16032x
Seminar
WiSe 23/24: Personal Identity and Reductionism (Englisch)
Mihnea Chiujdea
Kommentar
What is it that makes one the same person today that they were yesterday or that they will be
in the future? This is the question of personal identity over time (QoPIoT), which translates into
a search for a necessary and sufficient condition that, when fulfilled, a person is identical with
herself at two points in time. The first unit of the seminar traces the roots of the question in the
history of philosophy. It starts with a look at René Descartes’ substantial account of the self. It
then moves to John Locke, who distinguishes between souls and persons, arguing that the
latter is a matter of psychological continuity. It then moves to the claim that Locke’s treatment
of personal identity is circular, which was furthered by Joseph Butler and Thomas Reid. Finally,
it addresses David Hume’s scepticism about personal identity and his bundle theory of the
mind. In the second unit we will look at reductionism, one of the most radical and innovative
contemporary approaches to the QoPIoT, advanced by Derek Parfit. In a nutshell, Parfit claims
that persons exist, but they are not additional entities to bodies, brains and a series of
interconnected mental events; personal identity is not a further fact and reality can be
described in an impersonal way; personal identity does not matter. Parfit revised and refined
this account continuously, the most important addition being that of distinguishing between
reductionism about personal identity and reductionism about the importance of personal
identity. In the last unit of the seminar, we will address this issue in Parfit’s response to Mark
Johnston. The seminar will take place in English. Schließen
15 Termine
Regelmäßige Termine der Lehrveranstaltung
Do, 19.10.2023 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 26.10.2023 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 02.11.2023 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 09.11.2023 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 23.11.2023 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 30.11.2023 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 07.12.2023 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 14.12.2023 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 21.12.2023 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 11.01.2024 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 18.01.2024 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 25.01.2024 16:00 - 20:00
Do, 01.02.2024 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 08.02.2024 16:00 - 18:00
Do, 15.02.2024 16:00 - 18:00