[js1138]

With regard to consciousness, in the absence of interactive language (comprehension, decision making and response) - with the "lesser" brains to determine the existence of free will, I'm not sure how else one would proceed.

You're not going to like my response to this, but I don't think free will is exclusive to humans. What makes humans special is not free will, but the ability to "predict" the future, a faculty that is greatly enhanced by language. "Lower" animals have some ability to predict the future -- cats, dog, chimps to varying degrees evaluate their situations and anticipate consequences. But humans can tell stories about actions and consequences, and pass these stories on to future generations. Their range of freedom is greatly enhanced by this. But anticipation is at the heart of whatever we mean by free will. Having one's behavior affected by the future is a pretty amazing thing -- it certainly has the apearance of detaching one from cause and effect -- but it is not exclusively human.

[js1138]

Eagerly awaiting flames...

[Alamo-Girl]

Thank you for your post!

I don't think free will is exclusive to humans. What makes humans special is not free will, but the ability to "predict" the future, a faculty that is greatly enhanced by language.

I disagree, but certainly you are welcome to your views.

In my view, man alone is sentient, has free will and consciousness. The Bible, in Hebrew describes it this way:

And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living (chay) creature (nephesh) after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind: and it was so. - Genesis 1:24

And the LORD God formed man [of] the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath (neshamah) of life (chay); and man became a living (chay) soul (nephesh). – Genesis 2:7

In other words, man and beast share the nephesh – the animal soul, but man alone the neshamah.

[edsheppa]

I don't think free will is exclusive to humans

Absolutely, as anyone with a dog or cat knows.

What makes humans special is ... the ability to "predict" the future

I'd put it differently - we're just a lot smarter. Even without language we'd be top of the heap.

a faculty that is greatly enhanced by language

Not so sure about that. I think language is more of an output. I'm sure most if not all of our thinking is unconscious.

However at a species level, and maybe this is what you meant, our much greater capacity for culture, in which language plays a central role, puts us far beyond our fellows.