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🔗wise365: Narrative identity, exercising restraint, and complicated moral decisions
A few minutes of philosophy for you - wise365
Bradley Murray
June 10, 2025
Happy wise365 Tuesday!
Here are 3 ideas to consider this week…
1. Ricoeur on narrative identity
Paul Ricoeur’s concept of narrative identity highlights how individuals understand themselves through the stories they tell about their lives. For Ricoeur, identity is not something fixed or static; instead, it is dynamic and shaped over time through personal and shared narratives. He emphasizes that who we are is deeply tied to the way we interpret our experiences and integrate them into a coherent story. This process allows people to make sense of changes in their lives while still maintaining a sense of continuity.
It's scary how events can unfold in life without our noticing them, much less seeing how they fit together.
Thinking about identity as a narrative can help us frame life as a story, giving coherence and purpose to past, present, and future experiences.
2. Examining restraint
To complete this exercise, start by recalling a specific moment in your day when you felt an impulse desire, such as a sudden urge to check your phone or make an unplanned purchase. Reflect on this moment honestly and write a brief description without judgment. Next, pause and take three deep breaths to centre yourself. Replay the moment in your mind without acting on the impulse and explore its cause. Journal your thoughts about the trigger, your motivation, and whether acting aligned with your values. Finally, visualize showing restraint and consider how this choice would feel and what it teaches about managing impulses.
Everyone has something they find hard to resist. If you’re lucky, it’s vegetables.
More commonly, impulsive urges lead in a somewhat less beneficial direction.
Reflecting on impulsiveness and practicing restraint allows for better alignment with personal values and long-term goals.
3. Navigating moral decisions
How can I determine what is right or wrong in complex situations?
It would be nice if we could just follow simple rules for life that would always guide us in the right moral direction.
Unfortunately, that is unrealistic.
What standards would you like to meet when you have to engage in complex moral reasoning?
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https://wise365.beehiiv.com/p/june-10-2025
Until next week,
Founder of PhilosophiesOfLife.org
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