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Debating Free Will
by Daniel C. Dennett, Gregg D. Caruso
The concept of free will is profoundly important to our self-understanding, our interpersonal relationships, and our moral and legal practices.
If it turns out that no one is ever free and morally responsible, what would that mean for society, morality, meaning, and the law?
Just Deserts brings together two philosophers – Daniel C. Dennett and Gregg D. Caruso – to debate their respective views on free will, moral responsibility, and legal punishment. In three extended conversations, Dennett and Caruso present their arguments for and against the existence of free will and debate their implications. Dennett argues that the kind of free will required for moral responsibility is compatible with determinism – for him, self-control is key; we are not responsible for becoming responsible, but are responsible for staying responsible, for keeping would-be puppeteers at bay. Caruso takes the opposite view, arguing that who we are and what we do is ultimately the result of factors beyond our control, and because of this we are never morally responsible for our actions in the sense that would make us truly deserving of blame and praise, punishment and reward.
Just Deserts introduces the concepts central to the debate about free will and moral responsibility by way of an entertaining, rigorous, and sometimes heated philosophical dialogue between two leading thinkers.
"(A) spirited debate exploring multiple aspects of free will, moral responsibility, and punishment…Dennett and Caruso forcefully defend their opposing viewpoints, and the reader becomes engrossed in the twists and turns of the competing arguments." ―Los Angeles Review of Books
"Just Deserts is a delight: a sharp and interesting discussion of punishment, morality, choice, and much else ... perfect for a newcomer to the free will debates." ―Paul Bloom, Yale University, author of Against Empathy
This information about Just Deserts was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Daniel C. Dennett is Co-Director of the Center for Cognitive Science and the Austin B. Fletcher Professor of Philosophy at Tufts University.
Gregg D. Caruso is Professor of Philosophy at SUNY Corning and Honorary Professor of Philosophy at Macquarie University.
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