Personhood

Protocanon

This is information that is in development, nice to have, or generally accepted within the community, yet which is as yet unrelated to any of the canon.

A Person is a legal entity endowed with certain rights and responsibilities. Thus, Personhood is the topic of anything surrounding these legal entities.

The UN guarantees all Persons certain amenities and as unrestricted a life as is reasonable. Personhood is the second broadest class of legal entity surrounding individuals with a distinct presence after Sophont, and the class most often referred to in legal and governmental documents. In order from most general to least, the definition is as follows:

A Sophont as recognized by the United Nations is any individual capable of cognition with a distinct presence, physical or digital. Sophonts may also encompass a plurality of identities contained within a single distinct presence.
- A Person is a Sophont who is guaranteed certain rights and responsibilities by the UN.
  - A Machine is a protected identity within the class of Persons, and is defined as any Person consisting primarily of non-organic matter housing a consciousness, whether or not that consciousness was originally organic.
  - Infolife is a class within Persons, and is defined as a Sophont which can exist separate from any specific physical presence.
    - Uploads are a class of Infolife which refers to any entity which began its life as an organic entity and whose mind was uploaded or emulated through any number of available technologies.
    - Artificial Intelligences are deliberately created intelligences who fit within the category of Sophont.
    - Sprites are emergent intelligences who fit within the category of Sophont.
  - An Unperson is a Sophont who has consciously and of their own free will rescinded the identity of Personhood. Those who have chosen to reject the category of Persons are a protected class who have given up some rights and responsibilities do still have the right to a comfortable life owed to all lifeforms. They must specify a guardian, which may be an individual, group, or organization who will take care of their well-being and protect their continued existence. Should this agreement be broken by either party, the Unperson is required to transfer or be willingly transferred to another party's guardianship as their charge. An Unperson may cancel this definition as pertaining to themselves at any time, at which point they will return to their status as a Person.

External links

As much of this is based off the lore of the Post-Self Space Station 14 server, Lagrange, these pages on the Lagrange Wiki are of interest:

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