The problem of determinism arises in all the major areas of philosophy. From prophecy in Homer to sociobiology, the idea of inevitability has exerted a powerful influence on the course of philosophical thought. The first part of this book is a critical and historical exposition of the problem and important ideas and arguments which have arisen over the many years of debate. In the second, the author considers the various forms of determinism and the implications that they engender. He argues against the widespread assumption that quantum mechanics has disposed of the implications of determinism, and proposes that far from settling the question of the truth of determinism it has raised new issues for the moral question of human responsibility. Causation, God, free will, behaviourism, probability and personal identity are among the standard philosophical issues considered. Professor Weatherford interweaves themes from metaphysics, ethics, religion, common sense and quantum physics in this examination of determinism.