Principle of Alternative Possibilities

Imagine standing at a fork in the road where you could go left or right. This rule says that for you to be truly responsible for your choice, you must have really been able to pick the other way. If a giant wall was blocking the left path and you did not know it, did you really choose the right path? It helps us think about when it is fair to give someone a gold star or a timeout. Being free means having more than one real door open.

A door you cannot open is not a choice. Freedom requires at least two real doors. Otherwise you are just walking down a hallway.

PAP is a cornerstone of moral philosophy, challenged by Harry Frankfurt. Frankfurt argued one can be morally responsible even without alternatives, provided the action stems from one's own desires. Shifts focus from alternative paths to internal sourcehood. Asks whether the universe is a garden of forking paths or a single thread.

SOUND: The silence between two notes where you decide which to sing.

SMELL: Two different ice cream flavors and the pause before you pick.

TASTE: The burst of a mystery flavor candy.

TOUCH: Picking a smooth stone out of a pile of rough ones.

SIGHT: A Choose Your Own Adventure book with many endings.

BODY: The tension in your muscles before you decide to jump: your body holding two futures at once.

Music: Maybe I Am by Stu Larsen

Music: Future Days by Pearl Jam

Music: True by Spandau Ballet

Part of Free Will & Fate — PHILOSOPHY — Education Revelation