cloning and what makes you you

**Adrian** · February 06, 2010, 02:01 AM

I asked myself this for quite sometime if you clone yourself while you are alive that person is a perfect copy you but its not really you my conscious mind is still in my original body.

Now we should work on defining what make me me the sum of my experiences coupled with some biological factors that affect my perception of those experiences but is that all ?

By that the clone would be me but if im alive I control my original body I don't control the second one how can that be me if I am in control of my original body ?

But if you stop to think about it its another me the same exact person but im not in control so basically I created another me that its not really me.

The same applies to cloning after death if I died my conscious mind died that means im not in control of the other me I died simple.

I have a hard time wrapping my head around this and defining what makes me me.

Peoples opinions on this issue?

**~~TheXand~~** · February 06, 2010, 05:25 AM

Interesting thought, I've often wondered this myself.
In my opinion, we are the sum of our constituent parts, so while the clone would be an image of you, it would not truly be you, merely a sentient reflection of you, and while it might exhibit a similar personality at first (assuming it was given the same memories as you) it's personality would change as it gained more experience in life and acquired memories of it's own, thus making it more of a unique individual.

As an aside, real life clones while sharing the same genetic code as the original subject would look different, something about the random process of birth I think.

There was quite an interesting movie about something like this that really got me thinking called The Prestige.

**M D** · February 06, 2010, 05:42 AM

The problem with cloning is sure, you could clone me and I would look exactly the same BUT and this is a very BIG BUT.. I would not at all be similar in personality.. So those women who have their favourite dead cat cloned are just getting in a way, a twin. They share no other resemblance.

So what makes me, me? The brain.

**~~TheXand~~** · February 06, 2010, 06:06 AM

Originally Posted by Major Darling

So what makes me, me? The brain.

Presumably if it was a perfect clone of you, it would have the same brain as you, so the only thing that would make it unique would be it's memories and experiences.

**Helm** · February 06, 2010, 06:15 AM

How about if you were to make not a clone but an exact replica of yourself with all the exact same memories and experiences as yourself and then commit suicide. You would be dead but no-one would be any the wiser because the replica that is essentially you is still going around and living in exactly the same way you would have done had you still been alive.

**MaximiIian** · February 06, 2010, 08:59 AM

Originally Posted by TheXand

so the only thing that would make it unique would be it's memories and experiences.

Ha, "only"?

That's a very huge thing. As the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, it not simply your physiology that makes you you. It is your memory, experiences, and the connections between them.

A clone is not you anymore than an identical twin is.

**~~TheXand~~** · February 06, 2010, 09:02 AM

Originally Posted by MaximiIian

Ha, "only"?

That's a very huge thing. As the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, it not simply your physiology that makes you you. It is your memory, experiences, and the connections between them.

A clone is not you anymore than an identical twin is.

That's exactly the point I was making!

**NikeBG** · February 06, 2010, 06:16 AM

Originally Posted by TheXand

Presumably if it was a perfect clone of you, it would have the same brain as you, so the only thing that would make it unique would be it's memories and experiences.

But from the moment the clone is created, its (his/her) perceptions would differ from the original and it would no longer be absolutely the same as its original. And with time that difference might grow more and more and develop a distinct personality. Thus, IMO, the clones would be like a fork - up to one point it's one person in one body, from the point thereafter it's two persons in two bodies but with a common history.

**Lupu** · February 06, 2010, 07:12 AM

What is the answer's value?

**Manco** · February 06, 2010, 08:52 AM

Clones are no longer the same as you the moment they become aware. From that moment on their experiences will be different, and thus a different person.