Derek parfit was among the first contemporary theorists to explore the relation between identity and ethics explicitly, first in his seminal early 1970s articles, personal identity and especially later selves and moral principles, and then in his restatement and development of the view in part iii of his 1984 book reasons and. Derek parfit oxford university abstract this article has no associated abstract. In identity and spatiotemporal continuity oxford, 1967, p. His views on personal identity transformed how it is understood and used in philosophy, especially ethics. This follows, he thinks, from the results of certain thought experimentssuch as one put forth by david wigginswhich seem to suggest that it is possible for a to survive into the future even if nobody will be identical to a at that time. My life seemed like a glass tunnel, through which i was moving faster every year, and at the end of which there was darkness. In fact, his reductionist view of the self, first outlined in reasons and persons in 1984, hoped to have. Pdf this paper reevaluates derek parfit s attack on the commonly held view that personal identity is necessarily determinate and that it is what. It is the longawaited followup to derek parfit s 1984 book reasons and persons, one of the landmarks of twentiethcentury philosophy. Bernard williams personal identity lrb 7 june 1984. At last the horizon appears free to us again, evengranted that it is not. Parfit in response to lockes theory of personal identity. Derek parfit project gutenberg selfpublishing ebooks.
The two pieces of brain are then housed in two different bodies. This book challenges, with several powerful arguments, some of our deepest beliefs about rationality, morality, and personal identity. Removing identity from persons derek parfit humanities. Download reasons and persons pdf ebook reasons and persons reasons and persons ebook author by robert e. Reasons and persons is a philosophical work by derek parfit, first published in 1984. For any possible population of at least ten billion people, all with a very high quality of life, there must be some much larger imaginable population whose existence, if other things are equal, would be better even though its members have lives that are barely worth living parfit 1984. Rationality and reasons derek parfit when ingmar and i discuss metaphysics or morality, our views are seldom far apart. Personal identity and applied ethics introduces and examines different conceptions of the self, our nature, and personal identity and considers the implications of these for applied ethics. This thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the graduate.
Derek parfit, born december 11, 1942, chengdu, chinadied january 1, 2017, london, england, english philosopher whose work in normative ethics and metaethics, personal identity, and the theory of practical reason was widely influential in the englishspeaking world from the 1980s. In a fission scenario, both jay and bob have the same quality of autobiographical memory. Personal identity by derek parfit 1907 words 8 pages. Part one discusses some ways in which theories about morality and rationality can be self. Pdf commentary about derek parfits book reasons and. Not many books reset the philosophical agenda in the way that his one does. Derek parfit, personal identity, and death reason and. I shall briefly describe these views, say without argument which i believe to be true, and then discuss the implications of this view for one of the main conceptions of rationality. Analyze derek parfits personal identity essay example. An interview with derek parfit derek parfit is a fellow of all souls college, oxford, and author of the controversial and widely acclaimed book reasons and persons.
Derek parfit was one of the worlds leading philosophers. Comparison between the view of derek parfit and a new theory of personal identity called open individualism by daniel kolak, with my personal proposals on the matter. On what matters is an essential overview and assessment of volumes 1 and 2 of parfit s monumental work by a team of international contributors, and includes responses by parfit himself. Personal identity is unimportant derek parfit reductionist the facts about persons and personal identity consist in more particular facts about brains, bodies, and series of interrelated mental and physical events. Western philosophy, especially systematic ethics, will not be the same again. When i believed that personal identity is what matters, i seemed imprisoned in myself. Perhaps the further details of parfit s allegedly revisionary metaphysics of persons and personal identity are so inscrutable becauseto wax quineanthere is nothing there to scrute. Proceedings of the 1967 oberlin colloquium in philosophy, ed.
