Stackoverflow question: Is there a built-in identity function in Python?

[Ned Batchelder]

On 12/7/17 1:28 PM, Ethan Furman wrote:
> The simple answer is No, and all the answers agree on that point.
>
> It does beg the question of what an identity function is, though.
>
> My contention is that an identity function is a do-nothing function 
> that simply returns what it was given:
>
> --> identity(1)
> 1
>
> --> identity('spam')
> 'spam'
>
> --> identity('spam', 'eggs', 7)
> ('spam', 'eggs', 7)

I don't see why this last case should hold.  Why does the function take 
more than one argument?  And if it does, then why doesn't it work like this?

     --> identity('spam')
     ('spam',)

(because then it wouldn't be an identity function!)  Trying to handle 
the multi-argument case seems like it adds an unneeded special case to 
the function.

--Ned.