Free Will

By: Sam Harris

Narrated by: Sam Harris

Length: 1 hr and 14 mins

Publisher's summary

A belief in free will touches nearly everything that human beings value. It is difficult to think about law, politics, religion, public policy, intimate relationships, morality—as well as feelings of remorse or personal achievement—without first imagining that every person is the true source of his or her thoughts and actions. And yet the facts tell us that free will is an illusion.

In this enlightening book, Sam Harris argues that this truth about the human mind does not undermine morality or diminish the importance of social and political freedom, but it can and should change the way we think about some of the most important questions in life.

©2012 Sam Harris (P)2012 Simon & Schuster

Critic reviews

"Free will is an illusion so convincing that people simply refuse to believe that we don’t have it. In Free Will, Sam Harris combines neuroscience and psychology to lay this illusion to rest at last. Like all of Harris’s books, this one will not only unsettle you but make you think deeply. Read it: you have no choice." (Jerry A. Coyne, Professor of Ecology and Evolution, University of Chicago, and author of Why Evolution Is True)

"In this elegant and provocative book, Sam Harris demonstrates—with great intellectual ferocity and panache—that free will is an inherently flawed and incoherent concept, even in subjective terms. If he is right, the book will radically change the way we view ourselves as human beings." (V. S. Ramachandran, Director of the Center for Brain and Cognition, UCSD, and author of The Tell-Tale Brain)

"Brilliant and witty—and never less than incisive— Free Will shows that Sam Harris can say more in 13,000 words than most people do in 100,000." (Oliver Sacks)

fascinating

Really goes in depth and uses really good examples for his claim. Highly recommend it.

Fascinating

Sam Harris always has inventive and out of the box theories that make you question everything you think you know. This is another fascinating listen, and he interprets it clearly and enthusiastically. Would recommend to anyone interested in the topic, or just wanting to learn something new and interesting.

Concise novel laying out thoughts and interesting take on consciousness and free will

Sam Harris manages to lay out quite a lot of information and arguments for and against the idea of free will in this 1.5 hour audiobook.

Short but interesting

Pretty good book, definitely worth the 1 hour listen time, lots of things to think over and discuss with friends.

Difficult concepts to grasp.

I found this book rather hard to fully understand. I am convinced of the general concept as my ingrained beliefs regarding free will were easily demolished by Harris. It is a short book that could have been shorter. I would never the less still recommend this book.

I wanted more

touches on interesting topics but really just a cursory overview and highly observational. I wanted a deeper dive on each topic and reference to other research/ theories

Terrific!

See if you are drawn toward purchasing this book. If you are, notice whether or not you encounter resistance. There was none here, and now there is happiness over how all this transpired.

Food for thought

Just listen and move on. The story is short and more than enough to reach the goal. After listening, I am want to feel that I can keep my free will but better said, I am trying now to shape my future actions. Thanks Sam!

Thought Provoking

This is a fantastically thought provoking essay. It might have changed my mind on what free will is. It makes me want to read more literature on the topic, which, in a sense, is the biggest accomplishment of any essay. It’s easily understood, concise, and worth your time

Do I have a choice to write this review?

How anyone can dispute the points Harris makes in this book is beyond me. Really good book about a complex topic. Sam makes many attempts to illustrate the illusion of free will. I think I understood his arguments and can acknowledge the strong possibly that I have no free will, yet it still feels like I make independent choices everyday. This book will be replayed several times and I plan to discuss it with friends. Thanks Dr. Harris. Please continue to do what you do.