Single Idea 9264

[catalogued under 16. Persons / B. Nature of the Self / 6. Self as Higher Awareness]

Full Idea

The essential difference between persons and other creatures is in the structure of the will, with their peculiar characteristic of being able to form 'second-order desires'.

Clarification

'Second-order desires' are desires about desires

Gist of Idea

Persons are distinguished by a capacity for second-order desires

Source

Harry G. Frankfurt (Freedom of the Will and concept of a person [1971], Intro)

Book Reference

'Free Will', ed/tr. Watson,Gary [OUP 1982], p.82


A Reaction

There are problems with this - notably that all strategies of this kind just shift the problem up to the next order, without solving it - but this still strikes me as a very promising line of thinking when trying to understand ourselves. See Idea 9266.

Related Idea

Idea 9266 A person essentially has second-order volitions, and not just second-order desires [Frankfurt]