Reasons And Persons (Derek Parfit) - Book Review
06/28/22 • 29 min
Who are you truly and what do you believe deeply?
'Reasons And Persons' by Derek Parfit is an examination into our beliefs of what we should do with our lives and our personal identity. Parfit appeals to rationality and argues why theories such as self-interest and consequentialism are self-defeating in their own terms. He does this through a series of hypothetical cases (both realistic and improbable) to demonstrate their paradoxes before providing what he believes is the truly logical way to think.
I summarised the book as follows. "This is probably a book for philosophers. I'd say you need to have a grasp on many fundamentals to fully understand the minutiae of Parfit's arguments. His general conclusions still seem quite vague and the use of so many hypotheticals & double/triple negatives became too much for me. Overall it wasn't worth reading as I couldn't take out any practical actions, but hey maybe that's just me."
I hope you have a fantastic day wherever you are in the world. Kyrin out!
Timeline:
(0:00) - Intro
(0:34) - Synopsis
(4:04) - Reasons: What do we have the most reason to do?
(10:13) - Persons: Your beliefs about your identity over time are false!
(16:44) - Observations/Takeaways
(25:01) - Summary
Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/
Who are you truly and what do you believe deeply?
'Reasons And Persons' by Derek Parfit is an examination into our beliefs of what we should do with our lives and our personal identity. Parfit appeals to rationality and argues why theories such as self-interest and consequentialism are self-defeating in their own terms. He does this through a series of hypothetical cases (both realistic and improbable) to demonstrate their paradoxes before providing what he believes is the truly logical way to think.
I summarised the book as follows. "This is probably a book for philosophers. I'd say you need to have a grasp on many fundamentals to fully understand the minutiae of Parfit's arguments. His general conclusions still seem quite vague and the use of so many hypotheticals & double/triple negatives became too much for me. Overall it wasn't worth reading as I couldn't take out any practical actions, but hey maybe that's just me."
I hope you have a fantastic day wherever you are in the world. Kyrin out!
Timeline:
(0:00) - Intro
(0:34) - Synopsis
(4:04) - Reasons: What do we have the most reason to do?
(10:13) - Persons: Your beliefs about your identity over time are false!
(16:44) - Observations/Takeaways
(25:01) - Summary
Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/
Previous Episode
Philosophy Books Make Me Not Want To Read
Next month will be the first where we won't have a book review every week. And philosophy is to blame!
In June 2022 we covered 5 books on this channel. Juan did some heavy lifting and bested me for the first time since we began. I've recently been noticing a decline in my desire to read and this could be because I have been slogging through Parfit's book (intermittently) for a couple of months now. And this is how I've generally felt reading the 'classic' philosophy works. Hopefully this will pick up once I start reading for fun again but no guarantees.
I hope you have a fantastic day wherever you are in the world. Kyrin out!
Timeline:
(0:00) - Intro
(0:23) - Madame Bovary: Gustave Flaubert
(5:52) - Reasons And Persons: Derek Parfit
(12:25) - Homo Deus: Yuval Noah Harari
(13:12) - Before I Go To Sleep: S.J. Watson
(14:11) - The Little Book Of Alpaca Philosophy: Jennifer McCartney
(15:09) - Boostagram Lounge
(21:03) - July 2022
Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/
Next Episode
Brief Answers to the Big Questions (Stephen Hawking) - Book Review
'Brief Answers to the Big Questions' by Stephen Hawking seeks to answer 10 commonly asked questions from his own perspective. The book examines some of the universe's greatest mysteries, and promotes the view that science is very important in helping to solve problems on planet Earth
I hope you have a fantastic day wherever you are in the world. Juan out!
Timeline:
(0:00) - Intro
(0:40) - Who is Stephen Hawkins
(2:23) - Synopsis
(5:12) - Themes & Observations
(10:45) - Takeaway
Connect with Mere Mortals:
Website: https://www.meremortalspodcast.com/
Discord: https://discord.gg/jjfq9eGReU
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/meremortalspodcast/
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