It sounds like a silly question, and maybe it is, but I had a history professor long ago that claimed the modern, discrete individual sense of “self” as we know it today largely dates from the Greeks, and before that a person’s sense or idea of themselves as an individual actor in a social or philosophical context was substantially different. It was a busty semester and I never had the opportunity to ask “Different how?”
Anything to this or just errant musings by an old professor?
Well, that question sounds very interesting.
But I’d like to hear about your busty semester.
Well…not that busyness and bustiness don’t sometimes intersect depending on how Thursday or Friday night went. It was occasionally busty, but it was mostly busy. :o
This is an interesting topic
I don’t know about modern, but I think there are various beliefs about this depending on culture. Americans (of european descent) are pretty sold on the idea that they’re individuals, whereas people of latin descent view themselves as much more connected for instance. So, like a person in this country is often viewed as ready to move out of home when they reach 18 whereas in Mexico the expectation is more likely to be that the person stays till they get married.
I fall pretty heavily on the “we are all connected” side of thinking.
If you really want to read dense treatise of something along these lines pick up: The Origin of Consciousness in the Breakdown of the Bicameral Mind, by Julian Jaynes.
I can see how there might be something to this, kindof.
If you consider that human beings, generally, tend not to ever operate as individuals in complete isolation, and tend to function in groups, be they family, tribe, community or whatever, and if you furthermore consider that having a developed “philosophical position” on something is somewhat of a luxury, and something someone can only have if you have enough time to sit around on your arse and think about it, then it would make sense that a culture like that of Ancient Greece might well come up with some ideas of “self” which were new and interesting three thousand years ago.
I can’t really move much further beyond this idle speculation, however.
I’d also recommend reading “Coming to Our Senses” by Morris Berman which touches somewhat upon the notion that our conception of a discrete “self” is relatively recent.
If your taste has been wetted by the above book, then you can follow-up with Berman’s “The Reenchantment of The World” and “Wandering God: A Study in Nomadic Spirituality”.