Single Idea 3102

[catalogued under 16. Persons / C. Self-Awareness / 3. Limits of Introspection]

Full Idea

As a child it was incomprehensible to me that I did not experience going to sleep, and never remembered it. When my sister said 'Nobody remembers that', I just thought 'How does she know?'

Gist of Idea

Why don't we experience or remember going to sleep at night?

Source

Bryan Magee (Confessions of a Philosopher [1997], Ch.I)

Book Reference

Magee,Bryan: 'Confessions of a Philosopher (1st ed)' [Phoenix 1998], p.1


A Reaction

This is actually evidence for something - that we do not have some sort of personal identity which is separate from consciousness, so that "I am conscious" would literally mean that an item has a property, which it can lose.