"Do humans really have so-called... free will?"
Arthur's voice was not loud, but it was so clear that it seemed that he was not only asking Lorenzo, but also Anthony beside him.
This is a somewhat strange combination, three people with different identities, positions, and interests, now discussing... philosophical things for overlapping purposes, and a few minutes ago, the three of them almost drew their swords against each other and started a fight on the streets of Old Dunling.
"Actually, regardless of our various positions, we all have at least one common goal, which is to figure out what demons are, right?"
Arthur continued.
"We, the Purification Agency, have studied this from a rational perspective for a long time, and we have discovered that the demonic invasion seems to be related to the so-called spirit, and you also know this information, Lorenzo.
They did an interesting experiment, probably an extension of the 'conditioned reflex' experiment, which is called 'operant conditioning'. They locked a mouse in a box completely free from external interference and trained it to press a red button to get food.
But as the experiment progressed, they made the reward of pressing the button longer, perhaps more than ten times to release food. In this case, the mouse gave up and stopped pressing the button. But when the release of food became random, the experimental results changed. The mouse didn't know how many times it had to press the button before the food appeared, maybe a few times, or maybe dozens or hundreds of times, but this time it didn't give up, but continued to press the button persistently. "
Apart from the pouring rain and the roar of the iron snake, the only voice left in the iron snake was Arthur's. He whispered about the strange experiment. Lorenzo still had a blank expression on his face, but Anthony looked a little curious. In Florence, which is named after faith, so-called rationality is heresy.
"The results of the experiment are very interesting. Every time the mouse presses the button, it is a reinforcement, constantly strengthening the belief that 'as long as you press it, there will be food'. The mouse has no wisdom, only instinct, and it attributes this power that goes against instinct to instinct...
Mr. Lorenzo Holmes, don’t you think this is very similar to us humans?”
The air inside the sealed iron snake became dull and depressing, as if from the moment Arthur described the experiment, the three of them had become mice in a box, trapped inside.
“Why do we do so many stupid things, knowing clearly that there will be no reward, but still persisting in them meaninglessly?”
Anthony's expression also became serious. As the current head of the church, he knew very well that the so-called faith was nothing more than a tool to control the ignorance of the lower classes. But in Arthur's story, he heard something different.
"Yes, actually this thing can be switched. We become mice in a box, and from time to time iron spears will fall from outside the box to kill other mice. We are very scared, but as long as we keep pressing the red button, the iron spears will not fall.
In fact, it should no longer be called a button at this point. It should be more specifically divided. The action we press is worship, and the squeaking sound is the recitation of holy texts. As long as we stare at the button called 'God', the iron spear will not fall... "