Suppose you have no luck and you wake up one day without your autobiography of life. Will you still feel like you should be regarded in the same way you regard yourself? This intriguing point serves to reinforce talk on the importance of personal identity because the continuity of memory does not just focus on the record of the human creature but rather the human being. This paper argues that memory, with the concomitant nature of personal identity over time, is related to the continuity of memory. Memory, according to the lens of philosophical discussion, psychological theories, and neuroscientific proof, will be investigated in this chapter for creating our identity and it is through these continuous narratives that the self begins to take motion.
Located at the heart of personal identity is the idea that memory is the centerpiece of who we are and that when to forget who we have been, we begin to become different, though not necessarily worse, persons. By arranging the past we have experienced and formulating expectations for the future, Memory is a life narrative that follows a past-present-future storyline. This narrative is not simply an assemblage of remembered episodes but a structure that articulates and provides meaning for these episodes. Therefore, the recognition of ourselves as the main characters in their life stories poses in memory, sustaining some sort of self-continuity in time. By basing the personal identity theory on the doctrine of memory, John Locke, a 17th Century Philosopher, effectively associated the self with reflection. He assumes that the sphere toward which one’s identity extends is the farthest point where one can recall back any past deed or thought that one did or thought; the boundary is the furthest limit of the memory. The continuity of memory, as Locke contends is such that the feeling of oneself, the identity is not some substantial being but a psychological relation that connects the present to the experienced.
Memory and identity are linked because the absolute certainty of self or person may be determined by far as this consciousness may be projected to any past act or thought; that far reaches the identity of that person as contended by Locke (Balibar, 2013). So, an example of this idea of Locke is a situation where a person has a criminal offence, and after some time, all memory on that matter disappears. In Locke’s perspective, if the person cannot remember the act, he is not the same self who did it hence the identity and memory cannot be distinct from each other for instance if a person has grown comparable memory loss, it cannot be the same person that measures their previous action. According to Locke, what makes you the same today as yesterday is not the mere continuity of your body but rather the continuity of your consciousness, which is tightly interwoven with your memories. If you can remember an experience, you are connected to it, and thus it is part of your identity.
Critiques though, may contest the theories of Locke in the sense that his theory does not understand the contribution of continuity or that does not take into account situations of false memory. However, these counterarguments fail to undermine significantly the argument that memory remains essential to identity. Locke could parade This did not, however, lead him to change his views on the role of formative memory that was not the case, that genuine, continuous memory did play a major function in the creation of who we are. As such, even while certain counterarguments could be posed, the theory of Locke does powerfully bolster the thesis that personal identity is intrinsic within its continuity of memory, from which a basis for the topics discussed from the psychological and neuroscience points of view can be derived.
The narrative identity establishes the construction of personal constructions within the tapestry of our narratives and memories. This psychological approach argues that people seek to construct their identities by making sense of their life experiences in a narrative that is coherently contained in a developing, internalized story. This story is deeply based on memory for it provides the inherent features of one’s self-perception. This story keeps us connected to our past lives, a medium through which we can organize and then understand what we did in times past, where are today and our future ambitions.
The core of this theory is that our memories are not merely a movie that plays in our brain but are also interpreted and reconstructed, giving us a story, coherent and recognizable retelling, which essentially represents our identity. Identity is a concept that is always changing, expressed through personal narratives, which are formed, reformed, and recontextualized by experience, social interactions, and personal introspection. Narrative identity theory is confirmed by empirical evidence from several investigations completed in the field of psychology. Studies reveal that how people share their life stories has a significant association with their level of wellness, personal strength, and level of functioning resilience. For example, the coherence, emotional tone, and content of life narratives can predict psychological health and behavioural patterns. Studies in psychology indicate that disruptions in memory, such as those seen in amnesia, can lead to profound disturbances in the sense of self. These disruptions can lead to a sense of disconnection with past selves, illustrating the critical role memory plays in maintaining the continuity of our identity over time. As defined by Locke you are the same as what you were yesterday not just because of bodily continuity but because of the continuity of consciousness, which is inseparable from the memory. Remembering an experience is proof that you are connected to that experience and you carry it associated with you therefore it is a part of you and so it is your identity.
