Who am I? Who are you? The humongous question of identity. It has garnered a lot of attention in recent years as there are new developments in answering that very question. This is a foundational truth. If you cannot even answer the internal question of who you are, then how can you answer the questions about everyone and everything else? If your foundation is faulty, the consequences extend outwards.
The definition of identity that we will be employing is – “the condition of being oneself or itself, and not another”. The law of non-contradiction states that it is impossible for a proposition to be both true and false at the same time and in the same sense. Think of the most evil person in history. Are you that person or another? You are distinctly you and not someone else. Since there are separate individuals, you and I (me?). Where do I stop and start and where do you stop and start? What is your defining boundary or distinction? What gives you your “youness”?
First you refer to yourself – “I, me, my, mine”, signaling you exist in some fashion. “I think therefore I am.” – Rene Descartes. Then you are aware of or conscious of your self – “I am ___ .” This realization came much later in your development as you started off with a good old-fashioned existence. There are certain self-evident truths we base everything on. You exist. If you do not exist, then how are you reading this and thinking about it? The rest of what I am writing would be pointless as you are not reading it in the first place. The questions in your mind do not exist and all of your problems do not exist either. You are no longer you and have achieved nirvana – the state of no desire or individual consciousness. But for the rest of us who have not, we can press on.
If you exist, awesome! Welcome to the universe! Since you exist and therefore have some sort of being, let’s discover the wonderful being that is you. The overwhelming vast majority of humanity can be shown to agree by their own admission or action up to the point of the debate. Even the most non-existent philosopher who does not even believe themselves, words or thoughts exist will still eat non-existent food and go to a non-existent university (where most non-existent philosophers do non-existent work) and give out very real F’s to my truly non-existent homework. If you still are not convinced, you may be having an EXISTential crisis.
You are made of stuff. You are a substance. A substance is that which exists in itself. You do not exist in me and I do not exist in you. You are a particular individual made of substance. What is your substance? You are an individual unit – a unity or combination of parts, properties and abilities.
The physical entity that starts as us begins at the moment of conception. This is simply a statement of the beginning of our physical development. Your physical concrete substance is the thing others experience with their senses. Do they see male or female biology? Tall or short? Dad/mom bod or ripped? Do you smell clean or nice and musky like after a 3 week trek in the woods? If you are intimate enough to be touched, are you rough with old-looking skin that is tanned too much or smooth from good care? Do you sound like Morgan Freeman or Grok the cave man? The vast majority of the public at large does not taste you, with the exception of significant others and cannibals, so we will leave that sensation out. Male or female biology is fixed but the rest can change over time.
Quick summary – if you exist and have substance, you are real. You are substantial.
We are also assuming you reside in a physical universe and not some complete spiritual realm. Leftists and conservatives can overwhelmingly agree on this. Even if life’s scenario was some big illusion, it still would not change the physical aspects, such as you get hungry, stubbing your toe hurts, and these things called bosses or parents emit these strange annoying noises called speech that sound like, “Do this or that.” It is a considerably persistent reality of stuff, especially annoying stuff.
Now that we have established that you exist and have some sort of substantial physical structure, we can delve a little deeper. Are you an animal, a vegetable (plant), or a mineral? I was hoping you would not say mineral as you may have certain elements of rock in you but you are not necessarily a rock. I am pretty sure you are not broccoli. So we will go with an animal. But even among animals, we just are not quite the same again. The similarities and differences are vast and are a whole other rabbit hole and article for another day.
You are limited. If we have a physical body, the outer boundary is your skin and exists with the aspect of time and location. You are not someone from 2 centuries ago or 2 centuries from now. You had a beginning at a specific time and place and your life will end with those aspects. We are not the clock, but it is a defining characteristic. As I move through time and this world, I am still me and you are still you. Your physical body changes over time but you never stop being you and I do not stop being me.
Physical animal substances by nature can only be in one place at a time. Your body cannot be in New York and Los Angeles at the same time. They can also change some properties but are still the same substance throughout. An egg that turns rotten or boiled is still an egg.
Your story is the story of you going from place to place – physically, mentally and spiritually. The legal definition of “you” ends on the expiration date of your physical body. You are the essential being on that physical ride from that beginning point in time and space to that final point in time and space. There are physical characteristics that are temporary and also those that are permanent throughout.
There are other things you cannot touch or see within you. The immaterial parts of you, such as mind, soul, or spirit. You can touch the brain but you cannot touch those. Other than the brain dead and zombies, thus far another universal, aside from those in a questionable vegetative state, is the existence of the mind. The mind contains its will, values, attitudes, beliefs, emotions, desires, and acts of knowing (using our senses or brain power – not solely the physical mechanism).
As you have a tangible material body, there is also the same outside of you. Trees, rocks, animals and people are substances as well. The world outside of you is real. What we can sense and experience matters. As there are things you cannot touch within yourself, there are the same without. Can you touch another persons idea?
Who am I? Then you refer to others – “you, they, them, their” or by pointing and signaling they exist in some fashion. They think therefore they are. Then you are aware or conscious of the other – “You are ___.” Who are you? Some ask this question and do the mental gymnastics to consider its answer, whereas some don’t reflect (self-aware/ consciousness ) or want to reflect to answer what could be one of the most fundamental questions you can ask. Are you another person? Of course not. You are not them.
You and all other people are physically separate except Siamese twins who are physically conjoined. Identical twins share the same genetics and Siamese twins share the same body. Are they the same person? They are separate individuals who sometimes have the same physical nature or even physical body, but they are not the same person. A Siamese twin has a primarily physical combination but separate “who”. Although a Siamese twin may share body parts, they are not someone else or everybody.
You are not a group. You are not an aspect of a group. You are a unique individual. You are not just a race – a group, or a sex – another group. Those are just biological attributes you have. You are not a collective. But “Who am I?” is not just a physical question. At last check, we are pretty stuck in or with our bodies. You can tack on or remove parts at will but that still does not change your essence. Are you missing a piece? You are still you.
Where do others and the outside world start and stop?
It may seem like Captain Obvious has showed up, but unfortunately, there are those who deny the above and their ideas are based on those conclusions. We will continue this line of reason in another article soon.