a person is ultimately morally responsible for what she has done only if she could have done otherwise.
Once Lisa the skydiver jumps out her plane, it is (logically) possible that she float in midair rather than fall. But it’s not in her power to do so: the world in which Lisa floats is not accessible to her.
Freedom Condition: a person is morally responsible for what she has done only if she did it freely.
Similar lessons can be drawn from cases of manipulation, in which agents are influenced through physical or psychological means. Examples of the latter include brainwashing, hypnosis, and duress. One might also include more high-tech examples in which the manipulation occurs via direct control of the victim’s brain.
ome event in your life, that is, doesn’t count as something you did unless an alternative was within your power.
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