Reasons and Their Absences

Abstract This chapter discusses the extension of causalism about action to causalism about free action, with reasons-sensitivity serving as the bridge concept. The chapter starts by discussing the role played by reasons and reasons-sensitivity in acting, and it then discusses a form of reasons-sensitivity that is arguably essential to free action: one where absences of reasons play a central role. Quasi-causalism becomes relevant here too (as in chapter 3), as a fallback view, if absences turned out not to be causally efficacious. The chapter also draws on lessons from previous chapters to distinguish the resulting view from the main competing views of free will (those put forth by Fischer and Ravizza, Haji, and McKenna). It is argued that the view fares better than those other views, mostly because (unlike them) it’s a genuine form of causalism.