The Neural Basis of Free Will, Essay Example

The two examples I would like to compare are Frankie and Bernadette

Frankie was arrested for killing his mother’s new boyfriend after he slapped her. He is said to have begun the assault that would later culminate in the death with an iron kettle. Being developmentally slow with a subpar IQ, he had developmental problems and had difficulty forming relationships with other people. He had, however, a strong bond with his mother and can be argued that he did not know what he was doing because now of his arrest is said to have been confused and traumatized.

Bernadette was arrested for the accidental death of her ex-boyfriend after she pushed him down a flight of stairs during a confrontation gone wrong while she was intoxicated. Bernie had a drinking problem in her teens but managed to overcome that through counseling. This problem redeveloped after she “fell off the wagon” following a deeply emotional break up. After her arrest, it was discovered that she had a genetic predisposition towards alcoholism (Tse 231).

Of the two individuals, Bernadette acted with the most freedom. I make this claim because Frankie, unlike her, was acting in the defense of his mother. While I do not say that justifies his actions, what I can say is that he was proven to have severe decision-making problems because of being developmentally challenged. He did not have full control over his actions because the instinct to protect one’s kin is primal and within every one of us.

Bernie did have friends who were willing to guide her through her problems, but she chose to push them away after refusing their aid. She did resume drinking even though she had previously chosen to give up the habit after a solid decade of control. In addition, she did confront her ex while she was intoxicated. While her actions were completely accidental, they all culminated from one bad decision to the next.

Personal Identity Essay

Two theories I have selected in the analysis of the examples are John Locke’s memory theory of personal identity and the same body theory.

In this regard, Finn is indeed the same person he was even after the accident that changed his personality. Finn clearly remembers to his earlier state and regards it with contempt and derision. This clearly means that he had the ability to recall his earlier memories accurately. Under the Lockean theory of memory, he is the same person and his identity remains the same if only under a different personality (Conard 35).

The same body theory states that, “A person is at one time is the very same person at a later time if and only if they have the same material body like that earlier time.” This assertion is made and can be justified by the statement, ‘I can imagine waking up with a different body.’ Therefore, different body does not necessarily mean a different identity.

Under this theory, Janice is indeed the same person she always has been because she has the same material body she has always had. Because she is unable to speak English anymore, it does not mean she is a different person altogether.

In the same vein, Jonathan is the same person he always was despite the stroke having made his memories inaccessible. He is also the same person under the amended theory of John Locke because of what he calls total temporary consciousness (Perry 89).

Works Cited

Perry, John. Personal Identity. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2008. Print.

Conard, Mark T. The Philosophy of Neo-Noir. Lexington, KY: University Press of Kentucky, 2007. Internet resource.

Tse, Peter. The Neural Basis of Free Will: Criterial Causation. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press, 2013. Print.