A Thunk is a beguilingly simple-looking question about everyday things that stops you in your tracks and helps you start to look at the world in a whole new light. © Ian Gilbert.
Thunk 27:
If science could find a way to transplant your brain into the body of someone named John, would you then be you or John?
112 comments:
As it hasn't happened before, we can't say if the memories are brought into the new body, but I think that emotional levels, likes and dislikes would be the same, which would infact make me ME and not John. But if physical attributes and allergies would be taken into account, then I would probably be more John than me.
To any other person, I would look and sound like John, but to me, if i had the consciousness of knowing about what had happened, then I think that if my mind were strong enough, I would be aware of who I was.
Er, im not quite certain, however, I think it would be John's brain then.
The biggest barrier right now to performing a successful brain or transplant is reconnecting the nerve bundles. Surgeons have great difficulty healing a severed spinal chord caused by injury, much less one caused by transplant. Once that problem gets solved, however, transplants might become more common.
As for memories, there is no reason to suspect that there would be any loss of memories after a transplant. The brain can sometimes experience amnesia because of physical trauma, but there is no reason to expect a brain or head to experience trauma during a transplant.
Thought it would be useful relevant information to this topic :)
Well, It depends..
If i'm able to retain my personality, memories or habits it would still be me but in John's body.
BUT.. If it's just my brain without my memory and traits then it would only be John with a new brain.
Nikol 11g1
I'd say you'd be abit of both. Your mind is yours but your mind is Johns, if you get what I mean. It would be hard to say but it's like what Priyanka says your you to yourself but to everyone else your John, so does it matter that you know and noone else though? Majority wins afterall eh?
^Excellent point Nikol - to link memory with personal identity. But, do you think things like gender, voice, height, eye colour make a difference to who you are - or is it just memories?
Would the person's loved ones accept them if they looked and sounded different but had the same memories and personality?
Say your brain was transplanted into John's body - would you still be a girl because you have memories of being a girl?
By the way, to those who think this is impossible do some research and you'll find that these head transplants have been done with some limited success on dogs and monkeys.
I think that memory is a HUGE part of a person's personality. Without your memory everything would be blank, you won't know your name, your hobbies, your favorite type of music. etc. Your external features has little to do with your personality (This is just how others recognize you.) Without your memories your just an empty canvas, you wouldn't have anything that would make you a unique individual.
If my brain was transferred into John's head I would be a girl 'inside', I would think and act like one. To me, I'd still be myself but to other people I would be John who acts like he's a girl.
Well, the person's family and loved ones would probably have a bit of trouble getting used to te fact that the person they knew is now 'John', and to be honest I don't think they'd accept it unless they knew about the procedure.
You would be John. With a new personality.
I'm sure the shift would be different for girls but think about it. Your parents named you, when you were born, they had no knowledge of your personality and what not, they basically named you accrding to your appearence. On that basis, if your body is taken away in a transplant, your name should go with it.
I agree with what Duwane said (surprisingly)about naming children. Excellent point :)
In my opinion it would just be John with a new brain.
However getting used to a completely alien system will be extremely difficult for the person if the memories of the old system DO retain.
But what happens if nothing remains?
I'm assuming then it's John starting from scratch?
That would be a very tricky and intricate prediction because there are so many wonders of the human body that we are unenlightened of.
Physically, obviously i'd be john. But my feelings, feeding, drinking, sexual response, aggression, pleasure, skills and most importantly memory are all controlled by the brain. Even other factors such as they way we speak are controlled by the brain.
I would feel like a girl, despite the physical attributes, because not only was my brain developed to be a girl but there is a adequate deference between the male and female brains. And since my brain is a female one, it would act like a female one.
Like Moza reasonably stated, things could go wrong and nothing would even happen. But, what if it did work? Id say i would be me, inside johns body.
In agreement with some of the comments made above, I feel I would be a little bit of both.
On the basis that along with the transplant my memories, personality, habits, preferences, etc. is transferred along with me, inside I will always know that I am a girl called Mehvash, living in a body belonging to 'John'. I would adapt to my surroundings in a way that is acceptable for a 'John', but I don't know if I'd ever be able to completely embrace the fact that I am a whole new person.
It is different with a new born because there are no 'transplants' happening there; they are completely new humans coming into being, with a whole lifetime ahead of them to build their identity.
For somebody who is getting this identity shifted to a new body? I would say it's almost like a soul possessing another body. You are 'you' inside, but your physical appearances add to the changes in your identity. Your outer-body also has an impact on who you are, but I don't think it can CHANGE you to be somebody else.
Letting go of a whole life-time and starting from scratch is just not easy; how do you live your whole life being a girl living your own life and suddenly have to start living as a boy, wear different clothes, have a different voice, look like a whole new person, feel different things?
If the brain transplant means that with it you lose everything it ever stored, then yes, you would be John. But if you have with you your identity, then no, you would still be you, forever, on the inside. Whether the world will accept you as your former self is something we’ll just have to hope for. Things will never be the same, of course, but I don’t think we can ever completely let go of who we really are.
this is a really tricky one... but i think it would neither be 'me' & neither would it be 'john'. it would be a mixture of both of us...
for example: if I hate & suck at basketball although john is an expert at basketball, therefore i'll enjoy myself due to John's atheletic ability for basketball, so my brain will start enjoying basketball & it will become my new like
but, if john likes a 'video game' which i dislike since i'm a girl, so my brain wouldn't enjoy it and not take it as a hobbie (I have no idea What I just said =P)
in conclusion, activities that are performed mentally will be from 'my brain' & activities performed physically will be from 'john'
im sure if dey find a way to do so....im guessing they would brainwash you first...i think if you cant remeber anything of ur past then it's Johns cause you would have any memory being you,,,,,s0 it's depending on the factors such as memory,change in lifestyle and surroundings !!
Mmmmm.....In my opinion if the person called John had my personality and all of my attributes, then I'd say that that person is not John but me. If it wasn't that way and that John only had some of my habits but not all and did many other things I didn't do then that person would definitely be John and not me because I would consider those few similarities a coincidence.
Aisha Bashir.
11g2
Personally i think that you would be both, yet I’m swaying more towards john.
As we would have the physical features of john yet we would have our own brain.
Physically we would be different, yet everything about is would live on in the body of john.
Hmm.
Physically, I'd be John, but my memories, the things I like, the things I dont like, basically my characteristics, would be, me.
We have to ask ourselves what really makes a person himself or herself- is it their experiences, or is it their physical attributes like height or weight?
Personally, I think that I would be John, but with my personality. What's in a name? A name doesnt define who we are,our actions and thoughts do.
Very interesting thunk.
I think I'd still be myself if I get to retain my memories, likes, dislikes, mood swings, etc. After all, my past experiences made me who I am. The environment I grew up in shaped me into the human being I am today. But physically speaking, I'd be John.
The situation would be different of course, if we consider what other people would think. It might take some time for them to accept my new body, and therefore see me as a different person. I would be John, who just happens to have Arizza's memories, likes, dislikes, emotional state, etc. To them, I'd be John with a new personality/brain.
My outlook might change as well. At first, I may still be me. I'd still be a girl in a guy's body.
Over time though, I might end up merging my old traits with my new body and my new environment. Eventually, I'll be a merged version of me and John.
I can't embrace the idea of fully turning into John, for I'd probably feel eternally awkward being in a body that isn't in tune with my female mind.
To be honest, I'd go insane if I woke up one day to find myself in someone else's body.
It's also interesting to relate this thunk to people who have gone through numerous surgeries and a sex change to end up as a different person altogether. It can be seen as finally being the person they truly are(or wanted to be anyway).
I would have to say no, you would not be John if your brain was in his body.
As many has said before it is the inner most part of the body that makes you different from any one else. It is your thoughts, ideas, memories, how yo would react in certain situations.
Just today in our english class we analysed a song about a girl was considered to be weird or abnormal as compared to others in the world. I'm sure if that individual was transferred into John, it would be almost impossible not to notice the similarity between the two. This shows that th outer body ca not the person on the inside.
Your Physical appearance would be John and even your name might be John but that doesn't mean you are John.
Though as you know that depends on how much knowledge of yourself was transferred into John. If it was just an empty vessel brain then John's characeristics would fill it.
If our brain still had all our memories, ideas, thoughts and personality then it would be us.
If the brain was completely clean and vacant, it would be John.
Hmmm well...If your brain were transferred to another body it would be you and your personality in a new body. Basically what defines yourself is not your outer appearance, height or weight. It’s rather your personality, your brain..
So therefore if your brain is in John’s body, then you would be you but in a different body. And if you got someone else’s brain in your body then you wouldn’t be you, you would be gone. (If that makes sense at all :P)
A brain transplant would be very difficult because all of the nerve connections between your brain and the rest of your body would need to be restored, and they may not all match up exactly as they were in your old body (specially if your changing from a girl’s brain to a boy’s body)
Although if the case was you transplanting just part of your brain into John’s body, you would be both. Your brain would definitely adopt the personality of John because you’ve inherited their knowledge of everything they’ve known.
Keeping in mind that my memories of who I was before would still be intact, for the most part of it, it would really be me. My feelings, my thoughts, my mind! Me as a person, as an individual: not a male or female or Faiza or John! My ideologies and morals would remain the same, regardless of whether I'm a man or a woman.
However, if my brain was to be transplanted only as an organ i.e. MY memory of who I was was etc. is all gone, then the case is different. Then my brain would really be like any other organ, like his lungs or liver, and that would be that. It would be John starting life with something of a clean slate for a brain to fill with his own memories with. :)
Even in a new body, if i still able to recollect my memories, then I as an individual would think of myself as Leah, regardless of being a man, having my physical appreance changed and so on. So on the inside, i would be Leah.
But for someone else maybe it won't be the same; for them it might just be John.
But as Faiza said, this is keeping in mind that we are able to recall our memories and thoughts. If the brain was unable to retrive any of my previous retentions, then it would be just another organ. And a new me.
Can he be half John and half me?
There are a few ways I suppose we could consider it. For one, it IS your brain, but it's still Johns heart. It all comes down to what we are defined by. Even I'm not sure what defines us. I don't even know weather I follow my head more than my heart or vice versa....
I think I'll stick to my half-and-half opinion if that is alright :P
I believe i would be myself. If my Brain was to be transplanted to john's body, There would hardly be a difference. I will still have the same memories,same personality, same talent, same philosophy, etc.
The only difference is to do with my physical features. I might be shorter or I might be taller, I might be better looking or I might just look like Vladik =D
But all in all, it's the same old you :)
This is a pretty tough one, it is abit like the lion and tiger one.