The neokantian against derek parfits personal identity reductionism david rattray i. Derek parfit on religion, moral and philosophy youtube. Par t is a partisan of the psychological criterion of personal identity psych. If parfit had discussed that particular point, it would not necessarily have harmed his case, and it might even have helped to reconcile us to it. The belief that, unless questions about identity have an answer, we cannot answer certain important questions about matters such as survival, memory and responsibility. We include here a partial list of the tributes to derek that have appeared in the days since his death. Challenging, with several powerful arguments, some of our deepest beliefs about rationality, morality, and personal identity, parfit claims that we have a false view about our own nature. It focuses on ethics, rationality and personal identity. If these theories are revised, these objections can be partly met. In his essay, derek parfit explains a scenario where a brain is divided into two pieces. The belief that questions about identity must have a true answer. Personal identity by derek parfit 1907 words bartleby. And reids objection in particular anticipates derek parfits extreme claim, to be discussed later.
Derek parfit takes the central principle of his discussions of personal identity to be reductionism. Derek parfit seven years until a us supreme court ruling granted her parents. P39 1984 170 83159 isbn 9780198249085 pbk to my parents. Reasons and persons challenges, with several powerful arguments, some of our deepest beliefs about rationality, morality, and personal identity. Jessie and norman parjit and my sisters theodora and joanna printed in great britain on acid free paper by cpi antony rowe, chippenham. We cannot track immaterial egos floating free from any particular. Fission cases are a problem for a lockean theory of personal identity. Pdf this paper reevaluates derek parfits attack on the commonly held view that personal identity is necessarily determinate and that it is what. Derek parfit discussing personal identity in the documentary brainspotting duration.
His on what matters was the most eagerly awaited book in philosophy for many years. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential moral philosophers of the late 20th and early 21st centuries. A number of striking claims, including the famous unimportance of identity, are. Such theories give us certain aims, but also tell us to act in ways that frustrate these aims. In derek parfit s original formulation the repugnant conclusion is stated as follows. To help explain, the reader quotes the philosopher derek parfit. Wachsberg,williamewald,galenstrawson,gordoncornwall,richardsikora,parthadasgupta,dr. World heritage encyclopedia, the aggregation of the largest online encyclopedias available, and the most. Introduction d erek parfit believes that there is nothing more to a person than the physical elements that compose her. Concerning theories of personal identity usf scholar commons.
Personal identity and ethics stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. It is often rational to act against our own best interersts, he argues, and most of us have moral views that are selfdefeating. A key feature of the book is that it discusses a range of different approaches to personal identity. Derek parfits concept of personal identity and its. Among the selfregarding concerns for which personal identity. Challenging, with several powerful arguments, some of our deepest beliefs about rationality, morality, and personal identity, parfit claims that we have. Pdf derek parfit reasons and persons juliana chumak. Derek parfit 1 proposes that we separate the notions of identity and survival. Parfit now presents a powerful new treatment of reasons, rationality, and normativity, and a critical examination of three systematic moral theories kants ethics, contractualism, and consequentialism. But in other ways his neglect of the first personal view, in the theory of personal identity as in his earlier discussion of ones need to induce certain dispositions in oneself, leaves a gap. Personal identity does not matter for survival, memory, or moral responsibility.
It makes people assume that the principle of selfinterest is. Mostly an ethicist, but also dabbles in metaphysics. When i changed my view, the walls of my glass tunnel disappeared. According to lockes theory of personal identity, jay and bob are both identical to brian. Derek parfit 19422017 is widely considered to be one of the most important moral philosophers of the twentieth century. Many of his peers considered him the most important moral philosopher of the 20th and early 21st centuries. Leiter reports notice with video of parfit discussing personal identity vox article on parfit s importance.
We are not human beings1 derek parfit 1 we can start with some science fiction. This essay will analyze derek parfits personal identity. Reasons and persons kindle edition by parfit, derek. The repugnant conclusion stanford encyclopedia of philosophy. Derek parfit s concept of personal identity and its implications on rationality and morality ulla schmid leipzig, october 2005 contents i. Part two discusses the relations between what a single person can rationally want or do. Derek parfit personal identity and rationality there are two main views about the nature of personal identity. Buy derek parfit ebooks to read online or download in pdf or epub on your pc, tablet or mobile device.
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