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The Ship of Theseus
A puzzle of identity over time.
The famous ship of the hero Theseus is preserved in a museum. Over the years, its wooden planks begin to rot. Each rotten plank is replaced one by one, until eventually, no original planks remain. Is this fully restored ship, with all new parts, still the Ship of Theseus?
What philosophers say
There is no single correct answer. Philosophers disagree! Some, like Heraclitus, would say nothing remains the same anyway. Others, like Aristotle, might argue the "formal cause" (the ship's design) makes it the same ship. This paradox forces us to question what identity is: our physical matter, our form, our history, or something else entirely?