I think what nikol said about your personality would play a big part of all this, although if you are in "John's" body you tend to be him, yes you will still have your same brain but its a whole new body.
So, to be honest I dont actually know 100% what it would be considered, I will just a point out my opnion as such.
I think I would be John; but a John reborn. Seeing as I'm a girl and my gender and hence characteristics and traits would change, I believe I would just be John starting over from a whole different level.
However, if I had any memory of who I was before, my originality remains and hence I would be me in Johns body. Over time though, I would change thanks to my environment and new traits; hence learning to be a John.
After all, we all learn to adapt to our surroundings eventually, hence my brain would adapt to Johns body moreover making me John with a new personality.
Well, if i still remember everything, who i am and my past memories, i guess its still me but in someone elses body.
To everyone else, i might look like john, but i wouldnt act like him, and my likes, my dislikes and personality would be different from his. So to them, I would still be john, but they would be likely to find a change in him, since its me in him.
I think it would be me in John's body, so like many of you have said it would be John with a new personality, way of thinking and feelings.
However, it wouldn't feel right because unless I had memory loss, John would have my memories. I guess if I had John's brain it would work the same way. There is nowhere else to store memories and thoughts.
It's dependent on a whole lot of other factors, like personality, whether or not you retain memories, attributes, allergies. We can't straight up say whether who would be more prevalent.
Well personally i would agree with Nikol.
Also adding the fact that, just because my brain now belongs to Johns body, does not make John me, or give him my personality, as those aspects define who i am. He too will have his own personality.
I feel that just because he now has an organ that once belonged to me, does not make him me.
The brain is more like a CPU that controls our every involantary and volantary action that we do, so therefore John would more or less portray my personality and the way I used to live - the way i used to talk, mingle and my likes and dislikes.
However if physical attributes were taken into account John would be a unique individual himself and his body would obviously adapt to his environment, and the way jis body accept the variety of food intake.
Very, very fascinating.
Definitely, physically I would be a John. And he would be the owner of my brain.
But mentally, John would be me. All the information, the memories, everything I’ve done in my life time, small to the big details, the experiences, my ideologies, my wild imagination would all at the end of the day be locked up or a better word, preserved in my brain.
John has no brain of his own to make the decisions or do anything. He is powerless without a brain. So Johns likes and dislikes wouldn’t matter, because I would actually be controlling his body. I would be the master of the puppet.
To me this would be kind of like 'Avatar' :P, because you’re in a body that's not your own.
There is also a book, by Meg Cabot, about a girl whose body gets crushed but her brain is intact, and then undergoes a brain transplant, in which her brain is put into the body of a supermodel who at the same time dies of an aneurysm (she’s basically brain dead). She is then forced to live a double life, as she can't forget about her old body’s family, but is subject to the duties of the model.
Anyways, I 'm not too sure about the fact that brain transplants are going to be available anytime soon, because of ethical reasons and the simple fact that science is not at such an advanced level yet, but if it was you would be ‘called’ John, for the simple reason that nobody else knows that you’re you rather than the old John (obviously, unless you tell them). To yourself though, you are you and nobody can change that.
Thats a bit confusing but i guess, your brains still you but your body is John, so your you in a sense but your also someone else. I think the major thing that would affect it is if the memories would stay with you.
Well I think you would end up being a bit of both. You would obviously have John's body and physical attributes, but still have your own memories, thoughts and personality.
AHAHAHAHAH! I had to read this twice to understand what i was seeing x]
Anyways.
I don't think that putting my brain in someone's body will make a difference to the person's personality. It's just a brain transplant, yeah? Not a personality switch x]
We're all the same but somehow different. How so? Your personality defines you and is also the fundamental part of a person,a human.
It would be half me and half John. As John gets used to my brain, the brain may discover the trait that is possible with his body,maybe something that wasn't possible with my body. Like Girisha mentioned about basketball, if I can't play basketball due to my height, maybe John is able to,probably because he is taller. So I think along the process, there will be formations of new traits and characteristics and so on. So it's a joint venture between me and John.
But I don't think John would be girly or a girl just because of the memories.Instead it's because the girly attributes I had earlier before the transplant.For an example, just because I have the memories of being a 2 year old, doesn't mean that I am a 2 year old.
To reason out,I guess John will have to learn to balance.:P
LOOOL Charlie -.- ;)! I would still be Me because technically your Brain is the most important organ. It controls you. A perfect example is a Digital Camera Memory Card. When you save pictures on the memory card and place the memory card into another camera you can still see the old pictures. Nevertheless i wouldn't want to be John because Vlad is awesome ;)
I suppose it depends on the situation really. Considering the fact that your memories are intact, then it would actually be you trapped in John's body. On the other hand, if your past memories, thoughts and ideas were to be deleted and new one's awaited you, I guess you would be John.
However, if we are talking about the physical aspects of it, you would infact, be John because at the end of the day, people initially judge you based on your appearance.
If my brain was to be put inside John's head/skull, then it would be MY brain, John would function the same way I do. Memories may not be kept in store, but the way I function IS from my brain.
This thunk is tough to answer.
I guess it depends wouldn't it? I mean if the brain when transplanted would have erased all the memories on it like a restart button then it would accept the fact that he is John. Could it really be done though? Could the memories simple be erased or would it still be able to linger in the subconscious mind?
If the brain was transplanted and the memories were still intact then it wouldn't be possible that I become John If I am still me. *woah thinking explosion*
Its like plastic surgery, some people change the way they look and some even change genders does that mean he or she wont still be who they originally were?
I can't really conclude with a 100% answer, but I would go with being me.
Transplanting someone’s brain into another body is a bit funny and strange. To think of it you will still be you but not in your body. I mean you will think, act, talk, and walk the same not to forget your memory will stay the same as well.
Well of course I would look and sound like John around everyone, but to me I know about what had happened and I still have my memory and still do things the same, so definitely I would be myself from inside.
I think mentally you would be the old you, but physically, John. I think that our personalities are shaped by our experiences and our the ideas we create, although the physical aspect would mean you are still John through terms of DNA or fingerprints, ultimately though, I suppose that this goes both ways.
I Think you would be a totally different person cause the way you act while your yourself may match with the way you look.for example if your a girl and your brain is transferred to johns body the personality will change. your physical appearance affects the way you behave and feel about yourself. And the way others treat you for the way you look affect you as well.
It depends how much of MY brain I can still remember. If all my memories were there and I had my personality then it would be in John’s body. However, if there was nothing that I could remember then it wouldn't really be my brain.
I've always wondered if that was possible actually.
well, to me, I think I'd be more me than I'd be John. Because, It's still me thinking, it's still my memories, but in someone else's body. In other people's eyes however is something different. To them I could be a bit of both, perhaps more 'John'. They see the outside of John more than me.
Not only will my memories and knowledge remain but also all the movements and attributes controlled by my brain. The only John in me would be my physical appearance.
The brain controls everything we do and who we are
Interesting!
As far as my understanding you will still be John, in appearence. For example, if you get an eye transplant or any organ transplant, you will not appear to be someone else. Likewise, inside in your mind you might be you and your appearance will be John! :)
Does anyone else remember watching Freaky Friday when you were a child and wondering what it would be like if you were to switch places with your mom?
I think that is what this would be like. To yourself, you would still be you - you would still retain your personality, your behavior, your memories, your points of view; you would just look different in the mirror. But to everyone else, you would be John. Maybe a slightly disoriented and out-of-character John than whom they once knew, but John nonetheless.
I suppose it would feel like being trapped in someone else’s body. You are confined to skin that you’ve never felt before, and this would be the most difficult part, I feel. I probably wouldn’t be able to recognize myself, because to me, I’m still Chandni, as the personality my brain remembers is shaped by the experiences that I have had.
And the irrational fear of being trapped in my mother’s body is exactly why I avoided fortune cookies after watching Freaky Friday.
If science found a way to transplant my brain into John's body, I would definitely still be myself - but in John's body.
In spite of this, it's a little difficult to conclude whether I would retain all previously acquired experiences, or anything from the past.
However, everything from kicking a football to deciding which colour to wear goes directly back to my brain.
Of course, I would be in John's body, which in itself means that I would be faced with different decisions and different people; the environment John is in might be different compared to mine.
All of the aforementioned factors can slightly alter my reactions to different situations.
However, I highly doubt they would make a significant difference, as again, it would still be my brain internalising these environmental influences...
One of the most significant clarities science gives us is the fact that many of the emotions that we feel, including love, are not from the heart, but due to the reactions and reflexes of our brain. Stating this, I personally think that if my brain were to be put in John’s body, I would still be me; however I would just have John’s physical appearance. This is likely to happen in most cases because it is unlikely for the working of a certain brain to change when transferred to an other body. Of course, if John was a victim of drug abuse, then yes, some synapses may be delayed! But other than that, I would just be me in a different body with same memories, emotions, reflexes, etc. However, since John’s body would be different from mine, it may have different needs and necessities, altering the needs and co-ordination methods of the brain, trying to get used to John’s body.
Supposing i have my memories, it would be me in a new body. I feel a persons identity comes from their memories, thought process, personality, opinions, all of which have to do with the mind and soul and not with their body itself. In fact, if my brain were transplanted into Johns body, i would be Aashni, with a male body. My identity and name would go with me.Think in terms of a snail. Would changing its shell , mean the snail itself has changed? And that is exactly what the human body is. A shell.Transporting our inner selves into another shell would not change us. Just our appearance.
That’s a really interesting question, and mildly creepy! As cool as it sounds, I really hope nothing as such happens to me in real life.
I think that physically, I’d be John and so everybody around me would think that I am John, that is if I don’t speak to them! If my brain is now in John then my mind and all of my thoughts are in John as well; everything that John’s body now thinks will actually be my thoughts, for example any previous experiences, memories, learning would all be mine, so to other people, I am just the body of John. This in turn means that the only thing that has changed about me is my physical appearance (so all involuntary actions would be completed by John’s body eg breathing etc.). Having said that, I would be interested in knowing whether my experiences would be stored with the image of my own body or as the body of John.
I guess it goes both ways, in a way, if something like this were to happen, it would freak me out it would take a long time for me to adjust to something like this happening and for me not to be me physically, but to me just mentally. However, it would also be really fun to not look like you but still be you, I mean, imagine all the mischievous things you could get up to!
In order to answer this question, I think we need to establish a couple of things.
