Annotated Bibliography (5 entries required).

An annotated bibliography is an alphabetical

list of the scholarly resources (journal articles, monograph chapters, monographs, etc.) you
have gathered together and relied upon as you have developed your project to date. Its
purpose is to support you in your later stages of this project, helping you remember the
importance of each source and distinguish each from the rest. 1. Select the five most
important scholarly resources you have consulted to date. 2. Craft an accurate MLA
bibliographic record. 3. Write an annotation for each source. - Each annotation should
include one brief paragraph that thoroughly and succinctly summarizes the source and one
brief paragraph that evaluates it, explaining its importance to your project.

1. https://www.simplypsychology.org/freewill-determinism.html

Mcleod, Saul. “Freewill vs Determinism.” Freewill and Determinism | Simply Psychology,

2019, www.simplypsychology.org/freewill-determinism.html.

a. This source dives deeper into the concepts of free-will and determinism, and
explains detailed aspects of both.It describes the differentiation between
external determinism and internal determinism and explains the implications
of each while also providing examples. Additionally, he explains how
biology plays into internal determinism and how personality traits have a
hand in this process. Also, this source explains the difference between hard-
determinism and soft-determinism and explains the middle-ground between
the two concepts. An important aspect of this source is the way that it
describes the negative side of determinism and how deterministic beliefs
contradict wide-held societal beliefs. The source also explains the depths of
free will and explains Freud's point of view on the topic and details why free
will is important to the human spirit. It explains that free-will is what sets
humans apart from other creatures and how free-will is necessary for the
study of psychology and practice of therapy.
b. This source is important to my project as it gives me details on free-will and
determinism and explains concepts and vocabulary that will be prevalent
throughout my project. Also, this source describes the ideas of Freud, who is
one of my scholarly sources and helps to contextualize th argument in the
real-world context of therapy.
2. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2018089?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchTex
t=free&searchText=will&searchText=and&searchText=determinism&searchUri=%2
Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dfree%2Bwill%2Band%2Bdeterminism&a
b_segments=0%2Fbasic_SYC-
4946%2Fcontrol&refreqid=search%3A681ec1650f45b21ffd14e95691ed77fd&seq=5
#metadata_info_tab_contents
Williams, Gardner. “Freewill And Determinism.” Philosophical Books, vol. 10, no. 3, 1969,
pp. 5–7., doi:10.1111/j.1468-0149.1969.tb00003.x.

a. This source poses an interesting argument that life is neither determined nor
based around free-will, but rather that freedom is something that one should
try to achieve, and that freedom is a triumphant success that should be
attempted. When one is faced with an impossible obstacle, the outcome of
this situation is not free, but when the individual is able to produce an
outcome that fulfills their aims, this is a free decision. Additionally, this
source helps to connect determinism to religion and spirituality by explaining
that, although one’s soul is determined by physical things, this does not erase
man’s spirituality. Finally, this source expressing that freedom is a matter of
success and failure, rather than determanism v. nondeterminism, and that by
overcoming an obstacle and accomplishing one’s aim, one can demonstrate
free will.
b. This source is especially interesting as it provides a new and different
argument than the ones I have contemplated thus far and allows me to think
outside of the box of free-will v. determinism and begin to look at the larger
picture of the argument. Additionally, this helps me to apply these concepts
to the everyday struggle of success versus failure and forces me to think
about my personal experience with free-will and determinism. Using this
source and the argument it poses, I can begin to formulate my own
conclusions that might not exactly conform to either boxes of free-will or
determinism, but rather somewhere in between the two.
3. https://www.jstor.org/stable/2653432?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchTex
t=history&searchText=of&searchText=free&searchText=will&searchUri=%2Factio
n%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dhistory%2Bof%2Bfree%2Bwill%26amp%3Bfil
ter%3D&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_SYC-
4946%2Fcontrol&refreqid=search%3A1863c05f9ab0db84871615002e5bfc8f&seq=
1#metadata_info_tab_contents

