actions which are taken out of ignorance can be termed as involuntary if an individual recognizes that ignorance later. The actions can be termed as non voluntary if the individual does not recognize the ignorance later. Aristotle examines different virtues that make people take certain actions. (Grant $ Aristotle 2009).

It is advisable to differentiate those actions that are voluntary and those that are involuntary in the course of evaluation. The aspects of punishment and rewards as seen from the text are brought about by the actions taken. (Grant $ Aristotle 2009).People are rewarded for their good actions while they are punished out of bad actions that they take. It therefore, becomes essential to consider what brings causes an individual to take some actions. It is not good to instill punishment to someone for an action that is involuntary. Ignorance also makes one act in certain ways that may lead to punishment. It is good to evaluate some cases where ignorance can be excused and also some other circumstances where it cannot be excused. It is advisable not to excuse ignorance in general behaviour as this may lead to the formation of unacceptable behaviour. . (Crisp & Aristotle 2000).

In considering human actions the best way to gauge the actions taken by a person are those that are taken out of choice. This is because choices are made with a desired end. Choices are always made voluntarily. In making choices, there is always a deliberation on the end that an individual wish to attain. Therefore, is the best way that individual behaviour can be praised or condemned. (Crisp & Aristotle 2000).

There are many cases where people are forced to take actions out of their will. This may be caused by various factors that are uncontrollable. In this case I will look a case where my friend was jailed for twenty years for murder. It was about twelve during the night in our estate, when robbers invaded his house. During that time he with her son who was nine years old at that time. When he had some people forcing themselves through the gate peeped through the window to see who they were. To his amazement they were about five armed men who showed no other intention than to attack the home. He took some time to think of the next step he would take.  As he was contemplating on the next move they ordered him to open the door. He ran back to the bedroom and hid. The robbers cut the door and forced themselves inside the house. In order to protect the son he took his gun and shot the one who was leading. When the others found out that he was armed they escaped. Before he could call the policemen the robber died. When the police arrived they arrested him for murder. When he was taken to court, he was jailed for twenty years despite the pleas that he made. As can be observed, he was forced by circumstances to shoot. His action was involuntary but in order to protect himself and the son he was forced to take that action. This is just one of the cases where people take actions which are illegal involuntarily.

References

Grant, G. $ Aristotle. 2009).The Ethics of Aristotle, BiblioBazaar, LLC.

Crisp, R & Aristotle. (2000). Nicomachean ethics. Cambridge University Press, pg 19