First, we need to establish Shakespeare was right when he rhetorically asked "what's in a name"? Whether I'm known as Mahatama or Moron, to my dad, I'll always be Taher (and to my brother, the guy he's stuck with). When something's name alters its attributes, then the name has a different significance. However, in the real world, this is generally not the case. Names have the power to alter perception, which in turn can alter subjective reality. But certainly not "objective reality" (assuming, of course, it exists). Renaming a proton an electron doesn't reverse its charge, and renaming me won't make my brother any happier to see me. Names are an organizational system, reference labels that allow us to communicate and make sense of the world.
Second, I subscribe to aspects of Descartes' Cogito Ergo Sum. He argued that "I think, therefore I am". To me, who I am is a combination of my personality, thoughts and actions. My appearance is merely a superficial facade, a machine that can express my mind. Scientifically, our current conclusion is that personality, thoughts and actions are products of the mind. Spiritually, the soul is accountable for its thoughts/intentions and deeds, which are orchestrated by the mind. Sure, certain actions occur without the direct involvement of the mind (like reflex arcs), but I'd argue that those are universal to all humans, and that they don't play into me specifically as a person.
If we can establish those two things, then we know that:
a) whether you call me John or Taher is irrelevant to who I really am. It's merely a reflection of who you see me to be.
b) a person is their mind, which supersedes the machine they express it through.
Which leads me to conclude that transplanting my brain into John's body would "make him me".
Me and John. John and I.
I would be a mixture of both John and Myself. I think this "thing" would have most of my personal and behavioural characteristics.
Also, I believe it would have most of John's physical attributes; height, looks, hair colour, et cetera.
However, the key word I use in both of these descriptions is "most".
In the short run (assuming that I somehow, miraculously recover from the trauma insanely quickly) the "John-ness" and "Babur-ness" would be pretty defined and limited to behavioural and physical attributes.
In the long run, I doubt this will remain static. I think "it"'s physical attributes will change quite quickly. My reasoning behind making that decision is that I think the mind/brain plays a large part in deciding what a person does. Also, growth determined by environmental factors will be indirectly affected by the way a person thinks. Therefore, I think - as time passes - this thing will morph into a constantly changing mixture of Me and John.
Interesting question though, and there are some intriguing answers on this blog.
A person is made up and shaped by all the experiences and memories they undergo throughout their lifetime. For example, the way I behave around others is determined by the social construct that surrounded me growing up, and the way I react to certain situations is determined by my past experiences regarding similar occurrence. The biggest and most prevalent part of a person’s personality is their memory. It determines who they are and how they think, and it is stored in the brain.
Therefore, if science could find a way to transplant my brain into the body of someone named John, I would simply be myself, in the body of a John. The memories and experiences I had growing up would remain with me, hence, keeping the same personality and feelings I had in my old body. Also, on a biological level, the female brain is wired differently than that of the male. For example, males process less oxytocin than females, which is the chemical that creates bonding-relationships, and females process more serotonin which is the reason for their ability to sit still and concentrate on a higher level than males.
In conclusion, I would say that although physically I would be John, and learn to acquire and coexist with his physical attributes, mentally I would still possess all the memories, which make up my personality; therefore I would still be me.
The answer to this question depends almost directly on the nature of ‘me’. Is ‘me’ my physical appearance, what everyone else see’s me as? Or is ‘me’ actually my emotions, beliefs and values? Yes, ‘me’ is my physical appearance, because no matter how similar to John I think, I cannot, in the eyes of my family, my friends, be John. Because I am that tall guy with the weird spectacles. And John is not. Yes, ‘me’ is my mental faculty, because no matter how similar to John I look, my mental faculty will tell me that I am not John, because I am the grammar nazi of the class, and John is not. I am my body because that is how I am identified in society and I am my thoughts because those thoughts are unique and ‘make’ a part of me. So if one switched these two intrinsic properties that make me, with another human’s, I won’t become that human and that human won’t become me. We’d just be some weird mixture of the both of us, not just me or just him.
To answer this question, one must consider what it actually means to be oneself, both physically and mentally. There is, however, an inextricable link between the two.
Physically, we are able to distinguish one another by our hair colour, eye colour, height, etc. I cannot stress enough the importance of the fact that, when we’re transplanted into John’s body, people we love and care about lose the ability to connect our faces with our hearts, and so do we. Physicality is a significant part of identity, whether we like it or not. After spending 16 years, taking a look in the mirror at least once every day, one does get a little bit comfortable with the way they look, and begins to associate their identity with this. Thus, my brain being transplanted into anyone’s body for that matter (except my clone) is a huge issue. However, the fact that John is a boy complicates things even more. While I would still think and act like a girl, I would be trapped in a boys body. Physically speaking, I am John.
Mentally, we are characterized by our personal interests, our likes and dislikes, our memories, and our thought processes. Essentially, everything we associate with our intrinsic nature enables us to paint a picture of our souls. However, there are other physical traits that we cannot ignore. For instance, I love to dance. While dancing requires a high level of mental skill, to build a bridge from our minds to our bodies, it mainly relies on physical characteristics of an individual. Thus, I, in John’s body, might know how to perfectly execute a pirouette or a ‘ton lei’, and I might have done it hundreds of times in my own body. However, I am painfully restricted in John’s inflexible and unbalanced body. I lose a physical part of me, and in turn, a mental part of me. Similarly, John’s untrained and weak fingers would be incapable of playing classical guitar pieces that I previously may have found quite easy to play after years of hard work and training. Here, a few of my memories, interests and experiences are almost obsolete when I’m in John’s body. However, the majority of traits do remain intact.
So mentally, I am still myself, but physically, I am John. The real question is which trumps the other: mental or physical? The obvious and correct answer to me is mental qualities. I would much rather have my brain get transplanted into John’s body, than keep my body and have John’s brain.
You are who you are no matter what you look like. Or are you?
My name is Devina. I love French food, vacationing in the Mediterranean and visiting art galleries.
I have recently been in a car accident with my friend, John. All my internal organs have ruptured. He is pronounced brain dead.
In a desperate, experimental procedure, my brain is transplanted into his body, with permission from my parents. All my friends and family are aware of this transplant. As I wake up, I hear my name: Devina!
Everyone who knew me in my previous body, and were aware of the accident refers to me as ‘Devina’.
So why is this? Maybe it is due to the fact that they associate their perceptions of me in relation to my likes, my interests, my hobbies. My brother never simply thought of me as the ‘girl with curly hair’. We share memories and experience that don’t solely involve material looks or features.
However, over time I may start to refer to myself as ‘Dev’ in order to adjust to my new appearance, I may have to give up my love for wearing dresses and stop applying lipstick. I may even pick up an affinity for basketball, given my ridiculous new height. This would be my brain adjusting to the circumstance it is exposed to. Adapting.
Overall, I feel that a person’s physical characteristics do affect the way a person interacts with the wider world. Physical traits especially, contribute to the fundamental aspects of identity and individuality which in turn, massively impact one’s behavioural characteristics.
And isn’t the mentality with which we approach life the very thing that can change who we are? I can definitely change from a Devina to Dev. I might not become a total John, but I sure wouldn't be myself anymore.
"The Devil's finest trick is to persuade you that he does not exist" - stated by Charles Baudelaire, more famously cited by Kevin Spacey in 'The Usual Suspects'.
John and I now face a very fundamental, yet primitive existential crisis. Which one of us is real? Am I now a figment of my own imagination in an alien body, as I no longer possess my own identity?
In my personal opinion, such a question cannot be answered with absolute certainty as there are myriad ambiguities involved which have not yet been scientifically clarified. However, we can arrive at an intelligently biased compromise.
The human brain, would contain almost every single bit of information associated with a human being. Thoughts, knowledge, skills, personal image, memories, behavior and psychological inclination would be encoded within the billions of neurons in our brain. This would imply that the brain is the sole determining factor of a person's identity and all his intrinsic behavioral characteristics.
So where's the catch? Let's look at this logically. Would I, cease to be myself, if my brain was separated from my original body? Definitely.
The brain may determine most psychological features of a person, but the brain does not encompass the physical features of a person. John's hormonal levels, neurotransmitters excluding the brain, nervous system, body type, functioning of his pulmonary organs and most importantly, his genetic composition and DNA, would all be radically different from my body composition.
I think it's safe to say that there definitely exists a clear mind-body duality. So, after evaluating the influence of mind and body on the hybrid creature, VarunJohn, to answer the question posed, we must simply agree on whether it is the mind or the body that plays a more significant role on a person's true identity. After analyzing both aspects of the situation, in my opinion, the brain triumphs over the body and so I would continue to be Varun and not John with my brain (to my relief). I say this, not just because I treasure my own identity and don't want to be called John for the rest of my life, but simply because I think that the psychological characteristics of a person determine the person's identity more than the person's physiological state. Emphasis on the word 'more', since a person's physiological state still plays a very significant role in their identity. At the end of the day, it boils down to personal opinion, based on the evaluations. Hence, I propose my intelligently biased compromise. I am Varun, not John.
Your brain and your body are two different things that make the idea of "you" seem as one. Your brain, in your body, could sometimes make you feel like a stranger within yourself. Which is why I think that some of us may feel 'trapped' inside a body which is not ours, or we may feel as though we have been born before at a different era of time.It's quite interesting if you think about it, the idea of a soul, brain and body not being one yet, harmoniously connecting. In that case if one was to break off the other two, we would not be in the same pattern, or we'd have a different rhythm. re: be someone else. In my opinion, I wouldn't be "John", my brain is in his body and his body and soul would/might synchronise with mine in a different way than his previous brain would, but I believe I wouldn't be "John", but more of a "John2.0".
A major part of each and every individuals personality are their likes, dislikes, emotions, thought processes, aggressions, pleasures, sexual response, and most importantly their memories as well as their experiences. If I were to retain those experiences and memories that shaped my personality than it would definitely be me, just in John’s body. Although I may look physically different, I would know inside that I’m still the same old Simrah who talks excessively and enjoys drinking green tea. Moreover, as science has proven, there are actual differences between the male and female chemically and physically which explains why they behave and think differently; for example, the frontal lobe – responsible for problem solving and decision-making – and the limbic cortex – responsible for regulating emotions- are typically larger in female brains, while the parietal cortex in the male brain is larger.
In conclusion, although I would be physically John, the little things that construct my personality as an individual that would be retained post transplant, would make me in John’s body.
Brain is the solitary capacitor of knowledge, experiences, memories, thoughts, ideas, imagination and possibly everything we consist of. If science could find a way to transplant my brain into someone named John, which I'm obviously assuming to be a male, I, being a female would simply be shelled in a male case. Come to think of it in terms of Ict; the hardware component takes in the input commands and displays the output results, however, what lies between that? The entire processing, understanding of the concept, perception of commands and etc. which is solely carried out by the software (which in our case, is the brain). It holds the entire personality, functioning and characteristics of a person. So, to conclude my perception, I would say that I would still be myself, in new skin.
