The argument for determinism:
1. A free act is an undetermined act (the agent is the sole cause).
2. All events are determined.
3. Therefore, there are no free acts.
The argument for compatibilism:
Premise (2) is true.
But premise (1) is false.
The opposite of freedom is not causation, but constraint.
An act can be both determined and unconstrained.
Therefore, even though every act is determined, there can be free acts.
The argument for libertarianism:
Premise (1) is true.
But premise (2) is false.
Even if most human acts are determined, there are times when competing reasons for acting balance out, and we find ourselves in an undetermined situation where we must choose the kind of person we shall be.
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