Philosophical View of the Self PDF

The Self from Various Philosophical Perspectives At the end of this lesson, you should be able to: 1. Describe and discuss the different notions of the self from the points-of- view of the various philosophers across time and place; 2. Compare and contrast how the self has bee...

The Self from Various Philosophical Perspectives At the end of this lesson, you should be able to: 1. Describe and discuss the different notions of the self from the points-of- view of the various philosophers across time and place; 2. Compare and contrast how the self has been represented in different philosophical schools; and 3. Examine one’s self against the different views of self that were discussed in class. Philosophy of the Self Philosophy is often called the “mother of all disciplines,’ encompassing the entire breadth of inquiry about humans and the universe they inhabit. SELF as “ a unified being, essentially connected to consciousness, awareness and agency ( or at least, with the faculty of rational choice).”  -Socrates was the first philosopher who ever engaged in a systematic questioning about the self; the true task of the philosopher is to “know oneself”. -- described as the “ Father of Western philosophy”  -For Socrates, every man/woman in composed of body and soul All individuals have an And a soul that is perfect and imperfect, impermanent permanent. aspect, refers to the body.  Knowledge is the personification of good while ignorance is that of evil. - Socrates Self knowledge is the ultimate virtue. As the ultimate virtue, it will lead to ultimate happiness. “An unexamined life is not worth living.” - Socrates  PLATO “Moral Virtue is rooted in the intellect and leads to happiness.” “Wisdom and knowledge lead to virtue which will lead to Happiness.”  Plato added that there are three components of the soul: Rational Spirited Appetitive Forged by Which is in In charge of reason and charge of base desires intellect emotions. like eating, that has drinking, govern the sleeping, affairs of and having the human sexual person. intercourse, is controlled as well. Plato emphasizes that “ Justice in the human person can only attained if the three parts of the soul are working harmoniously with one another. ST. AUGUSTINE Christian philosopher and bishop of Hippo in The body is bound Northern Africa. to die on earth The soul is to anticipate living eternally in a reality of spiritual bliss in communion with God. Love of God, faith in Him, and understanding of His Gospel will ultimately lead to happiness.  Saint Augustine identified the two fold process comprised of Self- presentation leading to Self- realization. Understanding the self and formation of identity is achieved through the process of “ Introspection or self- analysis.”  -Thomas Aquinas -Man is composed of two parts: matter and form. -Matter, or hyle in -Form, or morphe in Greek, refers to Greek refers to the the “common “essence of a stuff that makes substance or thing.” up everything in the universe.” Matter and form combine to create formed matter or substance- that is all familiar things we see in the universe.  -Thomas Aquinas Example a sculptor takes - block of marble ( which itself embodies both matter and form) and then gives it further form of shaping it into the formal design he or she has in his mind.  RENE DESCARTES - French philosopher considered the founder of modern philosophy For Descartes, this is the essence of your self – you are a “ Thinking thing,” a dynamic identity that engages in all of those mental operations we associate with being a human self.  Rene Descartes Declares that the essential self. - The Thinking self or soul is a nonmaterial, immortal and conscious being, independent of the physical laws of the universe. - The physical body is a material, moral, and non thinking entity, fully governed by the physical laws of nature.  Rene Descartes - “ I think, therefore I am.” - is the first principle of Descartes’s theory of knowledge because he is confident that no rational person will doubt his or her own existence as a conscious, thinking entity – while we are aware of thinking about our self.  David Hume -Scottish philosopher -Men can only whose skeptical attain knowledge examinations of by experiencing. religion, ethics, and history.  According to David Hume If we carefully examine the contents of our experience, there are two distinct entities: 1. Impressions –- are the basic sensations of our experiences, the elemental data of our minds : pain. Pleasure , heat cold, happiness grief, fear and so on these impressions are lively and vivid. 2. Ideas – are copies of impression, and as a result they are less lively and vivid. Include thoughts and images that are build up from our primary impressions through a variety of relationships. -Self,is simply “a bundle or collection of different perception, which succeed each other with an inconceivable rapidity, and are in a perpetual flux and movement.” -According to Hume, it’s like a theatre, where several perceptions successively make their appearance, pass, repass, glide away, and mingle in an infinite variety of postures and situations.” David Hume  - - German philosopher considered by many to be the greatest thinker of the 18th century. - He asserted that it is the human mind which creates experiences. “ Reason is the final authority of Morality.”  Immanuel Kant Inner Includes rational reasoning and Self psychological state Outer Includes the body and physical aspect where Self representation occurs.  Gilbert Ryle -a British philosopher whose book , The Concept of Mind, has a dramatic impact on Western thought. “ The Self is How You Behave” He thought of his approach as a logical behaviorism, focused on creating conceptual clarity, not on developing techniques to condition and manipulate human behavior.  Gilbert Ryle -He stated that “ A person therefore lives through two collateral histories: 1. Public – consisting of what happens in and his body. 2. Private – consisting of what happens in and to his mind.  Patricia Churchland ▪ “A fully matured neuroscience will eliminate the need for the beliefs since they are not real.” - “The physical brain gives us a sense of self.” ▪ He considered the “Father of Liberalism” as he had posited the “theory of mind” which is a breakthrough in the origin of modern understanding of the concept of identity and self. “The Self is found in the consciousness. He identified the brain as comprising the consciousness which has one’s identity.”  Merleau-Ponty Primacy of Perception – where he said that “ there is harmony between what we aim at and what is given , between intention and performance. He claimed that ‘Consciousness is primarily not a matter of “I think that” but “ I can”. REFERENCES: 1. Alata, Eden Joy P., Caslib Jr. Bernardo Nicolas, Serafica Janice Patria J., and Pawilen R.A. “ Understanding the Self”, 2018, ISBN 978-971-23-8670-1 2. Brawner Dalisay G and Arcega Analiza F. , “ understanding the Self” , 2018 3. Ofalia, Bernardino C. “ Understanding the Self: Outcomed –based Module, 2018. C & E Publishing , Inc. 4. Caffee John. “ the Philosopher’s way. 5th edition. THANK YOU!