I believe I'll be a cross between Alisha and John.
A hybrid.
Though my brain has been planted in an unknown habitat (John's head) it will still be dominated by thoughts highlighting flowers and teddy bears and song lyrics and Sadaat.
Though my voice would be deep and husky, the intention would be of mimicking Tweety.
Though i'd barely have any hair on my head, i would still flip my head around under the impression that long locks will dangle around feebly.
My brain may be in a new meat vessel, but it would still be holding all the data that defined Alisha. The memories, opinions and interests of Alisha would live on.
There are significant differences between the male and female brain. Once my brain make john's head its home, I believe it will still act like a girls brain.
But I wont be Al anymore. And John wouldn't be John anymore. There'd just be this new John with a slightly awkward personality.And sometime later, my brain would've adapted to john's physical qualities, making use of them. However I do believe it wouldn't be that significant of a change.
The brain and the body are not individual instruments, but coexist in orchestral harmony. A common misconception (speaking from a biological perspective) is to believe that all that will change is your appearance and factors such as personality and memory remain constant.
Reality and the movie 'Avatar' are very different in comparison.
The brain like any organ in your body is a gear in an ever changing system. The growth and development of your brain is tailored specifically to your body, thus we must take into account a very crucial but overlooked factor we refer to as-muscle memory.
It is the combined efforts of both the nerves that litter your brain and the muscles that clutch your bones, that has taught you to walk, write, move your lips, and many other abilities that we as normally functioning human beings take for granted. Take the example of Rafael Nadal perhaps; a man who's career depends(mostly) on the fluidity of his muscles. Are we to say that if Nadal's brain would be transferred into Ronaldo's, he would magically become a tennis professional? This is also the case with musicians, surgeons and many other occupations.
Hence,I believe that getting a brain transplant is almost equivalent to my rebirth. My brain would need to learn from the beginning to manipulate every single body part it now controls. This means re-learning how to move my limbs with balance and rhythm to walk,or even control my vocal chords and lips in order to stimulate speech.Although these things will not take near as long as they did in my 'first life', a transplant means something as simple as taking a step will suddenly become new to me again.
Furthermore,with the new sense organs I have, my preference to certain smells,sounds,colors,ect. will all change as well. This in turn may influence my old beliefs and personal ideals. New memories of learning and feeling will replace it's predecessors.
Eventually, although I may still hold a few traits of Zoheb, I would be Zoheb no more; nor would I be John.
I will be me.
I think I’d love to be John.
After all that’s why I would have I’d choose his body over Melanie’s, or Bob’s, or Tom’s or Jasper’s.
I’d go in with the intention of becoming John.
John is probably smarter, or stronger, or faster, or more confident than me.
I want that.
But once I go, would I/he/we still be smarter, or stronger, or faster, or more confident?
Sure from the outside, I might be as drop dead gorgeous as John, but could I just end up tarnishing his beauty too?
John could have had the mental capacity to know how to deal with his body, but what if I don’t?
I’d make John ugly.
But John’s not ugly.
So he’s not John anymore.
But he’s not me either.
Cause I was never pretty in the first place.
So who am/is/are I/he/we now?
A new identity.
We wouldn’t be John, or me. Or Melanie. Or Bob. Or Tom. Or Jasper.
We become someone new.
Maybe we’d now be Ivanka from Delhi.
Or we could be Elias from Austria.
Or perhaps Max from Venice.
Or maybe even Virginia from Mexico.
A brand new identity.
A brand new start.
A brand new fresh slate.
A brand new genius invention.
John’s body lay there lifeless, brain dead.
That was until Alethea - I was selected as a brain donor.
Effectively detaching my brain from my body would require for a perfected process of extraction. However, judging the minute nature of such operation, the probability of errors seems to mar one’s ability to carry out this feat successfully or consistently.
With permanently scarred nerve tissue incurred just in the transition of my brain to John’s body, would my brain even function?
Or would the process be a failure - leaving neither John, nor Alethea alive?
Would the scarred tissue represent a host of memories, ideas, feelings, experiences and thoughts lost in transit, never to return? If so, I’d lose a part of Alethea and would that be a significant part, I wouldn’t be Alethea for sure.
So then I would be John right?
Well, yes and no. Now inhabiting John’s body, I would be forced to accept a new face, body, gender, sexual disposition and circumstances.
I’d now find myself sneezing every time there’s a chrysanthemum around, when Alethea in Alethea’s body didn't face the same issue.
I could now possess an athletic built and even if not, I’d still find myself at a greater biological advantage that Alethea in her female body.
But how did John get the scar on his left elbow? Did John like to play sports? What situations was John a part of? What was John’s childhood like?
Who was John??
I’d never know. Not personally. Not in the way that one should know themselves.
And so while simultaneously looking like John, talking like John, attempting to communicate with those who knew John and adjusting to ‘fit the bill’ ; I wouldn't be John.
The very fact that I’ve written all of this in Alethea’s perspective illustrates how reluctant Alethea -I would be to accept John’s body and his life. But the brain and the body must work in this form of joint venture to achieve true equilibrium or in our case, survival.
Hence, I couldn’t be distinctly John or distinctly Alethea. And it is maybe this confusion or absence of identity that could lead to the death of both. Or the creation of someone entirely new.
How do you perceive people? Do you view them primarily in terms of their body – how they look; or in terms of their brain - how they think and choose to behave? This might be a tricky question to answer in absolute terms, as it ultimately boils down to a bit of both. This makes the question of whether I would be me or John once my brain is transplanted into his body highly debatable.
‘A painting looks like a painting; therefore, it is a painting.’ If we were to use this line of reasoning, I would be John, since John still looks like John. However, it’s hardly befitting to compare human life to an inanimate object, since our are identities are defined by more than just physical appearance. Assuming that the transplant is perfectly successful and results in the transfer of memories, mannerisms and thought processes, John would think and act like me. John, in essence, would BE me. In fact, the copious Tumblr quotes along the lines of “You are what you are, not what you look like” would attest to this.
Moreover, in today’s world, we are more inclined to perceive and interact with people based on who they are ‘inside’ – for the most part at least. This would make ‘John/me’ more ‘me’ than ‘John’. However, in the minds of John’s acquaintances, the name ‘John’ would be linked to a mental image of John – this image would still be confirmed by our appearance. Does this make ‘John/me’ more ‘John’ than ‘me’? A definitive conclusion is elusive. Of course, if my name was John in the first place, it would have made matters a whole lot less complicated – John before, John after.
Appearance can be best described as an outer shell, or rather a façade that your mind uses to express the various thoughts within it. But, if my brain were to find itself transplanted into an individual named John, it could possibly have circumstances that I was earlier never forced to endure or experience before. John’s past, in regards to his physical state- whether he was paralyzed, athletic or deaf is bound to affect my present within his physical state and are factors that would take a long time to alter or maybe things that I’d have to learn or adapt myself to live with.
The previous circumstances created by John may change my outlook on various things. For example, if John was a wanted man in 27 different countries and was a shoot-on-sight target regardless of any attempt to prove my innocence, then I would have to alter my non-violent self to a remorseless & ruthless individual that would kill anyone attempting to endanger my very survival. Although the brain can be considered more important than the physiological state, certain situations or environments can radically alter the way the brain functions, as in what type of decisions it now makes.
In conclusion, I believe this situation would render my previous experiences somewhat useless or not entirely necessary as now I would have to step into the shoes of a person who’s traits and characteristics may be completely polar opposites of mine or maybe quite identical, but never the same. Hence, I believe that neither John nor I would continue to exist, rather John’s physical state coupled with my traumatized mind would lead to the creation of an entirely different individual, whose mind may or may not have memories of Arnav’s life.
This definitely begs the question: what exactly does ‘you’ mean? Does it mean you, as in a person with your physical traits? (The answer to that would be a definite no.) Or does ‘you’ mean your personality? Here’s where things get a little more complicated. It brings up yet another question as to what determines our personalities? Is it nature or nurture?
It is quite evident that what goes on in one’s brain definitely effects them as a person.
If I had lost, say, my amygdalae (a part of the brain responsible for processing ‘fear’), I would be ‘fear-less’ and will be more open to trying thrilling things because I don’t feel the adrenaline rush or the increased heart-rate or the twisting in my gut as I free drop in some scary ride. And even when I transplant my brain into John I would still be unable to process fear. Hence, that aspect of my personality will remain the same.
Second, if I am able to retain my memories in John’s body my personality will largely be unaffected. After all, why will I change if I remembered how to be ‘me’. If you remembered that you loved ‘Greenday’ songs, its obvious that you are going to still listen to them, instead of suddenly listening to ‘One Direction’. If I remembered that I was terrified of snakes, I'm still going to be terrified of them. If I had gotten some injury as myself, even in John's body I would still play carefully. If you were trying to understand my point, I suspect you would have done so by now.
I know that there will be some changes due the fact that I am a girl now transplanted into a boy’s body, and I have to play the part in order to fit into society, but I will still only be playing the character as an actor, not completely change myself.
Hence, I feel that there will be some minor inevitable changes in what essentially is ‘me’, but my personality will be largely unaffected, provided that my memories and other cognitive processes remain intact during the transplantation.
It depends on the circumstances john is in, if he will be living exactly the same life I've lived before and around the same people then he would definitely be me. But If John will live in a different society then he will be no one but John.
The environment and circumstances are what really shapes the person, they're a significant part of the memories and all the stories that happen in one's life. No matter what, the surrounding environment and people will always make a person what he/she is. Since the person mostly learns through his/her experience and the experiences of those around him.
In essence, the surroundings of a person are what shapes them into who they are, regardless of the fact that that person may be “different” the people around him/her, the incidents and the ideas he/she may come across will always trigger some thoughts inside him/her.
The body and the brain. The two work in synch, in harmony, together. They are both interdependent, and require the presence of each other, in order to function properly. However, if the brain of Trisha was transplanted, into man's body, who is named John, utter confusion would begin.
I believe that John would still remain John physically, on the outside, every one of John’s friends, relatives and family would perceive this man to be John, but they would be fooled, for John would be thinking with Trisha’s brain. He may experience a ton of identity crisis, and may wonder about his flaws objectively. Mentally, he would be thinking in the way Trisha did previously in her own body - he would now contain the unusual fear of birds, insects and the dark, which he didn’t have before. He would begin to enjoy Italian food, and his palate would reject fish and Japanese cuisine, just because Trisha never liked it, and found it nauseating. He may purchase a cat, even though his mother is allergic to cat hair, because he is oddly drawn to this furry animal although he vaguely remembers people calling him a dog lover. The brain may have memories that is no where linked to John’s past life, however he reminiscences the time when Trisha had a baby brother, or her first Barbie doll maybe.
