GEC 101 Understanding The Self Past Paper PDF

GEC 101: Understanding the Self SECTION: A3-1 Mth 10:30 AM - 12 NN Comprehensive Written Report: Jean-Paul Sartre’s Understanding of Self Consciousness and Ego Submitted To: Dr. Alma G. Maranda, RPsy, Rpm, RGC, LPT Submitted by:...

GEC 101: Understanding the Self SECTION: A3-1 Mth 10:30 AM - 12 NN Comprehensive Written Report: Jean-Paul Sartre’s Understanding of Self Consciousness and Ego Submitted To: Dr. Alma G. Maranda, RPsy, Rpm, RGC, LPT Submitted by: Irish Ishi A. Apiag TABLE OF CONTENTS Body Of the Report 1.​ Jean-Paul Sartre Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre was born on June 21, 1905 in Paris,France. He was a French Philosopher, playwright, novelist, screenwriter, political activist, biographer and a literary critic. He was considered a leading figure in 20th century French philosophy and Marxism. He was also known for his work on existentialism and Phenomenology. He was awarded the 1964 Nobel Prize in Literature. He died on April 15, 1980 at the age of 74 in Paris, France. ​ ​ His famous works include Existentialism is a Humanism (1945), Being and Nothingness (1943), Nausea (1938), The Roads to Freedom trilogy (1945–49), and plays like No Exit (1947), Flies (1947), and Dirty Hands (1948). (Jean-Paul Sartre (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy), 2022) 2.​ The Dictionary Definitions of Consciousness and Ego​ Before officially discussing consciousness and ego in the view of Sartre, the dictionary definitions of the terms as per the merriam webster dictionary are as follows: Consciousness -​ The quality or state of being aware especially of something within oneself. -​ The state or fact of being conscious of an external object, state, or fact. ​ Ego -​ the self especially as contrasted with another self or the world. -​ The rest of us generally use ego simply to mean one's sense of self-worth, whether exaggerated or not. It is important to note these definitions because it can give an explanation on how the current understanding of these terms have changed over time. Whether they have adapted according to the views of Sartre or not. 3.​ The Nature of Consciousness in Sartre’s Philosophy According to Sartre (1957), Phenomenology is a scientific, not a critical, study of consciousness. Its way of proceeding is by intuition, something that puts us in the presence of things. Furthermore, according to Giordano (2021) Sartre agrees with husserl’s idea that Phenomenology is a science of fact. In this sense, Sartre (1957) defines consciousness by intentionality, meaning consciousness transcends itself in the sense that it goes beyond. Kant and Husserl developed a notion of a transcendental ego, in which they claim that there has to be a transcendental entity which is the basis of all our intentional acts. From this notion, our ego would then be the answer for the unity of our conscious or intentional acts. (Giordano, 2021)  This idea has been rejected by Sartre, in which he argues that consciousness does not need the ego to exist or function and it is not bound by essence or any predetermined nature. Furthermore, Breeur (2001), the conception of ego according to Sartre is neither formally nor materially in consciousness. As Sartre points out, there are 2 modes of consciousness, the pre-reflexive mode (non reflexive) and the reflexive mode. In the pre-reflexive mode, the consciousness does not focus on itself but is directed towards the external entity. An example of this is a scenario where a person is on the beach, watching the sunsets and enjoying the sound of the waves and birds. Fully being immersed in the moment. The person’s consciousness is not focused on himself but rather in the external environment. The self only appears in the reflexive mode. For example, with the same scenario above, when the person thinks of how he/she looks while watching the sunset or when he/she reflects on his life choices or his future. This is when the consciousness of the self appears. 4.​ The Constitution of The Ego It has already been established that the point of view of Sartre about ego is that it is only part of the consciousness and not a basis of all the conscious acts as other philosophers have argued. For Sartre, according to Giordano (2021), The ego is an object for consciousness contends that the ego is a construct rather than an inherent part of consciousness. Our ego is not our consciousness but a set of acts of our consciousness. The ego is like an object that is in the world, and we can judge our actions as objects as well because, in this way, we can go beyond them and, apart from them, we see them from outside through another point of view. An example of this is in our world there are different societal roles a person may take. Whether it be a professional, a friend or family. In this sense, in a professional set up, a person is expected to act professionally, something that is not required when in a friendly environment or a family gathering. Same with, when situated in a friendly environment, a person is expected to be less strict and be more comfortable. From here we can say that our ego is constructed based on the different roles we take up in society, further proving Sartre’s claim that the ego is not bound in our consciousness but rather a part of our consciousness. Summary of the Highlights ​ Jean-Paul Charles Aymard Sartre was born on June 21, 1905 in Paris,France. He died on April 15, 1980 at the age of 74 in Paris, France. From his point of view consciousness and ego are connected entities. For Sartre, the ego is a product constructed from our consciousness, it is only a part of our reflexive mode, where the self is being focused on contrary to the non reflexive mode where the focus is on the external world. Sartre disagrees with other philosophers which claim that the ego is the answer to all intentional acts or conscious acts. Further, Sartre believes that the ego is a product that is constructed by the different consciousness we take. Reflection and Insights ​ I believe that Sartre’s point of view indeed resonates with today’s definition of consciousness and ego, both are connected in the sense that the ego is a product of conscious acts brought about by the world right now, it is a reflection of the reaction the conscious mind has when faced with the different factors in the world. Our Consciousness is indeed free and fluent in the sense that it is not defined by us but it becomes the definition of us. Questions References: Giordano, B (2021). Jean-Paul Sartre: The consciousness and the self. Philosophy International Journal, 4(2). https://doi.org/10.23880/phij-16000172 Sartre, J. (1957). The transcendence of the ego: An Existentialist Theory of Consciousness. Macmillan. Jean-Paul Sartre (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy). (2022, March 26). https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/sartre/#LifeWork Breeur, R. (2001). Bergson’s and Sartre’s account of the self in relation to the transcendental ego. International Journal of Philosophical Studies, 9(2), 177–198. https://doi.org/10.1080/09672550110035899