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What the Ship of Theseus Tells Us about Qualia

September 4, 2019

consciousness, identity, philosophy, subjectivity

If you feel helpless reading the title, bear with me. I’ll explain it all in a moment. If you do know what the “Ship of Theseus” refers to, you might still be wondering what’s the connection between the Ship of Theseus and qualia. That’s what this post attempts to ponder on.

First things first, especially for those who are not familiar with either the Ship of Theseus or qualia. That is, first let’s see some brief definitions – at this point I only offer the definitions; analysis will follow right after.

The Ship of Theseus is the name given to a thought experiment known since the 5th century BCE. It’s related to the metaphysics of identity.

Qualia is the name given to individual instances of subjective experience. When you see a red flower, the “redness of red”, the way you, specifically perceive it, is qualia.

ship of theseus qualia — This specific ship is not the Ship of Theseus, and qualia does not refer to you seeing the picture. But whether the act of “seeing the picture” can be objective, the experience of “seeing the *pictureness* of the picture” is subjective.

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Human Uniqueness: You’re Special, just like Everyone Else

January 16, 2018

Society

comparing, death, identity, life, musings, society, success

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Ah, human uniqueness… What a funny fallacy. The human experience consists of a series of contradictions. How many times have you wanted to be left alone, secretly wishing you would be nevertheless not? And how many times have you done something fully aware of the fact that it would lead to unpleasant results?

How many times have you wanted to feel the center of attention, at the same time feeling excessively self-conscious, loathing all the attention you’re after all getting? Humans love being deluded, and they adore fooling themselves.

It might be a coping mechanism, I am not qualified to say. But perhaps this is the most valid argument for human uniqueness: no other creature must be so capable at containing so contradicting ideas in their consciousness.

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Playing the Hardest Role: Yourself

January 14, 2018

Society

identity, life, pretending, society

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We all play roles, every single day of our lives. Amazingly, we probably aren’t even conscious that we’re doing that, even if we do it all the time. Then again, this is perhaps precisely the reason why we don’t realize it. We might wake up as a spouse, then we prepare breakfast as a parent. We then drive as a responsible citizen, and we go to work where we are a jolly team member. The hardest role to play though is yourself. Allow me to share an excerpt from an upcoming novel of mine.

Ahmed flushed the toilet then turned the faucet on and washed his hands. As the last droplets fell and streamed down the sparkling white sink, he raised his eyes and looked in the mirror. He saw time itself examining him, assessing him, judging what was to be done about that silly boy – for a boy he still felt inside, after more than a decade of adulthood. The intense stare of his dark brown eyes, the black beard, the carefully (albeit unconsciously) constructed aura of confidence and certainty, they were all facets of role-playing. Ahmed was nothing but an actor, just like everyone else, and his task was the hardest of them all: he was pretending to be himself.

And so, just as it is expected from an experienced performer, his expression instantly changed as he turned the door knob and exited the small bathroom. A giant gleam on his face, he returned to the dinner table where his cousin, his cousin’s wife, and their three young daughters were seated.

hardest role to play is yourself — We all wear masks, every day of our lives

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