This new being would contain a little John and a little Trisha, making it a new person altogether.
The question that arises here is whether one is willing to accept alterations in the external world (physical body, people, society, etc.), with the intrinsic remaining the same (thoughts, feelings, emotions, etc.). In order to effectively discriminate myself from John, I would have to take into consideration the plethora of factors that would differentiate me from John. These would include age, social background (Nationality, religion, etc.) and cultural background (thoughts, ideas, etc.) Thus the final decision would come down to whether I would prefer the status of such factors on the side of Harish or on the side of John.
My answer to this question would be that I am happy to suffice with this temporal form of mine. The first reason for this is that the thought process and value system instilled in my brain are those that have been greatly influenced by the society and people around me, and by transmigrating the aforementioned into another temporal form, a huge mishmash and hotchpotch of viewpoints would result. I would be living in a society and culture that may have polar ideals and expectations of life, in comparison to my previous ones. For instance, I am a vegetarian, partly because of my cultural and social context. If my brain were to be shifted to the body of a person whose sociocultural context (be it geographical, religious or any other) were to determine him to be a voracious non-vegetarian, there would be a massive contradiction between the preferences of Harish’s mind and John’s externalities. And this is simply a picayune illustration of the myriad possibilities of clashes between the intrinsic and the extrinsic, of the individual and the society.
An important thing to note here is that I have not considered the physical body to be a major factor in this decision process. This is because, as an individual, I place much more emphasis on the valuable intrinsic rather than the superficial extrinsic form. Our bodies are temporary in essence anyways, and hence I have ignored this factor.
To conclude, I am satiated with the temporal form that I have been born in, even though it may not necessarily be the most desirable option for me. True happiness lies in being content with what you have, and hence I do not feel any special urge in partaking in such transmigration.
*Note: However I would definitely be interested in participating in a trial in a day of John’s life with Harish’s brain!
Were such a situation to exist, I don't believe a fine line can be drawn between the two people involved. A person is perceived as a "human individual" and with the two fused to produce a single individual, it would be a composition that resembles neither.
While the new figure would be identified as me, it would be perceived as John. I would carry out my day to day functions as I normally would, however others would believe me to be John if they were to gaze upon my visage. So depending on what standpoint you're judging 'me' upon, I would satisfy some criteria for John while others for myself.
While some may attribute physical features to John's while mental features to me, this would be a largely incorrect classification. For example, if John was physically inactive while I was athletically active, my pituitary gland would be highly stimulated even while in John's body and cause an increase of testosterone levels. This would lead to John gradually gaining a more lean build, therefore producing a physical trait not linked to John. On the other hand, John could possess a much less responsive peripheral nervous system leading to a much more sluggish performance when compared to my original one. In essence, this mix match of brain and body could produce completely new traits unique to the 'new individual'.
And so, the new organism could be regarded as either I, John or a whole new organism depending on the judging criteria. While a workplace may accept the newer body as simply a vassal of the existing employee, I reckon one's wife would regard the mixture with anything but contempt if it were lacking aesthetically.
John is a person whom I have neither met nor seen in my entire life, and I have the opportunity of being in his shoes. Would I tell those surgeons to go ahead with the procedure or would I leave their facilities and continue with my own ordinary life?
Honestly, being John would come with its positives as well as its negatives. Yes, I will not get to live in the body of Divesh and be Divesh but having control over a body that is not yours sounds quite amazing to me to be honest. Call me crazy but it really puts me in a state of awe of how far science has reached. Living this completely new life, with new friends and new people would be amazing. I get to see what John has to deal with on a day to day basis. John is probably an oil rig worker or a CEO of a Multinational Company, and while I don't mind what or who John is, I want to be able to learn new experiences.
Many people may not want to be John as they don't know who he is, what he is and how he's lived his life. They don't know if John is a 10 year old boy or a 70 year old man. They just simply don't know who he is. People may choose a prestigious person, for their brain to be transplanted into, as it is guaranteed success and a better life for whoever chooses that way. If I choose to be John, then Divesh will no longer exist. Great accomplishments which I have worked hard for will not be recognised once I am John. I certainly will be missing out on a lot and I will be living under new circumstances, but it's a risk I'm willing to take.
Once this transplant happens, John will be living a different life, a life under my preferences and tastes, and I will be living with a new physical appearance, so altogether this creates a new person. This new person can make great changes to the world. I sure will miss being Divesh, but I feel its time for me as a brain, to take the challenge and go ahead with the procedure. The brain surgeons are getting a thumbs up from me and I want the operation to happen as soon as possible.
Who is I, you ask? I am the brain.
If I were to transplant my brain into Joe's body I would remain to be myself. I would have the physical label of Joe ie physical traits and characteristics which are attributed to Joe but the mental identity which I would be known as would remain my own .
My identity stems not from my body but from my own perceptions of my id and what I think I am . These perceptions remain firmly rooted in my memories and as an extension my brain. Hence by transplanting my brain in another persons body I still retain my conscious experiences of every moment in my life and hence I still retain my individuality despite being in someone elses body.
Of course there is a very distinct possibility that I may impose upon my self a completely new identity in order to adapt to the new environs and circumstances I live in but then again it would be my previous identity which has made me take the final step to change my identity and hence till that very moment I function as myself. But back to memory . It is a proven fact that all ourexperiences could be stored in our genes and hence carry on even when we may have lost that particular memory from our Long Term Memory . However it is our head which reigns supreme over us and hence whatever memory is imposed by Joe's body upon us will be dismissed by our own identity and cannot impose upon us Joe's personna unless we willingly choose to do so . Hence no matter whose body I am in I would still be myslef
In my opinion, if science were to somehow find a way to transplant my brain into someone named John, assuming that I would still retain my memories, I'd be a hybrid, part John but mostly me.
Although a person's environment and physical attributes do contribute to the personality, I think what truly defines a person is the cumulative experience he/she has had throughout their lives, which, in this case, is mine.
I'd think, act and behave like me but with little idiosyncrasies pertaining to John, in a new physical body, which I think would have to be very similar, genetically and thus physiologically, to my old self.
If, however, I do not retain my memories, say due to damage to neural pathways or the amygdala, I would become an entirely new person probably similar to a new-born, with John's physical and maybe even psychological characteristics.
In the end, this is purely speculation based on my opinions, knowledge and biases. For a clear cut answer, one would have to actually observe (or even go through) such a transplant to determine who the patient actually is.
On the theoretical side: I believe that a lot of how a human acts or how they respond to certain situations is to do with their past experiences and memories, thus I believe that if I still retain the memories that I previously had I would mostly still have the personality of me. But who is to say that the physical parts of me won't contribute to who I am and might become. If for example John had previous scars from the past they would indefinitely have an impact on who I am and my perspective on the world. On the flip side, I also would reach a point where the way people in my environment act around me affects my being, to them I look like John but act like me. To them I am a horrific perplexing morph of both people.
If you look as it in a slightly scientific manner: Leading it back to this idea of memory being the place where our intuition, emotion and reason is developed, every brain encodes and decrypt's memories when we remember and them. Often the memories are changed ever so slightly every time a memory is decoded as a minor defect in the storage system. In this way if I all my slightly inaccurate memories are suddenly kept in a different code, that which John's nerve system uses, it is likely that my memories and experiences would change too thus slowly turning me into neither me nor John but a morph of us both.
If my brain was to be transplanted to John’s body. I feel that it would be a mixture between me and John, As it depends on the different perspective you look at it from. For example, my brain will remember my past experiences and memories with the people who I am familiar with. These memories shape our emotions and reasons, looking at this situation it might be believed that I am the more prominently shown person as the decisions and choices would be shaped from my personal opinion rather than John’s. However, John is also a prominent character as it is John’s body, this means the people around me would think of me as John as I would have all his physical appearances, the visual aspects of a person usually . So, all the physical features are John’s which would influence the brain more subtly. For example, if John is allergic to a certain type of food his body would react to the substance; however, the brain will be confused about the situation and might not respond to this situation. In conclusion, I think that physically it would be John and mentally it would be me, this is because my personality would show through rather then John’s.
So who is John? John is not a face - but a personality. John is the person with his own emotions, memories and experiences. Without these aspects, he wouldn't be john. Thinking in more depth - where are these aspects stored? That's right! the brain. The human brain is a powerful organ which allows you to remember all your experiences, make your own choices, and feel emotions.
I, like John, am made up of my own emotions, experiences and memories. If my brain was put into John's head, it will no longer be John. This is because even though it is John's body, it is my thought process. When taken to a more simple level, we could compare this to plastic surgery. When a person undergoes surgery, there are physical changes that occur. No matter what happens in this situation, the person that undergoes the surgery does not have any mental change.
In conclusion, if I transplanted my brain into John's body, his body would just be a host for my knowledge, experiences, memories and emotions.
Our brain stores all our memories, experiences and knowledge. These aspects make up one’s personality. Further some external factors also influence one’s personality.
Our culture, surroundings, and family form a large part of or identity. John probably has different living conditions than me. Thus my brain will have to adapt to John’s surroundings. In doing so my personality will be affected.
Further my brain will have to adapt to John’s body. I like ice skating but if John’s body is large and bulky then my ice skating skills will be effected. I may have to lose the hobby and thus I will have to lose a part of my personality.
In conclusion one could say that I would be a mix of myself and John. Nevertheless, there would be more of me than John because my core values will remain the same and it is my core values that determine how I deal with situations. Our bodies are an outer representation of our brains. Thus I can change physical aspects of John’s body and environments to suit the needs of my brain.
Ramya is loud and Ramya loves to rant. Ramya is a lover of jazz and most importantly, Ramya is a lover of good conversation.
If science could find a way to transplant your brain into the body of someone named John, would you then be you or John? I think the fundamental question we are considering here is, what makes you you? What defines Ramya and does this one highly complex organ define her entire life and experiences contained within it?
The human body simply acts as a vessel for our conscience therefore John would then be Ramya, for we relate our names to our personalities and our characteristics. When completely stripped of these tags that almost help others identify us as an individual entity, we lose our true identity regardless of the physical presence still being among us.
That being said, what makes me a self- conscious mental being, depends on more than just the brain. The physical state does inevitably play a vital role in creating an identity and giving the individuals something to recognize themselves with. John’s physical state being largely or even minutely different to Ramya’s can have a large effect when identifying Ramya as an individual and recognizing her behavior as one greatly different to John’s.
