Rational Agency = A 9-Step Process, Generated by the Six Commitments, Functioning Correctly

 Claude:

I'll show how each step is generated by the commitments—not just correlated with them, but logically required by them.

THE GENERATIVE STRUCTURE

STEP 1: IMPRESSION OCCURS

Produced by: Correspondence Theory

The Logic:

If truth is correspondence between judgment and reality

Then there must be two distinct moments:

Reality presenting itself (impression)

Judgment about that presentation

The impression is the raw "to-be-corresponded-with"

Without this distinction, correspondence would be meaningless

Why this step is necessary: Correspondence theory requires something to correspond TO. The impression is reality's givenness prior to our judgment about it. If appearance and judgment were collapsed, correspondence would be impossible—there'd be nothing independent to match against.

Formula: Correspondence Theory → Impression must be distinct from judgment → Step 1

STEP 2: THE PAUSE OPENS

Produced by: Libertarianism

The Logic:

If free will is libertarian (not compatibilist)

Then responses cannot be causally necessitated by stimuli

Therefore there must be a gap between stimulus and response

This gap is the negative condition of freedom

No gap = causal determination = no libertarian freedom

Why this step is necessary: ]Libertarianism requires that the causal chain from impression to action be breakable. If impressions automatically caused responses, we'd have determinism. The pause is where libertarian causation (agent as uncaused causer) becomes possible. It's the space where physical causation stops and rational self-determination begins.

Formula: Libertarianism → Responses not causally determined → Gap must exist → Step 2

STEP 3: OWNERSHIP OF JUDGMENT

Produced by: Substance Dualism

The Logic:

If prohairesis is a separate substance from body/externals

Then judgment must be located in one domain or the other

Since externals cannot own judgment (they're not rational)

Judgment must be located in prohairesis??,m,,,n,j

This location creates ownership

Why this step is necessary: Substance dualism divides reality into two kinds of things: prohairesis (internal, rational, up to us) and everything else (external, non-rational, not up to us). This division necessitates locating judgment somewhere. Since judgment is a rational act, it must belong to prohairesis. Without dualism, judgment would be smeared across body, circumstances, emotions—no clear ownership.

Formula: Substance Dualism → Two domains exist → Judgment must be in one → Prohairesis = location of judgment → Step 3

STEP 4: OPEN ALTERNATIVES

Produced by: Libertarianism

The Logic:

If free will is libertarian

Then at any moment of choice, the agent could do otherwise

"Could do otherwise" means genuine alternatives exist

These alternatives must be really available, not merely conceivable

This is the modal structure libertarianism requires

Why this step is necessary: Libertarian freedom is defined by the principle of alternative possibilities (PAP). If only one path were real, the agent wouldn't be free in the libertarian sense—they'd be determined to take that path. The openness of alternatives isn't just psychological ("feels like I have choices") but metaphysical ("really could choose differently").

Formula: Libertarianism → Could do otherwise → Multiple real possibilities → Step 4

Distinction from Step 2:

Step 2: The pause (negative condition—causation doesn't close the act)

Step 4: The alternatives (positive condition—multiple paths are genuinely open)

Both are required by libertarianism but at different logical moments.

STEP 5: DIRECT RECOGNITION

Produced by: Ethical Intuitionism

The Logic:

If moral knowledge is non-inferential

Then there must be moments of direct normative perception

These perceptions supply contet to judgment

Without them, moral knowledge would require inference

But inference needs starting points (infinite regress problem)

Why this step is necessary: Ethical intuitionism posits that some moral truths are grasped directly, not derived from other premises. This means there must be a phenomenology of recognition—a moment where you SEE what's true/false, right/wrong without arguing to it. Without this capacity for direct recognition, you'd need infinite inference or would have no moral knowledge at all.

