The Soft-Line Solution to Pereboom's Four-Case Argument.

Derk Pereboom's Four-Case Argument is among the most famous and resilient manipulation arguments against compatibilism. I contend that its resilience is not a function of the argument's soundness but, rather, the ill-gotten gain from an ambiguity in the description of the causal relations found in t...

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Published in:Australasian Journal of Philosophy Vol. 88; no. 4; pp. 595 - 618
Main Author: Demetriou, Kristin
Format: Article
Published: Taylor & Francis Ltd Dec2010
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Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
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        atl: The Soft-Line Solution to Pereboom's Four-Case Argument.
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        au: Demetriou, Kristin
        affil: The University of Colorado, Boulder
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        Pereboom, Derk
        Free will & determinism
        Modern philosophy -- 21st century
        Determinism (Philosophy)
        Responsibility
        Neurosciences
        Ethics
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          Pereboom, Derk
          Free will & determinism
          Modern philosophy -- 21st century
          Determinism (Philosophy)
          Responsibility
          Neurosciences
          Ethics
      ab: Derk Pereboom's Four-Case Argument is among the most famous and resilient manipulation arguments against compatibilism. I contend that its resilience is not a function of the argument's soundness but, rather, the ill-gotten gain from an ambiguity in the description of the causal relations found in the argument's foundational case. I expose this crucial ambiguity and suggest that a dilemma faces anyone hoping to resolve it. After a thorough search for an interpretation which avoids both horns of this dilemma, I conclude that none is available. Rather, every metaphysically coherent interpretation invites either a hard- or soft-line reply to Pereboom's argument. I then consider a recharacterization of the dilemma which seems to clear the way for the defence of a revised Four-Case Argument. I address this rejoinder by identifying a still more fundamental problem shared by all viable interpretations of the manipulation cases, showing that each involves a type of manipulation which undermines the victim's agency. Because this diagnosis supports a soft-line reply to every viable interpretation of the argument and can be endorsed by any compatibilist, I consider it the final piece of the Soft-line Solution to the Four-Case Argument. Finally, I suggest a new taxonomy of manipulation arguments, arguing that none that employs the suppressive variety of manipulation found in Pereboom's argument offers a threat to compatibilism.
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