Understanding The Self

Chapter One
Philosophical Perspective:
Plato, Socrates, Augustine, Descartes, Thomas
Hobbes, John Locke, Jean Paul Sartre

The Self in Western and Eastern thought:

Hinduism, Buddhism, Taoism, and Confucianism

Chapter 1: The Self from

Various Perspectives
Anthropology:
The Self & the Person in Contemporary Anthropology, The Self
Embedded in Culture

Sociology:
The Self as a Product of Modern Society Among other Construction,
Mead & the Social Self

Psychology:
The Self as a Cognitive Construction and Multiple Intelligence.

Chapter 1: The
Self from Various
Perspectives
a)Discuss the different representations and
conceptualizations of the philosophical thought on
human nature.
b)Examine the different influences, factors and
ideas that shape the self through philosophical
thought on human nature.
c)Analyze the different perspective presented by
different philosophers.

Objectives
 
At the end of the course,
students will be able to:
Questions:
a) How would you describe yourself?
b) Do you love yourself? Why or why not?
c) What are you most grateful in life?
d) What are the biggest and most important
things in your life so far?

ACTIVITY 1:
SELF EXAMINATION
Philosophical Perspective

Chapter 1
Introduction
The field of philosophy has asked significant
questions that

led to be the understanding of

what human being is and how
he/she must be handled.

Ancient philosophy views of human nature

from the earliest recorded events to around
the fifth century of the AD. Philosophy the
science of the logical foundation of all
knowledge.
 Human refers to anything exclusively
pertinent to man, while nature comes from
the Latin word “natus” which means to be
born or being born. It is the ultimate
operation of reality.

Concept and
Therefore, human nature
Human refers to anything
Nature of exclusively human which
man naturally possess right
Self at his birth. Humans can be
universal and static.
 Ancient philosophers have striven to
explain natural and social phenomena, thus
it was inevitable that they would
come up with various conceptions of
what it means to be human , and in
doing so, the definitions of the self.
Philosophy is often called
the mother of all
disciplines, simply because
all fields of study began as
philosophical discourses.
 Socrates acclaimed as the greatest
philosopher in Western civilization. A well-known
Greek teachers (Sophist) in which he shared his
knowledge to others. Since there are no written
works of Socrates we know about him through
second-hand information from his disciples Plato
and Xenophon, it was his students recorded his
understandings.

Classical/Ancient
Times: Socrates
(470-399 B.C)
 Socrates was known for his method of
inquiry in testing an idea which is
called the “ S o c r a t i c M e t h o d ”

whereby an idea was tested by asking a series of

questions to determine underlying beliefs and the
extent of knowledge to guide the person toward
better understanding.
Continuation……Socrates
 Socrates ideas were:
The soul is immortal. Socrates put more
emphasis on the attitudinal level of human nature
since he gives more value to the human soul rather than
the body. He argued that human soul should be
nurtured properly through acquisition of knowledge,
wisdom and virtue.

Knowledge and virtue are not distinct from each

other. Human beings can distinguish virtue and
knowledge from ignorance. Evil is not man’s intention; it
is the result of ignorance that an action may possibly end
with. Knowledge is virtue and ignorance is evil.
 Scenario:
At a restaurant you notice your friend’s wife engaged in
some serious flirting with another man. Tell your friend—
and possibly ruin his marriage—or mind your own business?

Activity 2: Your friend is on her way out the

…..Just door for a significant date and
give a asks whether you like her
thought blouse. Do you tell her the truth:
It’s hideous?
 Plato is a dualist [both immaterial mind
(soul) and material body] – human being is
divided into two component parts; the body
and the soul. It is the soul that knows the
forms. He believed the soul exists before
birth and after death.

Classical/Anc Plato was the student of Socrates.

ient Times: He was a philosopher and
mathematician in classical Greece.
Plato Plato helped to lay the foundations
(422-347 B.C) of Western philosophy and science.
The two component parts: the body and the soul.
   

HUMAN BODY HUMAN SOUL

   

Phenomenal World Ideal World

 

Material Immaterial
 

Cannot live and move apart

Can exist apart from the body
from the soul
 

Mutable and destructible Immutable and indestructible

 
 Plato viewed human beings as inherently
rational, social souls burdened by
imprisonment within their physical bodies.
Thus he believed that the soul or mind attains
knowledge of the forms, as opposed to the
senses. Needless to say, we should care
about our soul rather than our body.
Classical/Ancient Times:
Plato
(422-347 B.C)
Activity
 We are not self-sufficient,
we need others, and we
benefit from our social
interactions, from other
person’s talents, aptitudes,
and friendship.

Plato also emphasized

the social aspect of
human nature.
 Aristotle was a student of Plato’s and the
tutor of Alexander the Great. Aristotle’s
background in biological subjects made him
more of an empiricist [truth discovered
primarily by the senses] as compared to the
mathematician Plato’s rationalism [truth
discovered primarily by reason.]
Classical/Ancient
Times :
Aristotle
(384-322 BC)
 What are we?
Rational, social animals (At the core we
are rational beings)
- rationality is our nature, because
rationality is our natural function.
[Rationality sets us apart from
other animals - it makes us human .]
Aristotle rejects Plato’s
believe. As a biologist, Aristotle recognized that living things
include plants as well as human and non-human animal
which is primarily about taking in nutrients, reproducing,
and the like. Human animals add to this as a rational
structure which makes them unique.
 contrary to Plato’s belief….

Soul can exist only in the

bodies and when the body
dies the soul dies with it .

though the soul

represents the
highest faculty of
human nature.
**when we didn’t take care our body the soul dies with it.
 Philosophy of the Self has
been defined through two
distinct philosophical views:
a) empiricism
b) rationalism
The Self – has been defined as
“as a unified being,
essentially connected to
consciousness, awareness
and agency (or at least,
with the faculty of
rational choice).”
 In empiricism, there is no such thing
an innate knowledge , and that instead,
knowledge is derived from experience
(either sense via the five senses or reasoned
via the brain in mind).

Empiricism:
It derives explanation of the self from
sensory and bodily responses. We know
things because we have experienced
it through our bodily senses.
 In rationalism, there is innate
knowledge. Rationalism explains self
from the standpoint of what is
“ideal” and the “truth” , not rooted
in what is felt by neither the senses nor
the body.
Rationalism:
In a ¼ sheet of paper, answer
the following statement.

Activity:
“How Do I See Instruction: For each
Myself?” statement, indicate
whether you agree or
disagree.
  a) My life choices are based on what I have
actually experienced.
b) My views about the world are dependent on
what I have actually witnessed.
c) I am likely to buy a brand that I have already
used, not based on referrals.
d) I would rather remain in my comfort zone than
try something new.
e) Most of the time, I make choices based on the
present rather than the future.
f) I am likely to hold on to what I have now, even
if there is a greater option in the future.
g) For me, happiness is tangible.
If majority of your answer is “agree”, then you
are an empiricist. If majority of your answer is
“disagree”, then you are a rationalist.
Serving Key:
Question?
..end