Introduction

Personal Identity

In this course, Professor Harold Noonan (University of Nottingham) explores theories and debates concerning personal identity. In the first module we introduce the problem of personal identity, beginning with John Locke. In the second module, we examine what philosophers mean by personal identity, and why the concept is important to us. In the third module, we outline the problem of personal identity with reference to other debates in philosophy. In the fourth module, we look at John Locke’s solution to the problem of personal identity, before turning our attention to the contemporary debate by looking at the transplant case in the fifth module. In the sixth module, we examine the bodily criterion for personal identity, and contrast this account with the account of psychological continuity in the seventh module. In the eighth module, we investigate the famous ‘problem of fission’ and responses to this problem from various philosophers. In the ninth module, we examine the relationship between the personal identity debate with the question of survival, with special reference to Derek Parfit. In the tenth and final module, we look at how the bodily criterion has been updated in the school of thought known as animalism, and the status of the present-day debate on personal identity.

Introduction

In this module, we briefly introduce the problem of personal identity, focusing in particular on (i) John Locke’s introduction of personal identity to philosophical discourse in his ‘Essay Concerning Human Understanding’ (ii) the personal identity debate (iii) survival and animalism.