<p>Assignment: What is your opinion of the claim that there is no such thing as free choice, that to some degree, we are always bound by the rules of the society?</p>
<p>Free choice is inexistent in society. This notion is supported by several examples from literature, economics, and psychology.</p>
<p>The lack of free choice is depicted in George Orwells novel, 1984. The novel portrays how the society is divided into three social classes: the Inner Party, the Outer Party, and the Proles. The Outer Party members and the Proles, no matter how hard the try, cannot ameliorate their standard of living and become a part of Inner Party. Thus, they have no choice to change their lives. Moreover, the Outer Part members are under surveillance all the time through a telescreen, which can never be switched off. They dont even have the liberty of thinking, and the Thought Police is always on a look out for Thought Criminals. Overall, the novel portrays the absence of free will and how it devastated the lives of the Outer Party members and the proles. The Inner Party makes them do, what is essential to maintain its sovereign rule and in such circumstances, free will is out of question. Although it is fiction, 1984 relates to the lack of free choice in the real to a considerable extent.</p>
<p>Similarly, in economics, the concept of command economy demonstrates the lack of free will in society. In pure command economy, people have to do the jobs allotted to them by the government and thus, they cannot follow their passions and interests. The industries cannot produce goods and services which the government doesnt want them to. Moreover, Rationing Mechanism is employed, whereby a person gets a quota of different goods and services, based on his family size, age and marital status, and thus, has no choice of consuming luxurious goods. Pure command economy exists only in theory, but all economies have a degree of public sector involvement and so, people are not completely free. Its the economic principles set by government that govern what thy do and consume.</p>
<p>The free will of researches is limited by the ethical guidelines, set by Psychological Society. The experimenters are supposed to follow certain guidelines when carrying out studies. They have to seek informed consent of the participants and protect them from physical and emotional harm. Thus, a study breaking one or more of the ethical guidelines cannot be carried out. For example, a study which involves severely electrocuting the participants should be deemed as too unethical to be carried out. Thus, the researchers are bound by the ethical guidelines.</p>
<p>Indeed, free will is inexistent in society. Our actions and even thoughts are governed by the rules and guidelines set by government and other institutions.</p>