John is John when in his body, but to me, the mental aspect of John’s brain being replaced with Ramya’s undoubtedly means the loss of John’s identity and the taking on of the large majority of a new identity.
A brain transplant is a procedure in which the brain of one living organism is transplanted into the body of another organism
Our brain is a very complex organ, responsible for intellectual and nervous activity and the coordinating center of sensations. As far as we can tell, the cortex of our brain stores our memories and experiences which help hone and refine our reactions and behavior. It is also understood that neurotransmitters, or brain chemicals, are responsible for our moods and of the general state that we are in. Thus naturally, a brain transplant would mean that the receiver of the ‘new brain’ would not be able to retain any previous memories, consequently losing their previous behavior.
However our personality does not solely depend on the functioning of the brain. Some of our behavioral traits are dependent on hormones that either do not originate in the brain, or depend on our physiology in some way.
This means that while the John has the memories and behavioral instincts of Sam (the brain donor), some of his previous characteristic will still remain imbibed in him. John can now no longer be Sam nor can he be himself. The result will be none of the previous persons but a whole now personality and identity
I am in many ways, in fact John. John’s physical attributes give forth a variety of changes that I have to adapt to. It all depends on how John and I differ in our physical selves. As a dancer, I have the mental skill control my body to reaching the level of grace and poise it needs and my body will be able to follows my commands, as it has done copious times before, with the required agility and stamina. However, I am restricted in John’s untrained and inflexible body thus losing a vital part of my being.
But my brain adapting to Johns new body and vice versa, may be a wholly different case, because the brain is not an individual being, and nor is the body, as they co-exist in harmony, and the brain in a new body could be a form of rebirth in which I am a newly born human being and the surroundings of John will shape my new personality. I might pick up a few of John’s traits – the ones that were a result of his interactions with his particular environment – as my brain tries adjusting to the circumstance it’s exposed to. However, there might be many changes as well, such as subconscious decisions to do something one particular way, certain likes or dislikes, or a difference in sleeping patterns etc. I would also most probably still know the languages, numbering and how to execute other simple and basic skills that my unconscious mind has known due to my memory storage still intact and thus my definitive traits could still be visible.
In conclusion, I believe the both, psychological characteristics and physiological state determines a person’s identity and so I would be a mix match of both John and me thus creating a completely new individual.
I am in many ways, in fact John. John’s physical attributes give forth a variety of changes that I have to adapt to. It all depends on how John and I differ in our physical selves. As a dancer, I have the mental skill control my body to reaching the level of grace and poise it needs and my body will be able to follows my commands, as it has done copious times before, with the required agility and stamina. However, I am restricted in John’s untrained and inflexible body thus losing a vital part of my being.
But my brain adapting to Johns new body and vice versa, may be a wholly different case, because the brain is not an individual being, and nor is the body, as they co-exist in harmony, and the brain in a new body could be a form of rebirth in which I am a newly born human being and the surroundings of John will shape my new personality. I might pick up a few of John’s traits – the ones that were a result of his interactions with his particular environment – as my brain tries adjusting to the circumstance it’s exposed to. However, there might be many changes as well, such as subconscious decisions to do something one particular way, certain likes or dislikes, or a difference in sleeping patterns etc. I would also most probably still know the languages, numbering and how to execute other simple and basic skills that my unconscious mind has known due to my memory storage still intact and thus my definitive traits could still be visible.
In conclusion, I believe the both, psychological characteristics and physiological state determines a person’s identity and so I would be a mix match of both John and me thus creating a completely new individual.
I believe a person's identity is mostly related to their opinions, likes and dislikes and experimental knowledge, all things which would be preserved if my brain where to be transmitted into "John's" body. A body can be trained to fit the traits I believe are essential to my identity, for example I play the piano, and John's hands may not be agile enough to move at the speed mine do, or maybe he has bad coordination skills, but since i have some theoretical knowledge, it shouldn't be that difficult to train John's body to do the things my body used to be able to do. Of course going through an experience as life changing as transmitting my brain into someone else's body, is going to change my personality, the way any major change in life does to most people, we grow, we go through different experiences and it changes us, i am not the same person i was a year ago, but this change doesn't mean I am not myself, in fact it would be strange if I didn't change, and these changes are in no way related to John, I will never be John, and John isn't going to be me, I am simply being myself.
How you comprehend, view and respond are your brain letting you have that one of a kind, unique perception about anything and everything. Be it your body or Johns. However, would rather be difficult to chose, one factor would be to compare outlook on physique; would he be taller? stronger? attractive at all? Another factor would be, if i were able to reply after being called by the name John all my life. Change in identity and personnel is not as easy as changing your cellphone. Your brain would have to learn and adapt to the other person completely. Even though technology and research are growing at an exponential rate, it would be slightly absurd to have such an invention for people just to chose which body they want to be covered with. Let nature take its natural course, other than if Johns body was in need of a brain transplant, then of course, it would be a major achievement if that were possible as well as if you look it that way.
But the way to look at this is body or brain, what is more significant to us today? Brain, precisely. Maybe the Kardashians would disagree but i strongly believe it is our brain that is extremely fundamental for our beings and today.
We learn from our experiences, and what we are today and how we think are reasons for that. Our brain learns and develops to comply with our body and eventually if i were to change to John, my brain would have to start from scratch and commence to gain intellect; my brain would merely know what it did. Though, choosing this strangers body and walking on his shoes with my(Manik) mind would be invigoratingly stimulating I would chose the body i was born with, and stay Manik, not become John
The question of what makes one oneself is a curious spectacle which has bemused philosophers for centuries with Descartes a prominent 17th century thinker who has been branded as the father of ‘western philosophy’ proclaiming “except our own thoughts, there is nothing absolutely in our power.”
The question remains what makes us – us? Is it the biological arrangement of organic molecules and our inherited genes that define us or is it the sum of our life experiences?
Personally I believe that there are two distinct ideas which are both correct in their own right – from an empirical and scientific perspective you are John, you are his genome sequencing and his biological make-up belongs to you, however I do not believe that this is what defines a person.
A person is the sum total of their life experiences that they have acquired via shared knowledge to form schemas and I believe that this is something personal that differentiates us from one another as each person perceives and receives the world in a different manner. Ergo you remain yourself but quite literally you are putting yourself in John’s shoes.
If science could find a way to transplant your brain into the body of someone named John, would you then be you or John?
The body is the carrier of the mind. Without a functional mind the body is a vegetable at best. Think of it like a Matryoshka doll, on the outside the doll is blue, you open it and expect to see a smaller version of the same blue doll, only it's red. Is the blue doll still the blue doll even though ALL the smaller versions of it are red?
We tend to believe the mind and body is one, although that is not often the case. The mind is powerful it controls matter but it is a separate entity compared to the body. Which is why we read case studies of women trapped in male bodies because they genuinely do not feel like this is their appearance nor body a fascinating example would be Lili Elbe (1882).
My mind is inside John's body, to the world I am John but it's just a name. They take me to the same 'pub' as they once took John. I do not recognize this place, the smells are unfamiliar, the noise is ghastly and loud, i'm afraid of these people around me- I am not John.
As a girl inside John's body everything is strange and unfamiliar but I try to make things less indifferent for myself. I change the way John dresses and I walk the way I would walk. John is no longer like a guy at this point, his characteristics and behavior is of a girl. The way he talks, his tastes, his liking's, his career, his skills, his hobbies are no longer viable. Just mine. All he is, is a carrier of MY mind
I walk past a donut shop and glance in the mirror as I walk, I am 6 feet tall and look nothing like myself. My memories are still here with me, so I know that I want a donut with chocolate sprinkles but John doesn't want that, does he?
I wouldn't know, I'm not John. I am stronger physically though- opening the store door wasn't a challenge this once.
How you look doesn't make you who you are- if I went to another country where no one knew me and introduced myself as Noah, would I then be John, Shanelle or Noah?
A name is irrelevant, the mind holds the memories the attributes and idiosyncrasies so wherever I go to the world I may be just a man who goes by John but they would eventually know and so would I - That I am not John.
Well, in a hypothetical situation, it really depends on memory retention. If I were to keep my memories from my previous life in my biological body, of course I would be myself. However, if my brain were to be erased of existing memory and were to start over new, then I would be John.
In a broader perspective, identity retention would be impossible. Angelique Bordey, a Professor at Yale, says that we would be John as “We grow our brain/mind to our body. So personality could change just due to the psychological shock.”
However, it is also a strong point of view to believe that you would retain your memories of your previous self as all memory is stored in the brain itself, not in portions of the body, therefore hypothetically, if you do detach a brain from a body, not only are you removing the very physical existence of the brain but also the person’s identity and memories; basically his/her life. And obviously, if you do happen to put your brain in John’s body, you’re replacing John’s biological brain, which contains his memories and identity, which means you’d continue to be yourself.
In conclusion, if it were based on reality, I believe that you would be yourself, as it is your brain getting a new body, not the other way around, considering the fact that your brain is the most dominant part of your existence, which means you will be retaining your memory (Provided you’re mentally strong enough to withstand the trauma of having a new body, accepting it, etc.) and John’s identity and psychological existence would be gone.
In my opinion,
We first need to understand and answer the question, "What actually is 'me'?"
Is it my face or body? Is it my way of thinking and behaviour?
Our names are given in order for people to recognize us by our faces, our bodies.
There are thousands of people around the world who think alike, but look different, hence they have different names. If we were named according to our thinking skills and behaviour, the world would be filled with the same names. Basically our names are only labels for our whole body, its structure. So, since only the brain, an internal organ of our body is transplanted, I no longer look like 'me'. The world, the mirror, would show and see an image of John. So to then, I would be John.
Nevertheless, the way John thinks, the way John behaves would vary since he is being controlled by 'Gimani's brain, not 'John's. It would be my responses coming out of his mouth, not his own. So we could say that 'Gimani's mind is controlling John's body'. Technically giving rise to a hybrid creature.
One day, Steve gets a deadly infection in the right half of his body. All of his right organs are infected except for his brain. and the only cure is to transplant every infected organ in his body with someone else's. The doctors decide to provide Steve with his new organs from a dead man named John. Would you now consider this cured Steve to be just Steve or half Steve, half John at the same time? Now let's take this a step further and give Steve this infection once again this time in the left side of his body and provide all of his left organs from John's body. Every one of John's organs are now part of Steve except for his brain. Have we now resurrected John back from the dead? The consciousness of John has long left the material world and is not in control of his (perfectly alive) body anymore. Still, would you now refer to Steve's brain in John's body as Steve or as John? To help answer this question let's assume John was your greatest friend since childhood. Would you treat Steve's brain in John's body as your best friend as if no death has occurred? I wouldn't. I believe the identity of a person is their consciousness and since a person's consciousness is theoretically carried by the brain, you are your brain. Therefore Steve's brain in John's body is Steve, not John.
