$ eli5: personal identity philosophy of mind ❓ What makes YOU... still YOU? If everything about you changes over time... are you still the same person? Ship of Theseus replace every plank = same ship? Your Body cells replace every ~7 years like replacing planks Your Mind memories & thoughts change over time also like replacing planks 🤔 🧬 Theory 1: It's your body 👆 DNA / fingerprint stays the same → Same body = same person But cells all change... 🤔 Problem: clones? teleporters? 📼 Theory 2: It's your memories age 3 🍭 age 7 🚲 today 📱 Linked memories = YOU like beads on a string 📿 Problem: amnesia? false memories? 🌊 Theory 3: There is no "you"! always flowing, always changing 🏞️ Same river? New water every second! "You" = just a story we tell ourselves or or eli5.cc

ELI5: personal identity philosophy of mind

high confidence
March 31, 2026
// explanation
// eli5Imagine you have a favorite toy you've had since you were little. Even though the toy gets older, gets fixed, and changes over time, you still think of it as the same toy, right? Personal identity is like asking: what makes YOU still you, even though your body grows, your hair changes color, and you learn new things? Philosophers wonder if it's your memories, your body, or something else that keeps you being 'you' [2][3].

// sources

[1]Personal Identity - Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Aug 20, 2002 ... Personal identity deals with philosophical questions that arise about ourselves by virtue of our being people (or as lawyers and philosophers like to say, ...

[2]Personal Identity | Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Personal identity theory is the philosophical confrontation with the most ultimate questions of our own existence: who are we, and is there a life after death?

[3]Personal identity - Wikipedia

In philosophy, the problem of personal identity is concerned with how one is able to identify a single person over a time interval, dealing with such questions ...

[4]Personal identity and mental time travel - Open Journal Systems (OJS)

Jun 10, 2024 ... Philosophy and the Mind Sciences (PhiMiSci) focuses on the interface between philosophy of mind, psychology, and cognitive neuroscience.

[5]The Human Animal: Personal Identity Without Psychology ...

Amazon.com: The Human Animal: Personal Identity Without Psychology (Philosophy of Mind Series): 9780195105063: Olson, Eric T.: Books.

[6]Personal Identity: Crash Course Philosophy #19video

Video by CrashCourse

Personal Identity: Crash Course Philosophy #19
[7]Arguments Against Personal Identity: Crash Course Philosophy #20video

Video by CrashCourse

Arguments Against Personal Identity: Crash Course Philosophy #20
[8]PHILOSOPHY - Mind: Personal Identity (The Narrative Self) [HD]video

Video by Wireless Philosophy

PHILOSOPHY - Mind: Personal Identity (The Narrative Self) [HD]

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