Nonetheless, opponents may contend that since Locke writes no enthusiasm for bodily continuity or leaves out cases of wrong memory, his plausible theory is incomplete. However, these counterarguments notoriously undermine the argument that memory is key to identity. Locke may refute this by pointing out that while continuity of the body and false memories are problematic, neither of them creates a complete change in how memory by continuous truths shapes personal identity. Therefore, although there may be certain objections there arises an impression of a more robust endowment of Locke’s theory to that thesis, which highlights the connection between personal identity and the continuity of memory to facilitate the psychological and neuroscience perspectives, as it were.
The idea of narrative identity puts the making of individual identity under the blanket of the stories we tell and the facts we remember. The psychological perspective here is the concept of man creating his identity by incorporating his life experiences in an inner story that is updated all the time. The self-story that underlines this narrative results from the memories of an individual, and this self-story provides continuity and coherence to one’s self-conception. This type of narrative allows us to feel a sense of connection, and therefore a framework through which we understand past actions as they lead to our current existence and orientation into future directions.
Identity theory can be characterized as based on these premises that our memories are not lifeless stores of cumulative experience, but ongoing story-like processes that constitute our identity. These personal narratives are always changing in response to new experiences, social realms, and internal reflections, and this is in connection to the inherently dynamic nature of what we regard as identity. Empirical contributions, therefore, come from different psychological research on narrative identity theory. It becomes evident, that according to scientific studies, the form in which particular individuals recount their life stories is closely connected to their way of self-perception, personality, and means of coping. For instance, the qualities which express purpose and emotional state, the coherence, the tonality of life narrative and its content are predictive of psychological health and behavioural patterns. Research in psycho suggests that indeed the distortions of memory like in amnesia may cause severe alterations in the feeling of identity. These disruptions can result in sensations of disconnectedness from previous selves, a clear demonstration of how memory is so essential in maintaining identity.
The opposing standpoints regarding this theory could be that identity is not dynamic or environmentally induced as narratives argued but more biological instead. Alternatively, critics might claim that such other factors, for instance, genetics or physiographical processes, for example, are more defining than subjective narratives of identity. Notwithstanding the above-mentioned outlooks on identity, they do not deny the part played by memory and narrative in the process of identity creation. In contrast, they forge a broad understanding of identity, with narrative continuity being at the centre of their psychological notions of the self, melding the internal story with reality and biological underbellies.
Neuroscientific studies have also justified the statement that identity over time means the continuity of memory as they lend deep insight into the complex ties between memory functions and identity. The brain structures themselves are very crucial especially the hippocampus structure when it comes to the formation and preservation of memory. There is a significant role of the hippocampus, which must be mentioned in consolidation, the process that emerges for the redirection of information stored in short-term memory into long-term memory. As an example, hippocampal damage usually results in profound deterioration of memory which affects so much the identity of a person or sense of cohesion. Neuroimaging has revealed that the very act of recall, an act of remembering that something has occurred earlier, is associated with the activation of a structure of brain regions that in the process of initial memory formation were also involved. This neurological information highlights the notion that the memories we have are not just passive nostalgia but active reconstructions that further support the coherence of our narrative and thus us as humans.
Neuroimaging studies and Memory impairment cases show how the neurobiology of memory and identity are minded. Though counterarguments are generally based on the complexity of brain processes beyond memory, the importance of memory in our memorized sense of identity as the basis of self remains hanging smack in the middle of the neuroscientific look of personal identity.
Ultimately, continuity of memory presents not an unavoidable attribute of our identity but the very building block itself. The argument concerning philosophy philosophical arguments, psychological understanding, and neuroscientific evidence point in a similar direction namely, the thesis that our numerical sameness in time ultimately depends upon the continuance of memory. This continuity does not mean that our identity is the same and permanent but rather puts an emphasis on the fact that memory is the fabric that weaves the different aspects of our identity into a single entity, with a sense of coherence and constancy in an unchangeable vagueness of life.
References
Balibar, É. (2013). Identity and difference: John Locke and the invention of consciousness. Verso Books.
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