- Question
Does "Responsibility" make sense?
Responsibility is accrued when an individual is free. However, contemporary scholarship suggests that we are not, in fact, totally free. Neurological and psychological predispositions prevent us from having full control over our actions. Then, are humans able to truly possess responsibility?
No, we do not truly possess responsibility
This position holds that responsibility does not truly make sense. It argues that because human beings are bound by the laws of nature, we lack the genuine freedom required to be responsible for our actions—and observes that people are reluctant to own their priorities in any case.
Yes, we do possess responsibility despite our biological constraints.
This position holds that responsibility is a meaningful concept despite our biological constraints. It argues that, whatever limits biology places on free will, we retain responsibility within the human-made arenas of social life — where it serves to get things done by holding people to their tasks.