Understanding The Self PDF

Understanding the Self ROXANNE R. ENRILE Instructor, DAS  MODULE NO. 1: The Self from Different Perspectives  Lesson 1.1: The Self from the Philosopher’s Point of View Learning Outcomes 1. Explain why it is necessary to understand the self; 2. Discu...

Understanding the Self ROXANNE R. ENRILE Instructor, DAS  MODULE NO. 1: The Self from Different Perspectives  Lesson 1.1: The Self from the Philosopher’s Point of View Learning Outcomes 1. Explain why it is necessary to understand the self; 2. Discuss the different points of view of various philosophers across time and place; 3. Examine one’s self against the different views of self that were discussed in class.  Lesson 1.1: The Self from the Philosopher’s Point of View Learning Outcomes 4. Compare how the self has been represented across different disciplines and perspectives. 5. Demonstrate critical and reflective thought in analyzing the development of one’s self and identify by developing a theory of the self. Reflect on the question “Who Am I?” Write a short biographical sketch of your life and the things that you want to experience.  Development and History Human beings have lived on this planet for hundreds of thousands of years. We, of course, cannot know all the experiences and thoughts of the earliest people. Still, it is reasonable to suppose that people then, as now, were driven by a desire to explain the world.  Development and History Perhaps our earliest ancestors thought about how the world was formed, whether they were unique among the animals, and may have also wondered whether there was a uniform standard of moral behavior or social order. The solutions they gave to these puzzles were shortly thereafter dubbed “philosophy”—the love of wisdom.  Development and History Pre-Socratic (origin, source, and the principle behind nature.) The period is dubbed as Cosmo-centric. The SELF from the points of view of three Ancient Greek Philosophers A. SOCRATES (496-399 B.C.) 1. Physical, tangible, and mortal aspects that are constantly changing. 2. Soul (immortal) Believed that when we are alive our body and soul are attached. (SELF) in the present realm. A. SOCRATES (496-399 B.C.) When we die our body stays in the physical realm while our souls travel to the ideal realm, thus making us immortal. The true self is not to be identified with what we own, with our social status, with our reputation, or even with our body. TRUE SELF = (SOUL) A. SOCRATES (496-399 B.C.) Thus, it is important that we give much attention, energy and resources to making our soul as good and beautiful as possible. A. SOCRATES (496-399 B.C.) Dictum “Ignorance is the beginning of wisdom” and for his advice “Know thyself”. - To acquire true knowledge of ourselves. “The unexamined life (self) is not worth living” Dialectic Method (searching the truth and reaching the true knowledge).  According to Socrates, what is your self made of? Answer: 1. Physical, tangible, or mortal aspect. 2. Soul 1. If the Soul is what your self is made of, how should you care for that self?  The SELF from the points of view of three Ancient Greek Philosophers B. PLATO (428-348 B.C.) The self is an “immortal soul in a mortal perishable body.” The soul has a tripartite nature. 1. Rational soul (reason and intellect has to govern the affairs of the human person. B. PLATO (428-348 B.C.) 2. A courageous or “spirited” part. (In charge of emotions.) 3. An appetitive part. (Eating, drinking, sleeping)…. When this ideal state is attained, the human person’s soul becomes just and virtuous. B. PLATO (428-348 B.C.) In Book IV of Plato’s Republic, the soul is the giver of life to the body. The body is just a shell of the soul. Our life’s journey is a continuous striving to free our soul from its imprisonment in the body. B. PLATO (428-348 B.C.) Known for his “Allegory of the Cave”.  What is the Allegory of the Cave? Plato’s "Allegory of the Cave" is a concept devised by the philosopher to ruminate on the nature of belief versus knowledge. The allegory begins with prisoners who have lived their entire lives chained inside a cave. Behind the prisoners is a fire, and between the fire and the prisoners are people carrying puppets or other objects. These cast shadows on the opposite wall. The prisoners watch these shadows, believing this to be their reality as they've known nothing else. Plato posits that one prisoner could become free. He finally sees the fire and realizes the shadows are fake. This prisoner could escape from the cave and discover there is a whole new world outside they were previously unaware of. This prisoner would believe the outside world is so much more real than that in the cave. He would try to return to free the other prisoners. Upon his return, he is blinded because his eyes are not accustomed to actual sunlight. The chained prisoners would see this blindness and believe they would be harmed if they tried to leave the cave.  For Plato, what matters more? The soul or the body? Answer: Soul 2. The gospel says: “Don’t store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves don’t break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also” (Matthew 6:19, Christian Standard Version of the Bible) Are these words from the Gospel supporting Plato’s thought on the self? Why or why not?  The SELF from the points of view of three Ancient Greek Philosophers C. ARISTOTLE (348-322 B.C.) The self is composed of body and soul, mind and matter, sense and intellect, passion and reason. Reason is supreme in a human person and so should govern all of life’s activities. C. ARISTOTLE (348-322 B.C.) The self is composed of body and soul, mind and matter, sense and intellect, passion and reason. Reason is supreme in a human person and so should govern all of life’s activities. When the senses dominate a human person’s life, he/she tends to live a chaotic life. C. ARISTOTLE (348-322 B.C.) When reason rules over the senses, mind over matter, the human person tends to live a happy life. Furthermore, for Aristotle perfection and happiness come from wisdom and virtue. Wisdom is true knowledge and virtue is doing what is best for you which leads you to the attainment of your own happiness. C. ARISTOTLE (348-322 B.C.) Taught Theory of the Golden Mean. (moderation; avoid the extremes; avoid too much and too little. Living a life of moderation is doing things in consonance with reason.  