None of Our Choices are Truly Our Own

In class, we are debating between fate and free will. While it is a highly debated topic, I think that none of our choices are really our own. It’s not that I believe in fate because of some mystical being. It's more that I believe that we are just products of our own environment making choices influenced by our surroundings. 

There is a book called The Other Wes Moore, which explores how two people with the exact same name, Wes Moore, who lived in different environments became so different. Despite having the same name and being born within a year of each other, one Wes Moore became a successful combat veteran, White House Fellow and Business leader while the other Wes Moore is currently rotting in jail. It goes to show that people’s environments truly affect the outcomes of their lives. The choices each Wes Moore made were influenced by the circumstances of their surroundings. For example, it was the first Wes Moore’s mother that forced him to go into the military which set his life down a track of success. On the other hand, the other Wes Moore’s mother was too busy to take care of him, so he turned to a life of crime and drug dealing in order to get enough money. 

I reflect on this in my own life. Most of the decisions I have made were influenced by others around me. Had my dad not taken me to see Star Wars in 5th grade, I would not have made a crappy Star Wars Fan Film and I would not be passionate about film now. Had my mom not forced me to run track in sixth grade, I would not be on the cross country team right now. Every choice that I have made has been due to other factors in my life. While I believe that my choices are my own, I also believe that they are the culmination of everything that has led up to that point in my life. 

Even the fact that I am in this class is a combination of decisions that were made influenced by other people. I originally was going to drop out of Honors English freshman year, but it was only because my sister told me to stay in honors for one more year. After Sophomore year, I decided to take AP Lang only because I felt like I was lagging behind in intelligence compared to my friends. After Junior year I decided to just stick with the “Honors English” track and stay in AP Lit. Even though those were conscious decisions of free will I made, they were all influenced by something in my environment or in my past.