The structure of memory and memory-self relation in philosophy

Human memory, the subject of this study, is an object of scientific research, a valuable source of artistic and literary production, as well as an important part of philosophical problems. Human life becomes a continuous and meaningful pattern by analyzing the phenomena and events experienced on a daily basis through the power of memory. Memory provides a coherent impression of the past by recording experiences in special forms and facilitates orientation towards the future through this information. It is known that these impressions are often erased and sometimes do not correspond to reality, which leads to the questioning of memory. But on the other hand, the division of life into parts as disconnected from each other as the moments in it is inevitable without memory. Thanks to memory, human beings are able to go beyond ready-made objects in thought, knowledge and reasoning. In this respect, memory remains an important problem area of philosophy. In this study, memory is analyzed on the basis of epistemology, metaphysics and philosophy of mind. Studies on human memory, which is the starting point of the thesis, have shown that memory is not just a large archive center where traces of perceptions and experiences are stored, as in the past. In this respect, memory is addressed here as a more active and dynamic set of processes. This study examines how memory represents the totality of knowledge, consciousness and images that are inherent to the human mind and constitute the conditions for being the same person over time. Memory, as both a mental and physical phenomenon, is able to be the same person over time through its power to create a meaningful and coherent narrative that is not given in life itself. It is stated that memory, which refers to past time and perceived reality, is reconstructive by working together with imagination. From this, a narrative emerges that is faithful to reality in its outlines but can also be fictional. The main problem and thesis of this scrutiny is to examine the relationship between memory and the self on the grounds of continuity based on different approaches, conceptual analysis and philosophical discussions of memory, and to examine the contribution of this relationship to the establishment of the continuity of self-consciousness. Based on this, it emerges that two of the elements that ensure the continuity of self-consciousness are individual and social memory. Therefore, in my opinion, these two types of memory should be addressed jointly through language and communication in the context of continuity. Because these two types of memory contribute to the formation of the continuity of self-consciousness only together.