Individual
An individual is that which exists as a distinct entity. Individuality (or self-hood) is the state or quality of living as an individual; particularly (in the case of humans) of as a person unique from other people and possessing one's own needs or goals, rights and responsibilities. The concept of an individual features in diverse fields, including biology, law, and philosophy. Every individual contributes significantly to the growth of a civilization. Society is a multifaceted concept that is shaped and influenced by a wide range of elements, including human behaviors, attitudes, and ideas. The culture, morals, and beliefs of others as well as the general direction and trajectory of the society can all be influenced and shaped by an individual's activities.[1]
This article is about individuality in general. For Strawson's metaphysics as described in his book: Individuals, see P. F. Strawson. For other uses, see Individual (disambiguation).Etymology[edit]
From the 15th century and earlier (and also today within the fields of statistics and metaphysics) individual meant "indivisible", typically describing any numerically singular thing, but sometimes meaning "a person". From the 17th century on, individual has indicated separateness, as in individualism.[2]
Biology[edit]
In biology, the question of the individual is related to the definition of an organism, which is an important question in biology and philosophy of biology, despite there having been little work devoted explicitly to this question.[3] An individual organism is not the only kind of individual that is considered as a "unit of selection".[3] Genes, genomes, or groups may function as individual units.[3]
Asexual reproduction occurs in some colonial organisms so that the individuals are genetically identical. Such a colony is called a genet, and an individual in such a population is referred to as a ramet. The colony, rather than the individual, functions as a unit of selection. In other colonial organisms the individuals may be closely related to one another but differ as a result of sexual reproduction.
One of the most accepted hypotheses is the definition of an organism that emerged from Piast's ladder of lifeness. According to this idea, life can be described as a phenomenon (continuum of self-maintainable information) and its individual organism can be described as a distinct element of this continuum. The ability to define entity boundaries is a key trait of distinctness, which can be achieved either through physical means, such as maintaining an open system through a cell, or through informational means, such as maintaining transmission to another host as seen in parasitic entities like viruses.[4]
Law[edit]
Although individuality and individualism are commonly considered to mature with age/time and experience/wealth, a sane adult human being is usually considered by the state as an "individual person" in law, even if the person denies individual culpability ("I followed instructions").
An individual person is accountable for their actions/decisions/instructions, subject to prosecution in both national and international law, from the time that they have reached age of majority, often though not always more or less coinciding with the granting of voting rights, responsibility for paying tax, military duties, and the individual right to bear arms (protected only under certain constitutions).