What defines a person?

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A person defines a person to me. Everyone has the choice to choose who they want to be and who they don't want to be, how they want to live, etc etc. Their words and actions, morals and values define who they are.

I want to say that I don't feel society defines who a person is, but I suppose some people allow it to. I have nothing particularly flattering to say about those people, so I'll just leave it at that.
 
Tough question, I don't think there is one true answer to this.

A person is defined by qualities to me, by the way they act, their moral code, their surroundings, their social status, their thoughts and feelings, their intellect, their family and friends, their experiences, their loved ones, their hobbies and interrests, their culture and religion and many more qualities that shall remain unnamed for brevity.

A person is also defined by the lack of any of these qualities, wich becons another question, do we define who we are or are we defined by the way others perceive us, or perhapes by both at the same time, or none of the above.

I think a person is defined by everything and nothing they are, all at the same time.

(P.S. this answer probably doesn't help :p)
 
MisterLonely said:
(P.S. this answer probably doesn't help :p)

It definitely does, thanks for answering! I don't think there's any one answer, so just curious what other peoples opinions are!
 
I'd say a person is defined by everything it has been through, and however it reacts upon that. Also, pretty much what TherealCallie said :)

EDIT: Also, how a person does not react to things...
 
The things a person does, should define them. I'm saying "should" because we're all aware that many people also define themselves and others by what they are. That's incredibly broad, but MisterLonely gave a very comprehensive breakdown already. I don't know if a continuous breakdown of all individual factors would even get us anywhere...

PS: Originally I misunderstood the question and considered whether there is a way to revoke somebody's "person" status. Not sure if that's relevant.
 
The dictionary! XD Just kidding.

People up above have already answered very well. I wouldn't know what to add
 
TheRealCallie said:
A person defines a person to me.  Everyone has the choice to choose who they want to be and who they don't want to be, how they want to live, etc etc.  Their words and actions, morals and values define who they are.

I want to say that I don't feel society defines who a person is, but I suppose some people allow it to.  I have nothing particularly flattering to say about those people, so I'll just leave it at that.

Well said, I completely agree.
 
Breathing defines them; what gives them importance is that they are unique and that in all of existence, you will NEVER find that exact SAME person twice. They give themselves definition by simply being, by their thoughts, their dreams, their actions and words.

What does not define them is others. They might define them while writting about them, or speaking about them, but that's a trap; only the person in question can define that person if they're honest with themselves, because they've lived with that person far longer than any of us ever have.

Yes, I know it's old, but I miss you man ;-)
 
I've always liked the Yiddish "Mensch" (I guess they stole it from German, but they added meaning to it). You are a good person if you are kind. You are a Mensch if you are kind to people you dislike. Good Samaritan and all that jive.

It's hard to quantify. I was in a rural village once. 100% white people, and a bit racist. A car full of Chinese broke down. After letting loose a few racist insults under their breath, the locals were there under the hood with spanners, screwdrivers, their knuckles barked, covered in grease, etc. They got the car going. The Chinese wanted to pay them. They refused payment. People are complicated.
 

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