Response 2

#ethics

Class: PHIL-282

Notes:

The "free will" can be understood in a few different ways:

  1. Acting according to our desires (what we want).
  2. Acting according to our higher desires (what we want, but not governed by impulses).
  3. Acting according to our rational evaluations (thinking through our desires and choosing what we should pursue).
  4. Acting according to our reasoned principles (acting according to principles that we inherit from society, others, or other cultural influences).
  5. Acting according to principles that we have discerned on our own.

For this week, the prompt is

This prompt asks you to reflect on the idea of an autonomous (or free) will. When using social media, to what extent do you think that your will is free? Are there certain conditions or situations where you think the will is more free? Less free? To what extent do you think the fifth understanding is the ideal?

Free will in social media

First I would like to address what social media is, even if that seems trivial nowadays, the purpose of social media is to share, communicate, give and take information to and from other individuals, obviously this term has evolved with years but in a nutshell it keeps being a network. Easy to understand and utilize, not that trivial to analyze what is really going on in the background in the format of societal impacts. The intersection of free will, understood in many ways, and modern social media lies in the actions a user is empowered with when navigating this medium. Most times the question breaks down to what to post and what not to post, do we post what we want to post based on our desires or principles? or do we post things that the society wants to see? and if we do so, is that against our free will?

It is very interesting to think about these questions since some would probably say that they as rational beings use social media to do the thing that they say is a response from their desires and principles, they post exactly what they want to. Others would argue that society may be influencing our actions in the way we make decisions on what to advertise to the public through social media, they may post in order to comply with certain ideas imposed by others, their content variates according to others. But at the same time it is possible that they may post according to others as their free choice dictates. The answers, I believe, lies in who you ask the question to.

In my opinion I would argue that natural and original pieces of content in social media are done with what I would consider more free will, since these publications may reflect the wants of the people posting them and not seek any form of compliance with society expectation. The opposite would be the posts that we denominate as "trends", where attention is given to a pattern that became a popular phenomenon and is therefore replicated by several individuals to follow this train, this may be done with the whole purpose of following others or getting some benefit out of it, without even realizing on own principles.

I think especially the 5th understanding of free will according to Kant stands in this case, I believe it englobes the previous understandings of autonomous will since they focus on wants, desires and reason. Principles that we have discerned on our own, I think are pretty much derived from what we have experienced in life, our desires, as well as reasoning through them, which adapts differently to each individuals own definition. Since people can do the right thing according to their view of what is right which comes from what this person has lived which also generates their own definiton of principles and desires that makes them act autonomously.

Free will in social media

First, I would like to address what social media is. Even if it seems trivial, its purpose is to share, communicate, and exchange information with others. While the term has evolved, at its core it remains a network. What is less trivial is analyzing its societal impact. The intersection of free will and modern social media lies in the actions users are empowered to make. Most times the question breaks down to what to post and what not to post, do we post based on our desires and principles, or on what society expects from us? And if it’s the latter, is that still free will? Some would argue they post exactly what they want, while others acknowledge that society influences their choices, content often varies in response to external expectations.

In my opinion, original content reflects more free will, since it comes from personal desires rather than compliance with social expectations. By contrast, trends often replicate popular patterns for attention or benefit. Kant’s fifth understanding of free will, states that autonomous will is shaped by principles we discern ourselves. These principles emerge from personal experiences, yet remain unique to each individual, allowing us to act not just in response to external pressures, but in accordance with our own rational understanding of what is right. I would say that this understanding unravels the question of free will.