Kane, Robert. “Précis of The Significance of Free Will.” JSTORE, 2000,

www.jstor.org/stable/2653432?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchText=history&sea
rchText=of&searchText=free&searchText=will&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch
%3FQuery%3Dhistory%2Bof%2Bfree%2Bwill%26amp%3Bfilter%3D&ab_segments=0%2
Fbasic_SYC-
4946%2Fcontrol&refreqid=search%3A1863c05f9ab0db84871615002e5bfc8f&seq=1#meta
data_info_tab_contents.

a. This source contemplates the comparability of free-will and determinism the

significance of this debate and if free-will is even worth seeking in the
 modern world. The source concludes that free-will and determinism are not
compatible theories and that no middle-ground can be found between them.
This is because humans must make decisions based on the events around
them; the events do not specifically shape the person but the events must
occur for the individual to even make the choice. As for the significance of
free will, the source explains that it supplies a dialect of selfhood and
objective self-worth which then lead an individual to be creative,
autonomous, and self-guided. The source explains that free-will is worth
seeking in the modern world, and is the result of concentrated efforts to
overcome difficult obstacles.
b. This source is important as it directly compares the two theories and explores
if they are compatible to be combined to form a new theory. Additionally,
this source explains why free-will is so important to seek and details that
free-will is not guaranteed to every individual, but, rather, must be sought
after through concentrated efforts. This source will help me to apply this age-
old debate to the modern world and begin to explore how this debate affects
different people in various ways (ie. people of different social class, race,
gener, ethnicity, etc…)
4. https://www.jstor.org/stable/27759547?Search=yes&resultItemClick=true&searchTe
xt=free&searchText=will&searchText=determinism&searchText=and&searchText=r
eligion&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dfree%2Bwill%2B
determinism%2Band%2Breligion%2B%26amp%3Bfilter%3D&ab_segments=0%2F
basic_SYC-
4946%2Fcontrol&refreqid=search%3Ac0bbea76e5582856d6d016a0971fedac&seq=
1#metadata_info_tab_contents

Ogletre, Shirley Matile. “The Nature, Common Usage, and Implications of Free Will
and Determinism.” JSTORE, 2008.

a. This source dives into the actual process of decision-making itself and what
is means to be an agent. It describes the importance of not only being an
agent, but viewing one’s self as an agent and how this subjective perspective
of oneself is crucial to decision making and autonomy. Additionally, this
source explore intuition and how it interacts with deliberation in the decision
making-process, especially in the case of ethical decisions. This study also
explores what regular people think of this debate and how the public feels
about their own ability to will freely. It found that the majority of people
believe that humans have ‘some free will’ with the second largest percentage
of people believing in soft-determinism.
b. This source is important to help me understand the actual process of
decision-making – which is an important process to understand in order to
 gain a better understanding of both free-will and determinism. Additionally,
it speaks about agency and the importance of self-awareness. Intuition also
plays a key mole in decision making and deliberation. Finally, this study
helps me to understand how the public feels about this debate and how
regular people feel about themselves and their own lives which puts the
debate in a more modern context.
5. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-consciousness-
question/201402/destiny-determinism-versus-free-will

Collier, Graham. “Destiny: ‘Determinism’ Versus ‘Free Will.’” Psychology Today,

Sussex Publishers, 27 Feb. 2014, www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-
consciousness-question/201402/destiny-determinism-versus-free-will.

