Free will versus determinism
The question of whether choices are genuinely free or predetermined by fate, biology, prophecy, or social forces.
Free will versus determinism in fiction: 10 works
Psychohistory predicts civilization's course statistically, pitting mass determinism against individual action.
Precognitive arrests for crimes not yet committed pit predicted fate against choice.
Human history is revealed as manipulated toward a trivial alien errand, mocking free will.
Alex's forced reconditioning asks whether goodness without the freedom to choose evil is real.
Paul's prescient visions trap him in a foreseen jihad he cannot avert.
The Tralfamadorian view that all moments already exist denies the possibility of choice.
Foreknowledge of her daughter's fate raises whether she is free to choose otherwise.
Arrests for predicted future murders pit foreseen fate against the possibility of choice.
The characters struggle to change a foreseen future that seems bent on repeating.
Foreknowledge of grief to come poses whether she is free to choose it anyway.