On Free Will And Conversations With Friends
I was having a chat with a friend the other day about free will. Before I go on, I want to define free will as I understand it. Free Will is the ability to make a decision for yourself without influence. Without concern for fear, praise, guilt, or any repercussions. Does free will exist?
So, I was telling this friend of mine about my new life in Lagos and how I’ve been trying to balance out life and all that. Then he goes “Oh, it’s free will, no one is forcing me to work” and so forth. I countered him by saying that that cannot be the definition of free will. I’m a graduate, a lot of money has been expended to educate me, I have no excuse to not get a job, probably move out of my parent’s house and definitely have a life.
Yes, I made a choice to apply for jobs, but that’s not exactly “free will”. I’m not going to stay forever under my parent’s roof. To be independent, I have to go out and fend for myself, it’s a natural expectation. To not do that will lead to uncomfortable conversations, disappointments and probably prayer sessions on our behalf. So tell me where the free will is.
I tried to give an example of an expression of free will to my friend. Registering at the gym. For me at least, that was a conscious, deliberate decision I made for myself, because I wanted to do it. Going through exercises is definitely not easy. It’s almost like paying someone to punish you. That’s almost as free will as it gets.
But the conversation got me thinking deeper. Is registering at the gym really an act of free will? I don’t have to go to the gym, my body can remain as it is and I will still go on to live a normal life. How much of my decision is influenced by society’s beauty standards? How much actual free will am I expressing? How much free will do you express?
