Lockean Memory Theory:

John Locke suggests that an individual’s personal identity extends only as far as their own consciousness. There is a key connection between consciousness and memory. The self is a thinking intelligent being, that has reason and evaluation. He proposes the idea that in order to be a self, one must be a thinking being and due to consciousness always being intertwined with thinking therefore one only can extend itself to consciousness. The consciousness which Locke is referring to is parallel to memory. ‘If one cannot remember some experience, then one did not have that experience.’  Therefore, Locke thinks memory is a necessary condition of personal identity. Forgetfulness is when we lose sight of our past selves, which Locke then doubts whether we are the same thinking thing. 

‘Human life is embedded in time: we remember the past, we plan for the future and we live in the present. We swim in an ever-rolling stream.’

Greek philosopher Seneca’s idea, `If we do not live now, then when?’

In today’s modern world we are urged to live in the moment yet we are still constantly drawn back to the past which has influence over us still. Therefore the question remains of what we regard the value of memory to be. Not all memories are as clear as others, we have distinct memories and then we have hazy distant memories, so which memories are more powerful or instrumental? How do we categorise such abstract concepts?