Pluralistic Insight into Identity both for Ourselves and for Others

Abstract

I provide a method of investigating identity both for ourselves and for others by exploring the connection between William James’ pluralism and Hannah Arendt’s ideas on the self. In §2, I present James’ pluralism for how we can view our world and self, which will serve as the foundation for this investigation. In §3, I lay out how Arendt attributes the availability of identity for others in terms of action. The question of “Who are you?” is addressed in this section by applying James’ pluralism to Arendt’s notion of action. In §4, I apply Arendt’s notions of solitude and loneliness to an investigation of the identity of ourselves. I conclude that when we view the world pluralistically we can find insight into how to understand the identity of both ourselves and others.