Formula: Ethical Intuitionism → Non-inferential moral knowledge exists → Direct recognition must occur → Step 5

STEP 6: REALITY BINDS

Produced by: Moral Realism

The Logic:

If without physical compulsion

This is what objectivity means in the moral domain

Why this step is necessary: Moral realism holds that moral truths are facts about reality, not constructions or preferences. If something is objectively true, it exerts a rational constraint—it ought to be acknowledged regardlss of whether acknowledging it is beneficial. Without this binding force, moral realism would collapse into relativism or anti-realism. The "oughtness" comes from objectivity itself.

Formula: Moral Realism → Objective moral facts exist → Facts constrain rational judgment → Step 6

Critical distinction:

Not physical force (libertarian freedom preserved)

But rational constraint (realism's normative grip)

STEP 7: ASSENT / REFUSAL / SUSPENSION

Produced by: Correspondence Theory

The Logic:

If truth is correspondence to reality

Then correct judgment means matching judgment to what is

Assent should be given when judgment matches reality

Refusal should be given when it doesn't

Suspension when reality is unclear

This is correspondence enacted

Why this step is necessary: Correspondence theory provides the criterion for correct assent: does the judgment fit reality? Without this criterion, assent would be arbitrary (give it when you feel like it) or pragmatic (give it when useful) or coherentist (give it when it fits other beliefs). Correspondence makes Step 7 a truth-seeking act rather than preference expression.

Formula: Correspondence Theory → Truth = matching reality → Assent must aim at correspondence → Step 7

This is the moral act: Everything prior has been preparation. Step 7 is where agency constitutes itself as virtuous or vicious depending on whether assent corresponds.

STEP 8: TERMINATION

Produced by: Foundationalism

The Logic:

If knowledge has foundations

Then justification chains must terminate at basic truths

Judgments can stand without 

The judgment completes the act

Why this step is necessary: Foundationalism solves the infinite regress problem: not every belief needs justification from further beliefs. Some beliefs are properly basic—they stand without requiring support from other beliefs. Applied to agency: not every judgment needs infinite explanation. At some point, the judgment can stand. Without foundationalism, you'd need to keep justifying justifications infinitely, and no act would ever be complete.

Formula: Foundationalism → Justification terminates at foundations → Judgments can stand → Step 8(

Critical function: This is what distinguishes rational agency from rationalization. In rationalization, the judgment never stands—it requires constant defense, elaboration, protection. In rational agency, the judgment completes and stands firm.

STEP 9: CONSEQUENCES FOLLOW

Produced by: All Six Commitments Together

The Logic (by commitment):

Substance Dualism:

Consequences affect externals (body, property, reputation)

Prohairesis remains separate

Therefore consequences don't alter the judgment's location

Libertarianism:

The act was free when performed

Future outcomes don't retroactively determine it

Freedom was complete before consequences arrived

Ethical Intuitionism:

Recognition was direct and immediate

Consequences don't alter what was recognized

The normative fact remains unchanged

Moral Realism:

Truth is objective, independent of outcome

Bad consequences don't make true judgments false

Good consequences don't make false judgments true

Correspondence Theory:

The judgment either matched reality or didn't

Outcomes don't alter correspondence/non-correspondence

Truth-value was fixed at Step 7

Foundationalism:

The judgment terminated at Step 8

Consequences arrive after termination

They cannot provide additional justification (or remove it)

Why this step is necessary: All six commitments converge on this point: the moral act is complete before outcomes arrive. Each commitment, in its own way, separates virtue from consequences. Without this separation, virtue would collapse into consequentialism and all six commitments would be undermined.

