Being a Person and Acting as a Person

Grzegorz Hołub

Being a Person and Acting as a Person

Article

13/2 - Fall 2008, pages 267-282

Date of online publication: 15 novembre 2008

Date of publication: 01 novembre 2008

Abstract

The article is primarily concerned with the ambiguities which surround the concept of the person. According to the philosophical tradition taking its roots from Locke's definition, personhood depends on consciousness. Therefore, “personhood” can be ascribed to different entities, and only these entities acquire a moral standing. This can entail that a human being may or may not be considered as a person, as well as higher animals and even artificial machines. Everything depends on manifest personal characteristics. In order to sort out different meanings ascribed to “person,” I distinguish between being a person and acting as a person. Then, I show that a human being is a paradigm of the person and his being always precedes his acting.

Keywords

Cite this article

Hołub, Grzegorz. “Being a Person and Acting as a Person.” Forum Philosophicum 13, no. 2 (2008): 261–76. doi:10.35765/forphil.2008.1302.21.

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