Thursday, October 27, 2011

Will, Voluntary, Spinozism

According to Spinoza, Reason is volitional, and is free of external influence. Hence, the standard characterization of him as denying the existence of Free Will is inaccurate. What he does reject is the possibility of Will qua Motility, as well as that of the voluntariness of any apparent spontaneity of locomotion. However, he does allow that a Mode can, via an Adequate Idea, cause not only the maintaining of its strength, but of its increase of strength, as well. Hence, God/Nature must possess the capacity to increase strength. But, an increase entails a novelty in relation to what precedes it, while Reason can only derive what is implicit in its antecedents. Now, one source of such novelty is Modal Motility. So, in the absence of a better explanation, Spinoza's system can be interpreted as entailing personal non-rational voluntary processes.

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