a. This source focuses on both free-will and determinism, but mostly focuses on
the history of the developement of theory of determinism – specifically in
ancient Greece. The source explains the theories of both Democritus and
Aristotle and summarizes how their ideas were connected to the notion of
religion, which was very prominent in ancient Greece. Additionally, it shows
the progression of these theories as Greel philosophers becomes less reliant
on “gods” to support their conjectures as time continues past 500 B.C.
Additionally, this source describes how cosmogony plays into the debate and
expresses how physiological and psychological can be describes in this
cosmological context; perhaps humans – in all their complexity – are just
singular bio-living entities on this earth who act out of sheer necessity.
However, the source also expresses the opposing point of view of free-will
by explaining the theories of George Steiner who believes that the human
brain is too complex with too much of or cortex exerted to non-essential tasks
that allow man to say ‘no’ to reality. The source explains that the force we
call the ‘will’ is the operational side of the spirit and that they are partners in
mental operations beyond normal sensory and rational working on
consciousness. In other words, the human spirit produces insights of
outstanding importants which the will provides the drive to act, according to
free-will.
b. This source is important to my project as it provides context to the argument
for determinism and helps me to understand how religion has a hand in this
theory. Additionally, this source provides historical context – specifically in
the context of ancient Greece – that helps me to understand the thoughts of
Aristotle and Democritus. This is a good introductory source, as it is detailed
but concise and easy to understand; this basic foundation will help me to dive
deeper into more complex and difficult sources.
Bibliography. For the remaining sources you have consulted in your research, craft
accurate MLA records for each, compile each record, and alphabetize them in a
bibliography without annotations. Each time you consult an additional scholarly resource,
make an MLA record and add it to your bibliography. Think of this as a list of all the
sources you have consulted, whether you end up citing them or using them directly in your
thinking.

1. Cave, Story by Stephen. “There's No Such Thing as Free Will.” The Atlantic,
Atlantic Media Company, 10 June 2016,
www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2016/06/theres-no-such-thing-as-free-
will/480750/.
2. Green, Hank, director. Determinism vs Free Will: Crash Course Philosophy #24.
Youtube, 15 Aug. 2015, www.youtube.com/watch?v=vCGtkDzELAI.
3. Of Life, The School, director. Do We Have Free Will or Are We Predetermined?
Youtube, 17 Aug. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYWiIWpcCIM.
4. Think, Big, director. Hey Bill Nye, Do Humans Have Free Will? Youtube, 19 Jan.
2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=ITdMa2bCaVc.
5. Internal Subject Matter Expert Plans. Building on the thinking in your first process
reflection, imagine the conversation you hope to have with your internal subject
matter expert and map it out more fully. Make a list of questions you want to ask in
addition to your first and most important questions. Expand on the concepts and
ideas you hope to learn more about through the conversation. Etc.
● Alex Diez-Williamson
○ First question: I would like to hear DW’s argument in favor of both free-will
and determinism and explain the evidence for each.
■ Then, I would like to know which theory he subscribes to
○ Most important question:
■ How have humans throughout history used religion to answer the
question of free-will v. determinism? How do various religions
(Judaism, Christianity, Islam) answer this question individually?
○ Additional questions:
■ How do you exercise free will/ determinism in your own life
■ How is free will/ determinism relevant throughout history
■ How do the concepts of free-will/ determinism affect individual
perceptions of reality
■ How do you think free-will/determinism could affect individual’s
feelings on happiness, inspiration and motivation
■ How do you think this debate is infused into Western culture? How
does this difference from Eastern culture?
External Subject Matter Expert Plans. Building on the thinking in your first process
reflection, imagine the conversation you hope to have with your external subject matter
expert and map it out more fully. Make a list of questions you want to ask in addition to your
first and most important questions. Expand on the concepts and ideas you hope to learn
more about through the conversation. Etc.

● Andy Abrams
○ First question: In your life, have your experiences conformed to the concept
of free-will or determinism?
■ How have these concepts influenced your taste, personality, and
perspectives? What events – both internal (genetically, biologically,
etc…) and externally (personal experiences) – have contributed to
this?
○ Most important question: How is the debate of free-will and determinism
present in literature? List some examples of how various authors have
referenced this in their writing throughout history.
○ Additional questions:
■ As a Jewish man, how does the Torah refer to free will/ determinism
■ Throughout your lifetime, how have you seen the perceptions of free-
will/ determinism change in response to technological advancements,
media and the lessening religiosity in our culture
■ How do you think free-will/determinism affect politics
● How do you think this differs from Republicans/Democrats