If my brain were to be transplanted into John’s body, I would still possess my own identity and personality. I would still have my own memories, opinions and thoughts. However, I would not have my own body. The one I’m used to and have familiarized myself with throughout my lifespan. I would be confused at first, adapt with time and maybe even get used to it at the end.
A different body however, might affect the way you feel, the way you act and the way you are perceived by others… This would lead to altering your state of mind, your way of thinking and of course, your attitude towards certain aspects of your life.
I would think differently about my body image… Would I be able to emotionally handle such a big change, an entirely different body?
The question is really whether I would be conscious or oblivious to my changing personality in Johns body…
This question brings to mind the Ship of Theseus. The Ship of Theseus is a famous thought experiment, that goes along the lines of:
“The Ship of Theseus is in need of repair, and so some of the wood planks of the ship are replaced with new planks of wood. As the ship continues on its adventures, it is continuously repaired until all of the original ship has been replaced with new pieces. Is it still the Ship of Theseus? If all the old replaced pieces of the ship had been saved and recombined to form a second ship to be stored in a museum, which ship is the Ship of Theseus?”
Our bodies go through a similar process as is, replacing our atoms with new ones. Every 10 or so years, our bodies are entirely new, so does that make us any less ‘us’ than we were 10 years prior? Besides changes to personality, we still remain who we are. In ten years I may be more or less of a certain personality trait, but I will still be me, regardless of the fact that the body I inhabit now will be dust in the wind, replaced by newer cells and atoms. It isn’t the physical, but rather the consciousness that defines who we are. This consciousness is found within the brain, an organ so complex that it is often said, “if the human brain were so simple that we could understand it, we would be so simple that we couldn't.”
Whether I inhabit my body or that of John’s, it is the brain that is the source of ‘me’, and so whoever’s body I inhabit, I will be me. In the same vein that you can drive a friend’s car, but that doesn’t mean you have stolen his identity.
I believe, to answer this question, I would have to explain my context of this issue: In my opinion, what defines myself as ‘me’ is not only what’s inside, like consciousness, but also what is visible on the outside.
The factors that make an individual are much broader than consciousness alone. Having the consciousness of one person and the vessel of another is having two identities at one given time. For example, I would not be entirely me if I were in John’s body, because, while it may be my brain, it is still his body, which has grown according to the choices that he has made: Did he chose to take care of his body? Did he stay away from substance abuse? Did he protect himself from dangerous stress levels? Implanting my brain into John’s body would make me a newcomer in an unknown territory. I could argue that I won’t possess the same way of expressing myself as I would in my own vessel. My brain would have to adjust in this new environment it has been given, and thus may prevent me from truly being me.
To conclude, while I may be myself in terms of my memories, experiences and personality, I would also be John in terms of appearance.
If my brain were to be transferred into John's body, would I become John, or would John become me?
The answer is quite subjective. As the brain is responsible for memory and personality and all the other things that make a person, I believe that I would be myself.
The movie “Freaky Friday” could maybe provide us with some insight. In the movie, a mother and daughter switch bodies, essentially having one’s mind in the other’s body (since consciousness and the mind stem from the brain, this should be an appropriate comparison). To the outside world, nothing has changed. However to the mother and daughter, they are the same brain in a different body.
People’s perception of you is a huge part of who you are. For instance, if I was Michael Jackson’s reincarnation, but had all the same traits as I do now, no one would believe me. As a result, the world would know me as Hannah, even though I know myself to be Michael Jackson’s reincarnation.
So if my brain were to be transplanted into John’s body, I would know that I am still me, but would anyone else?
Before answering that, it is important to understand what defines a person. Is it the personality or the appearance? Of course, everyone's definition of words -- especially when it comes to such a philosophical matter -- differs. In my opinion, it is a combination of both.
A name is not assigned to just the personality or a face, but to an individual. For instance, when one mentions "Donald Trump", does only his brashness and isolence come to mind, or does his personality come with a visual image, such as his (questionable) facial expressions, his stature and overall way of holding himself? Visual image is as important to the recognition of an individual as is their personality. If Science found a way of implanting Donald Trump's brain into Barack Obama's, would he be Mr. Trump or Mr. Obama? My answer to this would be the same as the answer to this post: he would be both; a combination of two different people to form a new identity. If my brain were to be transplanted into the body of John, I would be John but also myself, hence creating a new person.
At the end of the day, it depends upon oneself who they wished to be identified as. Even though I am all for Science and specific answers, objectively speaking, there is a certain philosophy and personal point of view behind certain things in life. If I wished to be identified as John or my previous self, that decision lies entirely upon me.
In conclusion, I personally believe that I would be creating a new yet not-so-new person, since it is a mixture of two existing people; however, it depends upon the individual how they wish to be identified by themselves and their society.
How do you perceive people? Do you view them primarily in terms of their body – how they look; or in terms of their ‘brain’ – how they think and choose to behave? This might be a tricky question to answer in absolute terms, as it ultimately boils down to a bit of both.
‘A painting looks like a painting; therefore, it is a painting.’ If we were to use this line of reasoning, I would be John, since John still looks like John. However, it’s hardly befitting to compare human life to an inanimate object, since our identities are defined by more than just physical appearance. Assuming that the transplant is perfectly successful and results in the transfer of memories, mannerisms and thought processes, John would think and act like me. John, in essence, would BE me. In fact, the copious Tumblr quotes along the lines of “You are what you are, not what you look like” would attest to this.
Moreover, in today’s world, we are more inclined to perceive and interact with people based on who they are ‘inside’ – for the most part at least. This would make ‘John/me’ more ‘me’ than ‘John’. However, in the minds of John’s acquaintances, the name ‘John’ would be linked to a mental image of John – this image would still be confirmed by our appearance. Does this make ‘John/me’ more ‘John’ than ‘me’? A definitive conclusion is elusive. Of course, if my name was John in the first place, it would have made matters a whole lot less complicated – John before, John after.
If my brain would be transplanted into the body of someone named John would I still be me or would I be john?
Before this question can be answered I need to know what makes me, me. Is it just the mind and the brain or is this the body and the soul etc.
In my opinion, If my brain were to be transplanted into johns body, I would still be me because I would still have my own thoughts, personality and emotions. I would still think the same way and still have the same beliefs.
However I would be a different “me” because I would look different and have different feelings. I would think differently about myself and people would have different feelings about me. This would change my state of mind and change the way I feel.
Therefore if my brain were to be transplanted I would still be me but a different me.
I believe this answer is relative to how you define a person, in my point of view a person is defined by the choices they make, their beliefs , their values, everything minus their physical aspect. Therefore transferring my brain into John's body would just be me in a different body.
I believe our bodies are just mediums for our thoughts and ideas. If we take our brains as the central core of what we are then transferring my brain into anyone else's body wont change my identity. However the changes that will make a difference are once my brain has to learn to adapt to John's environment and surroundings, and his body itself. I will most likely have an identity crisis hopefully like how Fight Club portrays it.
This might even lead to a new person all together a mixture of my brain and John's body however unlikely I do believe that I will still be able to be truly me even in John's body. As a society we give great importance on how we identify ourselves, all the labels and it really comes down to how we choose to identify ourselves.
If science could find a way to transplant your brain into the body of someone named John, would you then be you or John?
I believe that if your brain were to be transplanted into another body, this body would now be yours. The brain is the house for your thoughts, memories, creativity, logic, etc. and the body could not function without a brain giving it directives. Therefore a body is simply a sort of 'shell that help the brain survive and do daily tasks and also protects it. If your brain were to be transplanted to a new body you would still have the same memories, thoughts, creativity, logic, intelligence, etc. You would simply appear as physically different which means you are still yourself. You would still interact the same and have the same friends. Personality and emotions are also created and triggered by the brain which means, once transplanted you would still have the same personality and emotions as before. Additionally, we make friends and spouses based on how we feel about them and what we like about their personality and not about how they look, so when the brain is transplanted you should still be friends with the same people as you enjoy the company of each other solely because of their personality and not because of their physique.
If science could find a way to transplant your brain into the body of someone named John, would you then be you or John?
I definitely think that the brain is the core aspect of what makes a person them, and sets them apart from others; how else would one differentiate John, from, say Albert? Consciousness rests in the brain and is a collection of memories, feelings, and emotions. Although much of what makes us is biological and due to nature and evolution, our ability to sense the passage of time and such directly relates to our consciousness. We are able to rationalize and make calculated decisions. This was an evolution aspect as well, as it helped us be more successful in surviving and passing on the genes to offsprings. Therefore, all of our consciousness rests in the brain and in my opinion is what really makes us, not the body. So if science could find a way to transplant my brain into someone else's body, it would be my consciousness that has been inputted into another body which means that it is still me who directs the body; my quirks, my way of thinking rather than the other person's body that only regulates physical aspects.
To answer this question I would have initially started with the difference between the mind and the body and how the combination of both the elements make up each individual. However, if you consider modern technology and the extent to which virtual reality can be used to in medicine, it is possible that the transition from me to having my brain inside another person (John) may be much easier than expected before.
I will not face that sudden culture shock or any shock at all because I will have enough time to process the change and adapt to my future scenario. To analyse this situation, one can look at the concept behind the communication tool, the Johari window. In the Johari window, you have four parts of how you interact with others: the arena, the facade, the blind spot and the unknown.
If and when my brain is transplanted in John's body, everyone will be able to notice the difference in behavior/personality and other decision making abilities because that's not what John would do, even though I may not know or understand what John used/didn't used to do, this would be an example of my blind spot.
Unless anyone who knew John notices any of these behaviors and tells me about it, it will remain a blind spot and I may appear to be a completely new individual (not John or Medha) for others that didn't know him or me (and hence have a new identity- unknown/arena)
On the other hand, I personally would know that I have undergone a transition and may notice some differences, but keeping in mind that I got time to cope with this change may still lead to me believe that i'm still the same person I was. Sure, my body stature might change and the way I handle myself may change but thats just due to adaptation and people can change behaviors even if they don't undergo a transplant. Hence, in my facade, I will still be me.
Finally, this analysis is completely based on the assumption that I will have time to adapt and come to terms with the transition (with the help of technology) as I don't think we can expect a spontaneous brain transplant (unlike other organ transplants) in the current status quo.
Each side has its own valid argument, however I believe that certain key factors play into this decision. Why would you be considered John? Firstly, when you wake up after the transplant, you notice a change. You are no longer in your own frame. You must acknowledge the development that has occurred. You cannot lift your limbs at your command and this structural gap is bridged by endless hours of rehabilitation. Hours spent learning how to function as John. Hours spent learning how to be John.
