Abstract
The moral condemnation of memory modifying technologies (MMTs) often relies on the view that memory provides a veridical representation of the past and that it can be used to ground personal identity. In this chapter, I present a range of studies that substantiate the claim that autobiographical memory is unreliable and cannot be used to ground narrative identity. I use this evidence to argue that MMTs that have the potential to alter autobiographical memory do not jeopardize personal identity. Given its flexibility, I argue, narrative identity can be maintained despite changes in memory. I further argue that maintenance of particular memories is not required for authenticity. Because of the spontaneous fluctuations of each person’s character traits, values, and preferences over time, I claim that first-person endorsement of core traits or the identification of core memories as formative of narrative identity is required to establish one’s true self. In addition, I dispute the argument that memory modification poses a challenge to authenticity and provide examples of instances where such modification can promote authenticity.
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Notes
- 1.
My review of the scientific literature on memory is limited by my goal of assessing the argument that memory modifying technology could disrupt narrative identity.
- 2.
For additional studies on retroactive interference, see Green (1992), pp. 154–156.
- 3.
A study by Jin-Hee Han et al. (2009) achieved the circumscribed erasure of a single memory using a toxin to destroy particular neurons. The study was done on mice.
- 4.
This is not to argue that we are responsible only for those features of ourselves that we endorse. One is responsible for being a murderer, liar, or cheater even when we do not regard those traits as part of our selves.
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Gligorov, N. (2016). The Truth About Memory and Identity. In: Neuroethics and the Scientific Revision of Common Sense . Studies in Brain and Mind, vol 11. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-024-0965-9_5
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