ORIGINS OF MODERNITY

theology & witchcraft

South, Robert (1634-1716)
Animadversions upon Dr. Sherlock's book entituled A vindication of the holy and ever-blessed trinity &c.
London : Printed for Randal Taylor, 1693.

Robert South's (1634-1716) Animadversions upon Dr. Sherlock's book (1693) is a nice example of a work which is not well known today, but which formed an important part of the intellectual fabric of its day. South attacks the view of William Sherlock that it is self-consciousness that individuates persons. He argues that Sherlock's position involved vicious circularity because the notion of self-consciousness presupposes individuation. Locke's famous discussion of personal identity, which was added to the 2nd (1694) edition of An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, argues that continuity of consciousness accounts for personal identity over time. It is likely that Locke's views were influenced by South's Animadversions which was so popular a second edition was published in the same year it first appeared.