Secondly, it is important to consider that even you aren’t really you. Our ego is the part of the mind that mediates between the conscious and the unconscious and is responsible for reality testing and a sense of personal identity. Our ego is our sense of personality. Essentially, what we think we portray ourselves as to the world. What happens when you are put into the body of a completely new individual and must re-evaluate your ego? Can you really say that the surgery has not affected your mental status at all? Do you know who you are when you really don’t know who you are?
Moreover, there is such a scientific phenomenon known as muscle memory - a form of procedural memory that involves consolidating a specific motor task into memory through repetition. Would you then not be able to shoot into the basket with the help of Johns ‘skills’, in this case, the bounce-dribble-shoot pattern memorized by his autonomic nervous system especially when you may have never held a basketball in your life? How do you deny that there is a part of ‘you’ making its own decisions?
Finally, what differentiates you from John? Is it his nationality, religion, cultural background or his physical features – his age, his body-mass percentage, his hairline? Your personality and beliefs now merging into his skin and bone create a creature far more intrinsic than you or john. It is more than a mixture; it is a loss. Just as you gained Johns hoop skills, you lost your hand at martial arts. The newly created being is now a conscious controlling version of you with added effects – a gift from John – and reduced benefits, such as the years of training you put in. You’ve not only gained his muscle memory, but lost your own.
On the other hand, your new name does not indicate your new personality. Labels try to fix you in boxes that don’t necessarily exist. As you grow in Johns body, whether it be mentally, spiritually or emotionally, you will experience the most common human tendency – adaptation. Just as how putting on new glasses alters your balance; the transplant would have altered your sense of self. However, it is to be noted that you are still controlling someone else’s body. Johns structure is a mere capsule of life, just as your own was.
Correspondingly, our physical being is just the vessel of our thoughts, emotions and consciousness. The contents of this ampule define who we are and who we want to become. In the scenario of a brain transplant, this casket is found within the brain, or rather the whole brain in itself. Just by admitting the fact that John will no longer be able to function without a brain inside of him proves enough to say that you are the sum of your life experiences, shared knowledge, schemes and emotions all wrapped up in your mind. Quite interestingly, you are putting yourself in John’s shoes.
Finally, I believe the factors mentioned above apply to different extents based on whether you then move forward to live Johns life or go back to live your own. If you were to live Johns life, you would then have to pretend to be him (like in numerous movies, such as Freaky Friday, where a mother and a daughter ‘exchange’ brains) This constant reminder to act like him, talk like him, dress like him and finally be him would then affect your ego, or sense of self and cause you to question who you really are. However, all these doubts are erased away if you were to move back into your own life.
The question prompts me to assume the outcome would be either one of the options above; either still being “me” or becoming John. However, I’d like to propose an alternative: being someone completely different, someone new entirely.
Going on the definition that I am the combination of my memories, actions, personalities, and physical appearance, there is no way I can still be completely me if my brain has been transplanted into John’s body.
Whether my memories and personality comes with my brain into John’s body, only a fraction of me actually enters John. Likewise, only a piece of what makes John, John, is ever truly gone without his brain.
If my brain were to control his body, he would probably be reacting differently than if his brain were in control. Suppose I have had a traumatic experience with drowning, losing my dad on a boating trip. Despite John being a renowned "ocean explorer", my brain may never bring his body back out in sea due to fear. John’s friends, and all who know him, may think he’s become a different person entirely.
But likewise, my brain would be controlling a different body, and thus, be doing different things than I would normally be doing. If I was a skilled fencer before, having trained my whole life in the sport, but now in a body that has asthma, I will be doing things differently. No one would ever even think of comparing John with me.
I’d like to think that the combination of the countless new possibilities and hindrances in my daily life will essentially shape me into someone completely different. New memories will be made, a new personality may form, and I may start to do things that neither John or myself could have ever expected to be able to do. I would be someone new.
*SORRY I WROTE TOO MUCH BUT NOW I'M TOO COMMITTED TO SHORTEN IT SO HERE IT IS IN TWO PARTS*
Part 1
The question of whether or not one would retain their identity or take the identity of the host body in the case of a brain transplant alludes to the larger issue of personal identity, one that has theories that overlap both in philosophy and science. To find an answer, I think it would be pertinent to evaluate this same scenario with the different perspectives offered by each theory, and evaluate where the differences arise, and what can be done to possibly reconcile them and, ultimately, which theory – composite or otherwise – answers the question best.
Chronologically, the first – and most simplistic – view on personal identity is that which is espoused by most of the world’s major religions, as well as prominent philosophers such as Plato and Descartes; the concept of a soul. Though what the soul is meant to entail varies from interpretation to interpretation, it is generally agreed amongst the theory’s proponents that the presence of the soul within a body which is, here, seen merely as a vessel determines whether it is alive or dead. Relying on speculative metaphysics and the strangely human desire for a sense of transient persistent personal identity beyond what is provable – that is, retaining one’s identity throughout their life – the soul theory is not one held in very high regard in more scientific discourse, for reasons that shall become apparent as we attempt to employ the soul in answering the given premise.
Assume that the brain has been transplanted into the body of ‘John’ successfully. To which of the two parts is the soul tethered; the brain or the body? If it is the former, then there is no difference between the functionality of the brain and that of the soul and, thus, it is made redundant. If it is the latter, then whence cometh the functionality of the brain that modern neuroscience has discovered? Thus, it is incompatible. The current inability of the theory to conclusively and satisfactorily answer, explain and reconcile the findings of neuroscience with itself and satisfy the demands of the scientific method are the reasons why this theory alone does not yield a proper answer to the question at hand.
The next two theories that are relevant to the question at hand are more materialistic than the last: the brain/mind theory and the body theory. Let us first discuss the latter and its implications for the premise. The body theory is simple as well; your body – what it is to everyone else around you – is who you are. An interesting question arises from this theory, most commonly manifested in the thought experiment known as the Ship of Theseus. If you gradually replaced the parts of a ship, is there a point at which it is no longer the same ship? Similarly, if you gradually replace the parts on a human being – as it occurs in that our cells live, die and are replaced – is there a point at which it is no longer the same person?
*I DIDN'T EXPLAIN IN THE LAST POST BUT THE REASON I HAVE TO DO THIS IS THE CHARACTER COUNT*
Part 2
In the ‘Body of John’ premise, it is only the brain that is being, essentially, replaced. Proponents of the body theory who answer the Ship of Theseus with the idea that continuity is what maintains an entity’s identity would answer that your body remains as you, and John’s body is still John. The fact that your brain now occupies a different body is insufficient to change its identity. In fact, it could be argued that virtually nothing can actually cause a change in the body’s identity under this theory, so long as the continuity is maintained. This is where the scenarios where the one body is scanned and recreated – without the original being destroyed simultaneously – in the infamous teleportation thought experiments cause issues for the body theory, wherein two bodies with a comparable level of continuity exist but paradoxically sharing the same identity in at least name. However, this isn’t immediately pertinent to the premise at hand and, as far as John is concerned, the body theory passes.
The mind theory, on the other hand, maintains a similar idea of continuity while relocating the focus of the identity. The latter is achieved in the idea that the mind, responsible for all cognition and store of all memories, is what defines one’s identity. Continuity is maintained again in this theory as the brain is a decidedly ever-changing organ – both in the sense of its cellular replacement, as well as the fact that it is constantly developing, growing, forming new pathways and losing older ones. The same man, decades apart, may not be comparable yet it is the continuity that indicates that the reality is the contrary.
Much like the body theory, the mind theory has a similar result to the teleportation thought experiment; there are now two individuals with immediately indistinguishable brains existing under the same identity. However, the mind theory reaches a different conclusion insofar as the John premise is concerned; if the brain is to be moved to another body, it surely follows that – considering we now consider the brain and its cognition and memory the identity – the new body takes on the identity of the brain. That is to say, yes, in having your brain transplanted, you are now John.
Discounting the soul theory on account of its various faults, let us compare the two conflicting answers that the mind theory and the body theory have provided. It appears to me that, while on a physical level the results of the transplant are indistinguishable, it is only a matter of perspective which decides whether or not you retain your identity. The two perspectives are, a. the internal identity – which corresponds to cognition, personality and memory – and the external identity, which corresponds to appearance and physical attributes. While it can be argued that one perspective is more valid than another – an argument I will not contest – the idea that an answer can be reached without either redefinition or synthesis is not one I agree with. Rather, I’d argue one of two things; one, considering how the body impacts the brain in various ways and vice versa, that the answer is neither yes nor no, but that a new person has been formed who identity will, as time progresses, move farther and farther away from either of its originals; two, that a redefinition so that the idea of identity is more apt for either the social sense of the word or the individual sense of the word, but not left ambiguous.
This dilemma cleverly pairs two, almost opposite ideas together. The word infinite, suggests limitless magnitude or freedom and cage which looks at defined boundaries and thresholds. But do we have the capability of added this idea to our current understanding of reality?
The second part of the prompt suggests the concept of our planet being a 'cage' of some kind. The “walls” of our cage are the laws of physics, well actually most of the laws of the various sciences. The way gravity works may also be a limiting factor in our entrapment, humans cannot simply float off in space. We require cutting edge technology to allow us to break our “cage”.
But the idea of infinity does allow us to look beyond the stereotypical mental image of a small metal cubic cage. If we are in an infinitely large cage then is it really a cage? If we don’t have physical walls, then is it really a cage?
Please excuse the last post.
In order to tackle this issue, I first considered what if it was a literal transplant. In fact, in the past Russian scientists have tried to transplant the head of one animal onto the body of another; transplanted the head of a monkey onto another’s headless body. In 1965 one of the pioneers in the field, Robert White transplanted the head of a monkey onto another’s headless body. The resulting monkey lived for eight days. Not only could it use its senses, it tried to bite the hand of a researcher. In this case, the host body simply provided life support for the transplanted head or brain. There was no neurological connection between the two, and the newly added brain wasn’t in any sense the control system of the body. If I extrapolate from this example and without attempting to factor in the complexities of the human brain then I hypothesize that the result would be a functioning human body that will try and meet the requirements of survival. But if consider the complexities of the human personality and thought process then I would have to say that our memories, experiences and thought greater outweigh our physical appearance when it comes to making up our personality.
I think the answer to this question ultimately relies on your definition what constitutes “you”. Personally, I think my thought, ideas, views and memories define who I am far more than my physical characteristics, so I’d still consider myself to be “me”, albeit in the body of John.
Post a Comment