Our Uniqueness
Our uniqueness in mind and the way we think makes us individuals. I
would imagine that even cloned persons would be individuals subject to
the influences of differing environments. Their physical form would
be identical but each mind will have to evaluate individually,
therefore making each unique. Partial loss of individuality may occur
during common social interactions, such as a sporting event. However,
there are differing aspects of the event to which individual attention
is being paid to. While the crowd may be cheering on a team in
unison, one fan may be focusing on # 12 while another on # 23 while
still another may be noticing the cheerleader section. Individuality
is not fixed and can be changed by the individual self, whether there
is a desire to do so or there is a significant external experience
that dictates that change, such as prisoner of war or terminal illness
situation.
“All Fords are exactly alike, but no two men are just alike. Every new
life is a new thing under the sun; there has never been anything just
like it before, never will be again. A young man ought to get that
idea about himself; he should look for the single spark of
individuality that makes him different from other folks, and develop
that for all he is worth. Society and schools may try to iron it out
of him; their tendency is to put it all in the same mold, but I say
don’t let that spark be lost; it is your only real claim to
importance.” - Henry Ford
Albert Einstein seemed to be in agreement, when he said: “The really
valuable thing in the pageant of human life seems to me not the State
but the creative, sentient individual, the personality; it alone
creates the noble and the sublime. . .”
An individual being is defined by St. Thomas as "quod est in se
indivisum, ab aliis vero divisum" (a being undivided in itself but
separated from other beings). It implies therefore unity and
separateness or distinctness. Individuality in general may be defined
or described as the property or collection of properties by which the
individual possesses this unity and is separated off from other
beings. What is it that constitutes an individual, or individuality?
Everyone who is alive, explores and expresses their identity. What
makes us individuals? Is being an individual the same as being
different? When we enjoy our commonalities with others, do we lose
our individuality? What do YOU thinK?
~Moshee
would imagine that even cloned persons would be individuals subject to
the influences of differing environments. Their physical form would
be identical but each mind will have to evaluate individually,
therefore making each unique. Partial loss of individuality may occur
during common social interactions, such as a sporting event. However,
there are differing aspects of the event to which individual attention
is being paid to. While the crowd may be cheering on a team in
unison, one fan may be focusing on # 12 while another on # 23 while
still another may be noticing the cheerleader section. Individuality
is not fixed and can be changed by the individual self, whether there
is a desire to do so or there is a significant external experience
that dictates that change, such as prisoner of war or terminal illness
situation.
“All Fords are exactly alike, but no two men are just alike. Every new
life is a new thing under the sun; there has never been anything just
like it before, never will be again. A young man ought to get that
idea about himself; he should look for the single spark of
individuality that makes him different from other folks, and develop
that for all he is worth. Society and schools may try to iron it out
of him; their tendency is to put it all in the same mold, but I say
don’t let that spark be lost; it is your only real claim to
importance.” - Henry Ford
Albert Einstein seemed to be in agreement, when he said: “The really
valuable thing in the pageant of human life seems to me not the State
but the creative, sentient individual, the personality; it alone
creates the noble and the sublime. . .”
An individual being is defined by St. Thomas as "quod est in se
indivisum, ab aliis vero divisum" (a being undivided in itself but
separated from other beings). It implies therefore unity and
separateness or distinctness. Individuality in general may be defined
or described as the property or collection of properties by which the
individual possesses this unity and is separated off from other
beings. What is it that constitutes an individual, or individuality?
Everyone who is alive, explores and expresses their identity. What
makes us individuals? Is being an individual the same as being
different? When we enjoy our commonalities with others, do we lose
our individuality? What do YOU thinK?
~Moshee
I think the concept that we are individuals/separate is an illusion. I believe we are all sparks of the same Divinity, like snowflakes, we are all the same and all unique. Our humanity/commonality doesn't absorb our uniqueness; it highlights it. And that's what I think. :-)