Владислав Педдер – The Experience of the Tragic (страница 10)
A key role in this process is played by inhibitory neurons, primarily GABAergic interneurons (interneurons using γ -aminobutyric acid, GABA) – notably parvalbumin-positive (PV+) and somatostatin-positive (SST+) cells. They modulate the activity of cortical pyramidal neurons and participate in suppressing excessive excitation, ensuring a balance between impulse and inhibition. These neurons are especially active in brain regions responsible for decision-making and self-regulation, including the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), and right inferior frontal gyrus (rIFG). Signals from these cortical areas are transmitted to subcortical structures, chiefly the subthalamic nucleus (the nucleus of Luys), which functions as a kind of “emergency brake,” capable of interrupting an already initiated motor action.
From the compatibilist perspective, this very ability – to “think twice” and cancel an impulse – demonstrates a functional level of freedom: we do not act purely automatically; we have a biological mechanism enabling the evaluation and alteration of action. Compatibilists claim this capacity suffices to speak of responsibility: if a person could have stopped but did not, that is their manifestation of free will.
However, incompatibilists – philosophers who assert that free will is fundamentally incompatible with determinism – point out that the presence of inhibitory mechanisms does not render the individual free in the true sense. According to their position, if every action has sufficient causes – biological, psychological, or social – it cannot be free, even if the subject experiences control. The mere fact that inhibition is possible does not mean that the subject “chooses” it in any metaphysical sense. The work of these neurons is conditioned by the same determining factors: genetics, experience, current physiological state, and environment.
,neither libertarianism nor compatibilism restores the intuitive, deeply rooted everyday consciousness freedom – the freedom to thus be the genuine source of one’s actions.
To understand the nature of the “feeling” of freedom, consider how it relates to predictive coding. The brain forms internal models of the world and continuously generates predictions about incoming sensory inputs. When predictions are confirmed, we experience harmony; when predictions diverge from reality, an error signal arises, and the model is refined. At the level of subjective experience, this looks like an act of choice: consciousness operates with final predictions, not perceiving the complex causal calculations underlying these predictions.
The illusion of freedom in predictive coding arises because we interpret the successful matching of expectations and actual data as “my intention” and “my decision.” In reality, the brain simply minimizes prediction error in the most efficient way to conserve resources and adapt faster. Yet we habitually ascribe authorship of this process to ourselves.
In this sense, free will become an adaptive information-processing tool – a cognitive strategy: filtering complex causal chains into compact predictions allowing rapid decision-making and maintaining a sense of control. Without this “mythical freedom,” we would be overwhelmed by the chaos of unprocessed causes, and our social structures would lack the foundation for practices of responsibility and trust.
Thus, free will cease to be an ontological property of the world and becomes a question of the structure of our perception. Determined biology and physics are closely intertwined with the brain’s illusory “free will” at the level of predictive algorithms. It is precisely in this unity that its true power lies – as a form of adaptation to the extreme complexity of existence.
2. Adaptation to Death
The sense of free will help the mind feel in control of his life, yet it proves powerless when confronted with the awareness of the finitude of existence. Death, as an integral part of our being, evokes fear and existential tension – especially in the context of the world’s chaos, as discussed in the previous section.
The brain, which strives to avoid cognitive conflict, employs mental models of immortality and symbolic adaptations to soften the impact of its own mortality. These mechanisms help maintain internal stability and preserve the capacity for functioning even in the face of the inevitable. In this section, we will examine how mental constructs, cultural adaptations, and individual strategies alleviate the fear of death and help the individual find ways to come to terms with it.
2.1. Mental Models of Immortality
Ernest Becker was an American psychologist and philosopher, best known for
Mental Models as Tools for Prediction and Defense
From the perspective of predictive coding, the brain constantly updates its models to anticipate the future. When predictions are confirmed, this creates a sense of safety and stability. But the awareness of one’s mortality and the finitude of existence represents a fundamental uncertainty that cannot be eliminated. Confrontation with this existential limit provokes anxiety and disorientation, and thus the individual resorts to constructing models of immortality as a means of defending the mind.
Symbolic Heroism and Cultural Adaptations
One of Becker’s central ideas is that of symbolic heroism as a way of adapting to existential limits. Symbolic heroism is the attempt to overcome the fear of death through participation in cultural systems that endow life with meaning and create the illusion of immortality. The individual seeks ways to become part of something greater, something that will outlast their physical death. This may take the form of art, science, religion, political movements, or social institutions (Becker, 2019).
Becker argues that culture, at its core, is a heroic system designed to shield the individual from the terror of death. Culture creates symbols and myths that promise immortality through belonging to something eternal. For example, an artist may seek immortality in their works, a scientist in their discoveries, and a soldier in the defense of their homeland.
As Becker writes: “Culture is in its essence a heroic system that allows us to believe we transcend death by participating in something eternal.”
Thus, symbolic heroism allows the individual to adapt to existential limits by creating an illusion of control and stability. Cultural systems offer pathways to transcendence that divert the mind from the recognition of life’s finitude.
Types of Mental Models of Immortality
Becker identifies several types of immortality models that help the individual cope with the fear of death:
– Biological immortality. The desire to leave behind offspring as a way of extending one’s existence through genetic continuity. Children become symbols of life’s continuity despite personal mortality.
– Symbolic immortality. The creation of works of art, scientific discoveries, or social achievements that will outlive the individual. This model allows one to feel part of history and culture.
– Ego-centric immortality. The pursuit of fame and recognition as a way to generate the illusion of personal immortality. This may be expressed in striving for leadership, success, or leaving a legacy in the memory of others.
– Theological immortality. Belief in an afterlife or eternal soul as a means of overcoming the fear of death. Religious convictions create a sense of meaning and hope for the continuation of existence after physical death.
These models of immortality help the individual adapt to existential limits, preserving a sense of meaning and predictability in an unpredictable world.
Symbolic and Genuine Heroism
Although symbolic heroism helps manage the fear of death, Becker notes that it is based on self-deception. Cultural and religious systems offer illusory solutions that do not eliminate death itself but merely distract from its implementation. Symbolic heroism allows the individual to temporarily suppress anxiety but does not resolve the deeper existential conflict. As Becker observes:
“The irony of human existence is that the deepest need is to be free from the anxiety of death; but it is life itself which awakens it, and so we must shrink from being fully alive.”