They Can Remember It for You Wholesale – Memories Count Essay Example
They Can Remember It for You Wholesale – Memories Count Essay Example

They Can Remember It for You Wholesale – Memories Count Essay Example

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From the moment we are born, we are trained to perceive that the only truth in the world is physical reality. Our understanding of this corporeal world stems from what we visually observe, physically experience, auditorily recognize, and olfactorily perceive. Relying solely on these senses has led humanity to assume that there's nothing beyond this physical plane. However, our memories hold more value than our physiological constructs as our identities stem more from our experiences than our physical existence.

Various verifications have demonstrated that our today's reality is regularly disregarded in the realm of perceptions. This has been factually validated by science over numerous years, and it isn’t difficult to perceive this as a fact. To affirm this, one must observe society, science, and, most importantly, oneself. It's evident

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that our memories play a crucial role in the human experience and existence. Isn't it true that we're more than just flesh and bones? Could we possibly be that Asian person with flawless skin? Are we possibly the overweight individual with a distinctive scent? This may give a vague description of someone, but it barely scratches the surface of their true identity.

Our identities as humans extend far beyond our racial backgrounds or physical appearances. Our true selves are indeed a result of our diverse experiences, which are shaped by our memories. The protagonist in the short story “The Safe Deposit Box” serves as an example of this concept. This character lacks a unique physical body, and even a personal name. Every dawn marks the start of a day in a different body. Life obligates him to adapt and exist in this new body for the duration

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of one day. Despite occasionally losing control and invoking unintentional embarrassment, he affirms that deliberately causing distress has never been his motive. His communicated understanding reveals his real persona.

He does not refer to his present physical form. He is the individual who makes his decisions and choices informed by his past experiences. When he finds himself awakening next to a woman who is evidently his wife for that day, he remarks, "Indeed, my sweetheart has a multitude of faces, and indeed, a separate soul is reflected in every set of eyes, yet I can still identify (or invent) as many cohesive patterns in my recollections of her, as any other person can in their perception of their most reliable lifelong partner. The speaker here, is a human being.

The characteristics like his brown hair or the scar on his back cannot articulate these emotions. It is our recollections that form our identities. Should we lose these memories, we lose our past selves that they shaped. Watching an individual fall victim to malicious illnesses like Alzheimer's disease is tantamount to watching them transform. The capacity to form fresh memories becomes one of the earliest casualties, eventually followed by their long-term memory. You're left with a whole different person. The individual we've possibly known for our entire life changes drastically in most situations.

The protagonist of the brief tale 'We Can Remember It For You Wholesale', Quail, undergoes a partial memory erasure and substitution. We first meet him as a discontented husband living an uninspiring life. Yet, buried memories fuel his desire to journey to Mars and undertake unconventional actions. He uncovers these suppressed memories, revealing the undercover agent

he truly was, as he unexpectedly recalls his lethal combat abilities and wipes out adversaries wholesale. A newfound proficiency in weaponry and combat surfaces.

The potency of memory has been reaffirmed once more. The universe is composed of perceptions, applying to everything we experience through our senses - sight, touch, sound, smell, and taste. The visuals captured by our eyes are converted and transported to our brain. As such, what we perceive is simply an electronic echo or representation of what was within our visual sphere, suggesting a possibility of it not being real. As we retire to bed and drift into slumber, our brain deactivates the segment controlling our physical movements. Consequently, we are propelled into a different realm of perceptions, a realm where senses like seeing, touching and tasting exist.

The freedom to be who we wish to be and do as we please speaks volumes for how we can disregard the physical form while still leading a fulfilling life, sometimes even superior to our reality. Who's to argue that our current existence might merely be a substantial illusion? Is this text genuinely being read? If the protagonist in 'The Safe Deposit Box' never transitioned to another host body, would it affect his existence? Certainly not. This man, body or not, is as human as any of us. His lack of physical entity doesn't make him less of a human.

He carries recollections that will remain with him as long as he continues to switch from one host to another. Our remembrances might be the most crucial part of our existence. We would never shed tears at a funeral again. We would never gain wisdom from

our own or others' errors again. Doomed to revisit harmful circumstances for ourselves and others. We are more than just physical entities. We embody our memories and they, in turn, define us. For centuries, philosophers have been condensing all tangible reality into a realm of sensations. The time has come for humanity as a whole to comprehend the real constraints of human senses.

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