' Holbach's Arguments Against The Concept Of Determinism

When it comes to determinism and free will, there are two categories which determinists would side with. Either they are a soft or a hard determinist. Determinism is defined as the theory that “everything in the universe..is entirely determined by causal laws, so that whatever happens at any given moment is the effect of some antecedent cause” (Pojman & Fieser, Free Will and Determinism, p. 388). In this essay, I will be reviewing philosopher Baron d'Holbach's arguments against the concept of free will in the perspective of a hard determinist. Afterwards, I will be defining what is free will in my personal opinion as well as whether or not free will is compatible with determinism. Baron d’Holbach was known for being “one of the leading philosophers of the French Enlightenment” (Pojman & Fieser, A Defense of Determinism, p. 396). He was also
396). Therefore, d’Holbach argues that since determinism is true, this would mean that there is no such thing as a “free” will. Instead, d’Holbach argues that an individual's “action is the result of the impulse [they] receiv[e] either from the motive, from the object, or from the idea which has modified [their] brain, or disposed [their] will” (Pojman & Fieser, A Defense of Determinism, p. 397). In other words according to d’Holbach, the actions we take based from our will is determined by “forces” such as our desires and impulses to come up with one decision and stick with