406774 The Nature of the Self 2016-2017Dr. Donnchadh O’Conaill
If you are taking the course for three credits: please answer any one of questions 1-8, and any one of questions 9-16. Each of these essays has a maximum word limit of 1500 words.
If you are taking the course for five credits: please answer any one of questions 1-8, and any one of questions 9-16, and one other question. Two of these essays must be 1500 words or less; the third must be 2000 words or less.
Your essays must be in English.
1. Are there different concepts or senses of ‘the self’? If so, which concept or concepts are most important, and how do they relate to the other concepts?
2. Is Zahavi correct to argue that the narrative self requires a more primitive, minimal notion of the self?
3. What does it mean to say that the self is a substance? How might this view of the self be supported?
4. Why might one adopt a bundle theory as opposed to a substance theory of the self?
5. How can the bundle theory of the self explain the identity of the self across time?
6. How persuasive are Metzinger’s arguments in favour of eliminativism?
7. How might the eliminativist respond to Strawson’s arguments in Individuals?
8. Is there a sound argument from how we think about the identity across time of subjects to the conclusion that subjects are distinct from their bodies?
9. Does self-consciousness make an ontological difference? If so, what are the implications of this for the self?
10. What is animalism? What reasons are there for adopting this view?
11. Critically assess the objections to animalism discussed by Snowdon.
12. “For my part, when I enter most intimately into what I call myself, I always stumble on some particular perception or other, of heat or cold, light or shade, love or hatred, pain or pleasure. I never can catch myself at any time without a perception, and never can observe anything but the perception”. Do you agree with Hume’s claim?
13. How is it possible for one to be aware of oneself as a bodily subject? What is the difference between this awareness and one’s awareness of oneself or one’s body as objects?
14. Is the mark of the mental provided by what one can be aware of from the first-person perspective?
15. What is the most plausible account of the sense of agency?
16. Does the concept of multiple selves make sense? If so, how can multiple selves be best understood?
It is possible for you to write an essay on a topic other than one of these questions. However, you are required to first consult me before doing so.
There are two deadlines for submission: 4pm, Friday March 10th and 4pm Friday May 5th. I recommend that if you are taking the course for three credits, you submit your first essay on the first deadline and your second essay on the second deadline. If you are taking the essay for five credits, I recommend you submit your first essay on the first deadline, and the other two essays before the second deadline.
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