While reading Galen Strawson’s “I am not a story” I first noticed a few things. He was speaking from his own mind rather than using others arguments to make a larger point. He was only concerned with his own thoughts and did not care what others would have thought while reading this article. When it comes to when he talks about having a singular self, I would have agree. You are only one person and the stories you tell reflect your journey as a human being. It lets you take a more thematic approach when viewing the stories you tell. Whether that is being true to yourself or not is a completely different story. I believe that viewing your story in multiple steps helps to be more truthful to who you actually are. It helps to identify more steps, more memories to associate with who you have become and the steps you have taken to develop. In some ways I feel like my life story is something that has led me to the place I am today. I would not change my experiences and I believe I am stronger because of them. All in all I very much enjoyed reading this article but I think that Galen’s core argument was a tad bit shaky at some points. At times he would just say something so outrageously bold and sometimes dumb that I couldn’t follow his train of thought. He distracts himself with his own emotion so much so that he cannot think about other people’s opinions and connect with them in a meaningful way.
I completely agree with you disconnection while reading this essay. I also found Strawsons argument to be shakey and belive he would have benefited from attempting to connect more with other opinions. Your reflection on Strawsons points helped me understand what he was trying to say more than I understood from his essay.
I think it was really good that you enjoyed Strawson’s essay. I, on the other hand, am not so sure I did. I found those places of confusion and blindness to emotion that you mentioned later on in your comment. This confusion led me to be even more confident with my opinion on how our lives are narratives, as it seems it did for you as well. You also brought up something very important, and that was that our life stories have led us to the places we are today. I TOTALLY AGREE, and as you said in your comment, I wouldn’t change my experiences.
I would recommend revisiting Strawson, as his writing style is a bit challenging for reasons that you’ve pointed out. He has a tendency to talk around his point, rather than simply stating it.