ABSTRACT
In this chapter, the author argues that free will entails determinism, and, being itself a consistent thesis, is a fortiori compatible with determinism. Even if determinism cannot, like predestinarianism, be seen to be incompatible with free will on the basis of a simple formal inference, there is, nonetheless, a conceptual connection between the theses. The author describes that there is a great deal of confusion in the argument, but to expose this confusion would require a lengthy discussion of many fine points in the theory of agency. He argues that, if determinism is true, then that man could not have performed that act. Because this argument will not depend on any features peculiar to our imagined case, the incompatibility of free will and determinism in general will be established, since, as will be evident, a parallel argument could easily be constructed for the case of any agent and any unperformed.
