ABSTRACT
One of the most important sets of phenomena thought to be at stake in the debate over whether we have free will are our practices of holding each other, and ourselves, responsible. Of these, our practice of blaming often takes center stage, and justi ably so. If we do not have free will, would we be justi ed in blaming anyone? Many have taken the answer to be ‘no,’ and for this very reason, the question of whether we are free agents has been especially pressing. But there are many who disagree with this answer, and to adjudicate the debate over whether blame is indeed at stake in the free will debate, we need to begin by getting clearer on the nature of blame itself.
