What is the practical importance of facts about our identity and persistence?
Why should we care about it?
Why does it matter?
Imagine that surgeons are going to put your brain into my head, and that neither of us has any choice about this. Will the resulting person—who will presumably think he is you—be responsible for my actions, or for yours? (Or both? Or neither?)
Suppose he will be in terrible pain after the operation unless one of us pays a large sum in advance. If we were both entirely selfish, which of us would have a reason to pay?
Zubia on Hume and liberalism
9 hours ago
Identity is the only definition that human can have about themselves. It's basically who you are, what is your purpose and why.
ReplyDeleteWe can say every single person searches it's own identity through life, because it identifies us, differentiate us as unique creatures, even if we are of the same species.
That's why each of us have to care about it. It's a concept involved in us and matters because otherwise the purpose of our life would be void! By knowing our identity we can get some useful and practical answers, as which orientation would take our future. Therefore it's an important item when making decisions.
In the example of the surgery, the brain and the body (if they accept each other) will work as one, so it can't be said that one of us will be the responsible of the actions. Is likely to think I will be responsible because my brain commands the body. But the brain acts within the boundaries of the body's abilities. It adapts to the circumstance. So neither of us will be responsible of the new person's actions, because it's a new person.
And that implies both (or neither) of us will have a reason to pay. The new individual is a mix of two people but acting as a selfish being.
He will have his own identity. Even if his parts were ours.