The term free will is used commonly as a simple concept. However, as a philosophical term, free will has been, for centuries, an issue debated between the most renowned and respected philosophers. From a simplified, philosophical standpoint, free will is a capacity of rational agents to choose a course of action from among various alternatives. It is agreed by most philosophers that free will is also very closely connected to the notion of moral responsibility. Therefore, acting on free will is to satisfy the metaphysical requirement of being responsible for one's own actions. The significance of free will, however, is not only based on it's relationship with moral responsibility. It is a condition of one's accomplishments, of autonomy, of dignity and on the value we place on love and friendship.
Philosophers frequently distinguish between freedom of action and freedom of will due to the fact that our success in carrying out our actions is often dependent
completely or in part on factors that are beyond our control. Additionally, there are always constraints external from our power that limit our range of options for realistic undertaking. This means that there is a division between that which we may be willing to do and that which we are capable of doing. René Descartes is a prime example of the division between freedom of will and freedom of choice in his declaration that "the will is by nature so free that it can never be constrained" (Descartes: Passions of the Soul, I, art 41.) and therefore the constraints must be laid on the freedom of choice. This theory was continued through the prominent, philosophic academics Suarez and John Duns Scotus (Naturalism.org: 2002).