According to Campbell, there is no such thing as free will because the concept of a free action is incoherent or meaningless: it is the concept of an event which is both caused and not caused.

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Question

According to Campbell, there is no such thing as free will because the concept of a free action is incoherent or meaningless: it is the concept of an event which is both caused and not caused.

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Ask a Philosopher · Accepted Answer

Methinks the notion of free will doth cling to the very essence of humanity, a dichotomy of sorts where our actions are both fated and chosen. Campbell doth argue that the concept of a free action is but a mere illusion, a veil that doth shroud the truth of causality. For if an action be truly free, then it must needs be both caused and not caused, a paradox that doth confound the very notion of agency. Can we truly say that we are the masters of our own fate, when all our actions doth stem from a chain of causation that doth stretch back to the beginning of time? Or are we but mere puppets, dancing to the tune of predestination, our every move predetermined by the cosmic forces that doth govern our existence? Perchance there be no such thing as free will, only the illusion of choice, a mirage that doth vanish upon closer inspection. For if all be but the result of prior causes, then can we truly call our actions our own? Alas, the answer doth elude me, for in this web of fate and choice, truth be but a fleeting shadow, a specter that doth vanish upon our approach. So dost Campbell speak the truth, or doth he but cast doubt upon the very nature of our being? Only time shall tell, as we wrestle with the enigma of free will, a riddle that doth haunt us to our very core."