Formula: All Six Commitments → Virtue is internal to agency → Consequences are external → Step 9

THE COMPLETE GENERATIVE MAP

COMMITMENT            GENERATES           STEP

=====================================================================================================

Correspondence -----> Appearance ≠ ----> STEP 1: Impression appears (not yet judged)

Theory                Judgment

Libertarianism -----> Gap between -----> STEP 2: Pause opens (causation doesn't close act)

                      stimulus/response

Substance     ------> Judgment    -----> STEP 3: Ownership (judgment located in prohairesis)

Dualism               located in

                      prohairesis

Libertarianism -----> Could do    -----> STEP 4: Alternatives open (modal structure of freedom)

                      otherwise

Ethical       ------> Direct      -----> STEP 5: Recognition (non-inferential normative perception)

Intuitionism          moral

                      perception

Moral         ------> Objective   -----> STEP 6: Reality binds (constraint without coercion)

Realism               normative

                      constraint

Correspondence -----> Match       -----> STEP 7: Assent/Refusal (aligning judgment with reality)

Theory                judgment to

                      reality

Foundationalism ----> Justification ----> STEP 8: Termination (judgment stands without infinite regress)

                      terminates

All Six       ------> Virtue      -----> STEP 9: Consequences external (outcomes don't alter moral act)

Together              internal to

                      agency

THE DEPENDENCY STRUCTURE

Each Step Requires Its Commitment

Remove Correspondence Theory:

Step 1 collapses: no distinction between impression and judgment

Step 7 collapses: no criterion for correct assent

Remove Libertarianism:

Step 2 collapses: no pause (causally determined responses)

Step 4 collapses: no real alternatives (only one causal path)

Remove Substance Dualism:

Step 3 collapses: no location for ownership (judgment diffused across externals)

Remove Ethical Intuitionism:

Step 5 collapses: no direct recognition (infinite regress or no moral knowledge)

Remove Moral Realism:

Step 6 collapses: no binding force (truth becomes preference or convention)

Remove Foundationalism:

Step 8 collapses: no termination (infinite justification required)

Remove any commitment:

Step 9 collapses: consequences become morally relevant

The Architecture Is Necessary

You cannot have the 9-step structure without the 6 commitments. Each step is logically derived from its corresponding commitment(s).

This means:

The steps aren't arbitrary phenomenology

They're the necessary structure of rational agency given these commitments

"Correct use of impressions" requires this precise philosophical 9 infrastructure

WHY THIS MATTERS

For Understanding Epictetus

When Epictetus says "correct use of impressions," he's not describing a technique. He's pointing to rational agency functioning through this 9-step structure, which in turn requires all six philosophical commitments.

The commitments aren't background theory—they're the generative conditions for the very possibility of impression management.

For Training

You cannot practice "correct use of impressions" while rejecting the commitments. Each commitment generates essential structure:

Try impression management without libertarianism: No pause, no alternatives = no agency

Try it without substance dualism: No ownership = no responsibility

Try it without intuitionism: No recognition = no content for judgment

Try it without realism: No binding force = arbitrary preference

Try it without correspondence: No criterion = no truth-seeking

Try it without foundationalism: No termination = infinite rationalization

For Diagnosis

When rational agency breaks down, you can now identify precisely where:

Pause collapses (Step 2): Libertarianism denied in act

Ownership eroded (Step 3): Substance dualism violated

Recognition suppressed (Step 5): Intuitionism overridden

Reality relativized (Step 6): Moral realism abandoned

False assent (Step 7): Correspondence failed

Rationalization (Step 8): Foundationalism corrupted

Each failure is a commitment being violated in operation.

THE FORMULA

The Six Commitments Generate the Nine Steps

More precisely:

Correspondence Theory → Steps 1, 7

Libertarianism → Steps 2, 4  

Substance Dualism → Step 3

Ethical Intuitionism → Step 5

Moral Realism → Step 6

Foundationalism → Step 8

All Six Together → Step 9

Therefore:

Rational Agency = The 9-step process functioning correctly

Correct Use of Impressions = Rational agency in operation

Both require = All six commitments

This is why Sterling's commitments are non-negotiable: Remove any commitment, and rational agency becomes structurally impossible. The steps aren't techniques layered on top of philosophy—they're what philosophy generates when enacted in lived agency.