The presence of time vs free will is present in a few other stories by Ted Chiang. However, I read it somewhat differently. (Even though myself I am agnostic when it comes to free will.)
It is not that free will does not exist. It is that free will is a perspective (i.e. not something true or false), one mutually exclusive with knowledge of the future. It is like the rotation of an object, which one we can see only one of its facets. In "The story..." Louise learning the different perspective is gradual.
To some extent, it matches some other tropes like Lovecraftian that learning about the Great Old Ones brings insanity. Or maybe it's not that it fries one's mind, but rather - give a perspective incompatible with everyday human thinking.
It is not that free will does not exist. It is that free will is a perspective (i.e. not something true or false), one mutually exclusive with knowledge of the future. It is like the rotation of an object, which one we can see only one of its facets. In "The story..." Louise learning the different perspective is gradual.
To some extent, it matches some other tropes like Lovecraftian that learning about the Great Old Ones brings insanity. Or maybe it's not that it fries one's mind, but rather - give a perspective incompatible with everyday human thinking.