Personal Identity

by Harold W. Noonan

Personal Identity is a comprehensive introduction to the nature of the self and its relation to the body. Harold Noonan places the problem of personal identity in the context of more general puzzles about identity, discussing the major historical theories and more recent debates. The second edition of Personal Identity contains a new chapter on 'animalism' and a new section on vagueness.

Genres: Philosophy, Metaphysics

254 pages, Paperback

First published August 1, 1989

Reviews

[Matt]

This book is mostly an overview of current debates concerning personal identity (as well as the history of these debates). One strength of this book is its consideration of the histories of the views in question.

However, when it comes to actual philosophical work, this book is less impressive. I found Noonan's arguments to be evasive and often unclear. Noonan only defends his view--which is a 4-dist psychological view--for a few pages in the very last chapter.

[Josh Penn-Pierson]

Fairly dense (but that comes with the territory). A good and in depth introduction to personal identity.

[Magnus Peccator]

A good map for searching Personal Identity