patrick1386 wrote:I am a newcomer to the site so I am sure the question I am about to ask has been asked many times so bear with me. As a person who occasionally has flashes of deja vu I wonder what implications Tony's theory has for free will, have I any control over my life if I am simply reliving it. If I can't change anything, can this not lead to total fatalism?
Hi Patrick. Yes, you are correct, this question has indeed been raised and discussed many many times. I will place some links below to a small handful to get you started. Persoanlly it depends to me just what is meant by 'free will' because we all act unconsciously and seeimgly instinctively at times with reactions that can't necessarily be described as freely derived from a will of intention. Plus, of course, as I've often stated you can make the decsion right now, as you read this, to either a) stay sat down or b) stand up. You may choose which to do right now but who can say that choice was a free one to make? Who can tell that you were always going to make that choice? Thankfully, the same applies the other way, who can tell that everything we do isn't freely willed.......
Consciousness Vs Will In The Peakeian DyadThe World As Will And Representation And The IMAXWill , Consciousness, Compassion?Some Remarks On Free Will And DeterminismA Foray Into Will vs ConsciousnessAs you've also mentioned deja vu, you may be interested in the discussions in
Deja vu, Consciousness, Time & English Pubs and my full paper
here and also my comments on the whole nature of Free Will in the Conscious decision making process in my paper
hereI hope some of these links help.