“Our passional nature not only lawfully may, but must, decide an option between propositions, whenever it is a genuine option that cannot by its nature be decided on intellectual grounds.”
—
William James
The Will to Believe and Other Essays in Popular Philosophy (1897), Essay 1
Commentary
James defends the rationality of faith in matters undecidable by evidence: God's existence, free will, the reality of moral values. When evidence is unavailable and the decision is consequential ('genuinely optional'), belief itself becomes the arbiter. This challenges the rigid empiricism of his era.
The radical claim: not all beliefs await sufficient evidence. Some beliefs are 'self-fulfilling' (faith in one's ability to succeed changes outcomes), and some truths about meaning and purpose cannot be discovered before committing to them. This influenced existentialism and later philosophy of religion. Critics argue this opens the door to irrationalism; James responds that the 'will to believe' applies only to genuinely undecidable questions and only if the belief has positive consequences.
Commentary
James defends the rationality of faith in matters undecidable by evidence: God's existence, free will, the reality of moral values. When evidence is unavailable and the decision is consequential ('genuinely optional'), belief itself becomes the arbiter. This challenges the rigid empiricism of his era.
The radical claim: not all beliefs await sufficient evidence. Some beliefs are 'self-fulfilling' (faith in one's ability to succeed changes outcomes), and some truths about meaning and purpose cannot be discovered before committing to them. This influenced existentialism and later philosophy of religion. Critics argue this opens the door to irrationalism; James responds that the 'will to believe' applies only to genuinely undecidable questions and only if the belief has positive consequences.