Name of winner: Romero, Kristeen Anne Lalic Topic: The Illusion of Limitations in Making Choices The problem with discussing the idea of freedom is that the concept of it is malleable and changes according to each person s values, experiences, and perspectives. Even looking at a dictionary one of the most objective sources to define our world the word is not restricted to one meaning. In the Oxford English dictionary, for example, the word is defined as the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants, the state of not being imprisoned or enslaved, the state of not being subject to or affected by (something undesirable) or familiarity or openness in speech or behaviour. Looking at other dictionaries will bring you a number of similar definitions but to put it simply, freedom is regarded as the absence of external restraint and the ability to do as one wishes. To discuss the extent of freedom we have in our choices, let us first consider whether it is possible to achieve absolute freedom in our world, with absolute freedom referring to the ability to make a choice and be able to act on it without any influence from any external force or individual. Page 1
Our world today places a heavy emphasis on individualism and the right to various freedoms in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1949), but because differences in opinions are present within the human race, the lines of whose rights are being encroached upon become blurred. Let us take for example the issue of the Philippines reproductive health bill, which is supposed to direct government funds toward cheap or free contraception. If passed, this bill would greatly reduce the costs of condoms in order to help citizens to protect themselves from sexually transmitted diseases and from unplanned pregnancies and give them more freedom to have a standard of living adequate for health and well-being of himself and of his family (Article 25), but Catholic conservatives argue that to do that would hinder the freedom to practice religion (Article 18), and would be unacceptable since using contraceptives is considered a sin against God. With more than 90% of the population being part of a Christian faith, they feel that religious doctrine should play a part in politics. With different definitions of freedom intertwining, the debate on topic then becomes a vicious tug-of-war scenario where experts, academics, and major political figures try to validate their freedoms. The incident of clashing definitions of freedoms, of course, is not limited to a case like this. You could talk about how the Nazis wanted to be free from the economic grip of the Jews but in the end, took away the latter s freedom. You could also talk about the ongoing clashes on the topic of same-sex marriage or a number of other similar issues. Freedoms clash consistently in history and people can go on and on debating about who is right and who is wrong, but the reality is that our freedom is limited by those with more power because we tend to be influenced by the consequences of not following what they consider the Page 2
norm and therefore, we are unable achieve absolute freedom within society. Some people may believe that if a man were to go to an isolated and uninhabited island by himself, he would be able to do whatever he wanted and achieve the sort absolute freedom that this essay is referring to. The assumption is that if society is taken away from the equation, then there would be no one there to influence your decisions. This, however, is not true because there are other forces that exist in nature: the scarcity of resources, the often unpredictable weather and/or the dangers of wildlife are powerful enough to the decrease the number of available actions an individual may take, especially if he wants to survive. Even in the absence of other human beings, there are still external and often uncontrollable forces that drive us to stop ourselves from doing everything we would want to do. In short, as a participant of this world, humans cannot separate themselves from their external environment and everything in it, because one way or another, their actions can affect other things both positively and negatively. Because of this, the number of available choices we have becomes limited when we take our environment into account and consider the consequences of our actions. Thus, it is impossible to have a world where freedom is absolute. Now, if the opposite were to happen that is, if we had a world without freedom at all people would consider it unacceptable. If there is anything that human history has taught at all, it is that heavy oppression in most cases leads to rebellions. Events such as the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783), the French Revolution (1789-1799), and the various uprisings during the Page 3
late-qing dynasty (late 19th and early 20th centuries) demonstrate that those in power cannot simply give limitations without considering the opinions of those they are leading, especially when the balance of power is starting to tip towards certain members of the public who have the ability to stir up a movement. It must also not be forgotten that the cost of ensuring all limitations are being followed is much too high when too many of them are put in place. If it is impossible to achieve absolute freedom and neither is it possible to have no freedom at all, then logically, our prescribed freedom as human beings is meant to lay somewhere in between. Where exactly that is is difficult to say because, again, every individual s definition of freedom is different and because of that, their perception of where they are on the spectrum of freedom depends on whether they are willing to accept and are content with their given limitations. Two people with the same set of limitations can have different opinions and feel differently about how free they are. Although this is the reality in which human society lives in, the presence of such limits is not equivalent to having restrictions on the ability to actually make a choice. The process of choosing is where individuals consider the costs and benefits of a certain option before deciding and acting upon it. Other people, certain substances or other factors can influence the decision-making process but in the end, the choice to do whatever an individual thinks they want is up to him or her entirely because it is only in our thoughts that we are able to have absolute freedom. (The future of technology may prove otherwise but presently, this is true for now.) Mitchell Heisman, a 35-year-old with a bachelor s degree in psychology, contemplated the contradictions in society Page 4
and spent years writing his 1,905-page philosophical book entitled Suicide Note, which eventually came to the conclusion that life is meaningless because all choices are equal in this world and living is essentially no better than dying. On 18 September 2010, in his last experiment of nihilism, he shot himself in the head in front of hundreds of people. Although he was young, bright, healthy, and had a family who loved him, he decided to act upon a belief that he formed while writing his book. Doctors and therapists can recommend treatments and give advice, but in the end, it is up to the patient whether or not to take it. A person can believe they are in a violent video game, even if all evidence points to the opposite, and choose to live their violent fantasies. When forming opinions and ideas on what should be done, the only thing that can force a person to stop is their own sense of self-restraint because no one else can read their thoughts and consequently, neither can anyone comment on or react until the act is presented. Those in power be it the government, a religious institution, or even nature may expect us to act in a certain way and prescribe limits by providing consequences to certain actions, but it is impossible to place limitations on the act of choosing because it happens within an individual. We are absolutely free to choose what we want to do because we are in complete control inside our thoughts, but we are bound by the limitations we set upon ourselves based on fear of the consequences that may arise. The lack of freedom in making a choice is essentially an illusion we set upon ourselves because of the environment we live in, but we can break free of this if we simply put our beliefs before anything else. This, however, can result in any of these three situations: the provision of further limitations (e.g. imprisonment), a broadening of Page 5
freedom (e.g. relaxed regulations) or no change at all. One must recognize the suitable time, place, and method to express grievances in order to attain positive results in achieving a higher degree of freedom within society. You are the person who has to decide if your beliefs are worth fighting for. Page 6
Bibliography Heisman, Mitchell. Suicide Note. Electronic Publication, 18 Sept. 2010. Retrieved on 12 Feb. 2014. <http://www.suicidenote.info/ebook/suicide_note.pdf> Freedom. Oxford University Press. Online edition, 2014. Retrieved on 12 Feb. 2014. <http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/freedom?q=freedom> Imposing Misery. Center for Reproductive Rights. 2007. Retrieved on 12 Feb. 2014. <http://reproductiverights.org/sites/crr.civicactions.net/files/documents/imposing%20mis ery%20updated.pdf> Philippines still top Christian country in Asia, 5th in the world. Inquirer Global Nation. 21 Dec. 2011. <Retrieved on 12 Feb. 2014. http://globalnation.inquirer.net/21233/philippinesstill-top-christian-country-in-asia-5th-in-world> Religion Christianity. Stanford School of Medicine. Retrieved on 12 Feb. 2014. <http://geriatrics.stanford.edu/ethnomed/filipino/introduction/religion.html> The Universal Declaration of Human Rights. United Nations Publications. Original document adopted on 10 Dec. 1946. Retrieved on 12 Feb. 2014. <http://www.un.org/en/documents/udhr/history.shtml> Page 7