The whole universe is a deterministic system in which man is one small part of the great machine. In this view man has no freedom or dignity, nor is there moral meaning to man or his history. This is such a complete denial of the meaning of human life that some have rebelled against it by going to the opposite extreme. Rather than believe in a universe in which everything is mechanically determined, some appeal to modern physics, especially quantum mechanics, to find support for a universe in which chance is ultimate. In this view freedom is restored to man, but it is the freedom of randomness.
Human choice is always a mere matter of whim.
There is no ultimate explanation of man or of history. In the end man is meaningless, just as in the deterministic view. In stead of man as a small part of the universe as machine, we are only offered man as part of the universe as St. Vitus dance. These first two views give us a choice between being a gear or a spastic convulsion. When determinism is uncomfortable, run to chance for help.