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How did the philosophers Locke and Descartes view personal identity?

French philosopher René Descartes (1596-1650) has been called the father of modern western philosophy. English philosopher John Locke (1632-1704) is a principal figure of the Enlightenment movement.


Personal identity is a topic most philosophers have addressed, attempting to answer questions such as these: Who am I? What does it mean to be a person? Do I matter? How do I know I’m the same person I was in the past?


Descartes is credited with the...

French philosopher René Descartes (1596-1650) has been called the father of modern western philosophy. English philosopher John Locke (1632-1704) is a principal figure of the Enlightenment movement.


Personal identity is a topic most philosophers have addressed, attempting to answer questions such as these: Who am I? What does it mean to be a person? Do I matter? How do I know I’m the same person I was in the past?


Descartes is credited with the famous words, "Cogito ergo sum" I think, therefore I exist. He espoused the concept of dualism, division of the mind and the physical body. He believed the material body cannot define personal identity because the body changes over time. He pointed to the immortal soul as the source of identity, believing it remains the same over time.


Locke similarly believed consciousness to be the source of identity. Because we have consciousness of ourselves through memory, Locke pointed to memory as the source of personal identity. In contrast to Descartes, Locke remained ambivalent as to the immortality of the soul, believing it was not a necessary concept for explaining identity. Because memories change and can be lost, Locke also believed identity was fluid and transitory. A criticism of Locke’s view is that if a person forgets or has a faulty memory of an event of his life, he cannot claim to be the same person who experienced it.

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