What did Aristotle mean by the theory of the Golden Mean? Answer: moderation THANK YOU!  The SELF from the points of view of Medieval Philosopher A. ST. AUGUSTINE (354-430 A.D.) Anno Domini (In the Year of our Lord The self is made up of a body and a soul, “a soul in possession of a body” which “does not constitute two persons but one man.” A. ST. AUGUSTINE (354-430 A.D.) The self has two aspects: the outward man and the inward man. These concepts must not be confused with the body and soul distinction. A. ST. AUGUSTINE (354-430 A.D.) The outward man refers to the senses and sensory memory. It perceives the bodies with five senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. The inward man is the responsible for recollection, imagination, rational judgment, and intellectual contemplation. A. ST. AUGUSTINE (354-430 A.D.) The concept of self is in relation to the context of his relation to God. Every human person is created in the image and likeliness of God. Every human person is made for God. A. ST. AUGUSTINE (354-430 A.D.) It is only upon his/her recognition of God’s love and his/her response to the invitation of love that he/she finds inner peace. A. ST. AUGUSTINE (354-430 A.D.) Happiness is the end-all and the be-all of human living and this happiness can be found in God alone. “You have made our hearts for Thee, O God and so they will find rest only in Thee.” A. ST. AUGUSTINE (354-430 A.D.) Also taught virtue, “Virtue is the order of love. To love God means necessarily to love one’s fellowmen.” A. ST. AUGUSTINE (354-430 A.D.) Golden mean: “Never to do any harm to another as you would not want others do unto you.” Possession of the goods of this world; health, beauty, power, honor, fame can never give to human person what he/she is truly looking for, as these goods are finite, unstable, and ephemeral.  What are the two aspects of self according to S.t Augustine _________________________? Answer: 1. Inward man 2. Outward man  The SELF from the points of view of Modern Philosophers A. RENE DESCARTES (1596-1650) The self is an immaterial mind and a material body. He believed that the mind is the seat of consciousness. The body (which includes the human senses) is unreliable hence, should not be trusted. A. RENE DESCARTES (1596-1650) Intuition is the direct and clear insight into fundamental truths and an intellectual activity or vision of such clarity that leaves no doubts on the mind. The deduction is the ability to attain certainty by a step-a- step procedure. A. RENE DESCARTES (1596-1650) Descartes deemed that to test all things, the method of doubt may be used. Through his intuition, Descartes found one thing he could not doubt, “though I can doubt that my body exists, or that I am awake, or that I am deceived, I cannot doubt that I am doubting.” A. RENE DESCARTES (1596-1650) A doubter must be a thinker because you cannot doubt without thinking. Hence, he said, Cogito Ergo Sum” (I think; therefore, I am or I think; therefore, I exist) (Price, 2000, Marias, 1967).  The SELF from the points of view of Modern Philosophers B. DAVID HUME David Hume David Hume is a Scottish Philosopher. He has a unique way of looking at the man. As an empiricist, he said that one could know what comes from the senses and experience. B. DAVID HUME The self is not an entity over and beyond the physical body. Empiricism is the school of thought that espouses the idea that knowledge can only be possible if sensed and experienced. Men can only attain knowledge by experience. C. JEREMY BENTHAM Bentham said, “We are all governed by the feelings of pain and pleasure. They are our sovereign masters. They govern us in everything we do and also determine what we ought to do. The standards of right and wrong are fastened to their throne”.  The SELF from the points of view of two Modern Philosophers C. Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) He contemplates that the self must not find understanding in religion because “God is dead, and we are his murderers.” He further said that an individual must live a life of intelligence and a passionate person with creative discipline and self-control. C. Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900) He also posits that the highest good is life itself and that individual must go beyond himself and become an Ubermensch (Overman, Ideal Person), just as a man declares himself to be superior on earth, one must also go beyond himself. One must become masters of ourselves, controlling passions, powers, and weaknesses. The Self from a Sociological Perspective Socialization is the whole and lifetime process by which people learn the values, attitudes, and behaviors that are appropriate and expected by their culture and community. GEORGE HERBERT MEAD (1863-1931) Claims that the self is not at birth. Self is developed over time from social experiences and activities. “The self is something which has a development; it is not initially there, at birth, but arises in the process of social experience and activity, that is, develops in the given individual as a result of his relations to the process as a whole and to other individuals within the process.” GEORGE HERBERT MEAD (1863-1931) Mead (1967) talks about our personality as the “I” and the “me”. The “I” is the natural, existential aspect of the self. The “me” is the socialized “me” or the “cultured me”. CHARLES COOLEY(1864- 1929) Explains how we develop our sense of self or self- image through his looking- glass self-theory. We learn to view ourselves as we think others view us. CHARLES COOLEY(1864-1929) Three steps in the formation of the looking-glass self: 1. We imagine how we appear to others. 2. We imagine how others judge our appearance. 3. We develop feelings about and responses to these judgments. THANK YOU!