Live like a big in amber

Leanna Flexo '24

Content Editor

Merriam Webster defines free will as a voluntary choice or decision not determined by prior causes or divine intervention. People live their lives believing they have free will to do what they want when they want to, but it really is an illusion of control. 

Our lives revolve around the concept of time. Whether that means checking the time in class until it ends, or racing to school to get there by 8:30 a.m., we are always following the flow of time without even realizing it. Of course, people possess the free will to choose if they want to follow the course of time or not, but it is not necessarily about racing against time. Time dictates our lives because it will move on regardless of whether or not we are late for school or cannot finish that one homework assignment. 

There is not really a way to get out of time, as humans can’t necessarily stop or slow time. This lack of control is what humans struggle to grasp. They embody the concept of free will as a way to comfort themselves into believing they possess control over their lives. People let the concept of free will dictate their perception of time, when in reality, it is the other way around. 

The ironic part about peoples’ opinion on time and free will is that they like thinking they have free will, yet they also say phrases such as “everything happens for a reason,” “that’s life” or my personal favorite, “it is what it is.” People like the idea of free will, except when something bad or troublesome happens in their life. Instead of accepting that they have the power to do something, they surrender their free will because they simply don’t want to find the answer or have a reason. 

When life is good, people like to think they’re in control. However, when life doesn't go how people want it to, they leave it up to time to figure it out. This idea essentially reveals a paradox regarding this topic, as people’s opinions of free will and time contradict themselves. People can control how they use time but also like the idea that time is relative, and we simply are not affected by it. In a sense, both time and free will supply people with the comfort they need–sometimes people want to feel in control and other times they like the lack of control. 

Vonnegut’s novel completely disregards the idea of free will, and ultimately reveals the idea that people live like “bugs in amber,” as he put it. Amber is a sticky substance, like honey. Bugs can easily get strapped in the amber, not being able to move. People are like bugs in amber because they cannot go forward or back in time, they are stuck in the present. 

As a result, the only thing one can do is to live in the present moment, enjoying life as it comes. People should surrender to that need to control their lives and have free will and completely let time flow. Free will and time are essentially synonymous with one another, not two separate things. Living in the present, not focusing too much on the past or future, will allow one to prosper and embrace life as a whole. 

Fear of the unknown that lies ahead, or trauma from the past will only weigh down your life further. By letting the past and future bleed into your present life, you sabotage your own happiness. The only way to truly be happy is to let go of any anxiety or trauma, and fully surrender to time. In order to comprehend time, one has to live like a “bug in amber.” 

People truly do possess free will over their actions or opinions in the present moment, but cannot change the future or the past no matter what they do. Regardless of the decisions you made or what the outcome could be, free will lies only in the present moment, so take advantage of it.