UTS VI (1) PDF

CHAPTER SIX THE PHYSICAL SELF WHAT IS THE PHYSICAL SELF? When it comes to speaking about the self, there have been so much theories and principles said about what it is and what it is comprised of. But the duality of man has always involved two distinct part: the mind and the body. So, before we...

CHAPTER SIX THE PHYSICAL SELF WHAT IS THE PHYSICAL SELF? When it comes to speaking about the self, there have been so much theories and principles said about what it is and what it is comprised of. But the duality of man has always involved two distinct part: the mind and the body. So, before we talk about our mental and cognitive capacities, let’s take a look at our bodies or our physical self. The term “physical self” is something that almost always exclusively refers to our physical and tangible bodies. It is the material self that we use to move around and interact with objects in the external world and others. It is the material self that allows us to experience using our senses. While this point is quite obvious and apparent to understand, many scholars have also talked extensively about the physical self. THE PHYSICAL SELF IN BIOLOGY The physical self is shaped by biological and environmental factors and is surrounded by issues associated with health, hygiene, nutrition, and standards of beauty among others. While some parts of our physical self drives us to think deeply about the value and perception of our physical characteristics and attributes, it is more than that. Underneath the skin is a dynamic system of biological and chemical processes that contribute to one’s physical features such as body weight, height, skin color, hair color, and other physical attributes that do not just develop at random. At this level, the physical self’s formation is triggered by genetic transformations and biological development through heredity. By heredity, we mean to refer to the biological transmission of traits from parents to children. These traits are made up of specific information embedded within one’s genes (the basic unit of heredity). It begins at the moment of conception. Once our mother’s egg cell has been fertilized, said genetic transformations are triggered and among them is our biological development through heredity. Once the genetic material from our parents get together, we are left with 46 chromosomes (found in the nucleus of our cells), which are paired into 23 sets. 22 of these are autosomal chromosomes which carry the genetic instructions for everything (proteinsm cells, enzymes, tissues, bones, organs) while the 23rd pair are the sex-determining chromosomes.  The XX chromosomes indicates that a child is biologically female   The XY chromosomes indicates that a child is biologically male How can chromosomes do this? Well, chromosomes are simply the tightly-bound or coiled form of DNA. If we uncoil our chromosomes, we see that it is actually just long strands of DNA which is the main vessel for our genetic material which is already present in our DNA in the form of alleles. Each pair of alleles represents a certain genotype or a specific set of information that remain embedded into one’s gene or can genetic information that can only be determined by extensive internal study and testing (e.g. blood type, hereditary genetic disorders). These alleles also contribute to our phenotypes (genetic information that is expressed in the form of visible physical trait like hair color, eye color, skin color, height, weight, gender, sex, etc…)! Whether you have dominant or recessive alleles for a certain kind of genetic information or trait can determine what set of observable traits that you can have. Every single one of our chromosomes have genes but not all of them are expressed. The traits that your physical self has not are a result of select genes undergoing gene expressions. Once your physical self has been determined biologically, it is now a mature of growing up and maturing. Here, maturation is understood as the completion of growth of a genetic character within an organism or the unfolding of an individual’s inherent trait. What’s that? Where are your genes? Well, when you look at each section of your DNA, there is where you can find your genes! THE PHYSICAL SELF AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONING After your physical self is formed and biologically developed by one’s biology, one’s physical self began to be exposed to different sorts of environments. This stage in your life can also determine how you understand essential skills such as how one deals with nutrition, hygiene, and social pressure. Your family is your first social group and is a fundamental presence and factor in the development of your physical self. Aside from heredity, your family is also primarily responsible for how you take care of your body. Nutrition and sustenance was initially established by what was cooked in the home and thus your little self’s food intake and diet is often determined by the meals you were given by your parents. It was also from your parents that you learn you first practices on hygiene. Hygiene is important for our physical well-being because it helps prevent illness, promotes personal comfort, maintains dental health, prevents body odor, reduces skin problems, and boosts immunity. As such, the maintenance of one’s hygiene should have been something that was imparted and shared to us all by our own families. As your social circle expands, you become more conscious of your physical appearance. You begin to become hyperaware of your weight, height, body type, facial features, among others. The presence of the beauty standards at this point in your development makes one learn how to choose the right clothing, choose the right way to take care of one’s physical features, and take extra effort to maintain hygiene. Some take up exercise and sports to maintain their body’s health or to improve it! These standards, however, can also cause negative repercussions for the development of your physical self. In the pursuit of these ideals, some resort to using “shortcuts” to make weight loss faster in order to get their ideal body faster. Among these unhealthy habits is the acquisition of eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa and bulimia. Some get excessive amounts of cosmetic surgery! THE PHYSICAL SELF AND SOCIOLOGY Besides from understanding our physical selves from the biological perspective, there have also been a plethora of sociologists that have taken interest in talking about and exploring what exactly our physical selves are. Here are just a few of them:  Shavelson And His Total Self Shavelson described the total or general self as being made up of the academic self and the non-academic self. On one hand, he says that the academic self is influenced by the learning process and the individual’s emotions, behavior, and experiences during the learning process. While, on the other hand, the non-academic self, on the other hand, is shaped by an individual’s social self, emotional self, and physical self.  The social self is influenced by those in your social factors  The emotional self is influenced by the individual’s emotions and experiences of emotions  The physical self is affected by your involvement in physical activities such as sports, exercise and other activities that enhance the physical body  K.R. Fox and Physical Self-Esteem Fox gave emphasis on the factors that encompass physical self-esteem, which include sport competence, attractive body, physical power, and physical condition, and how they actually shape the whole self-esteem of the total self.  Wilhelm Reich In a way, he echoed Gilbert Ryle and Maurice Merleau-Ponty by insisting on the interconnectedness of the mind and the body. He believed that the body is central to all dynamic psychological functioning and it plays a very important role in storing and chanelling the bioenergy (the basis of human existence and experience).   Erik Erikson Erikson sees that there is a connection between the body, psychological process, and social status. The physical body takes center stage in Erikson’s theory as he considers experience as being firmly associated in the ground-plan of the body. He holds that the organs of the body are essential during the early developmental stages of a person. The formation and development of physical and intellectual skills greatly influence the ability of the individual to choose his role in their society and be fulfilled. As such, physical health is directly correlated to the competence of children and that healthy children are more competent and thus, will become more capable of acquiring complex skills than children who are more prone to sickness.  Abraham Maslow If Erikson had begun to tell us about the need to have and maintain our physical self’s health to enable us to become competent, well-adjusted, and fulfilled members of society, Abraham Maslow insisted that the physical self’s health is just one of the things that we need to fulfill should we want to achieve high-order needs. He introduces this concept in his HIERARCHY OF NEEDS where we see that our physical self’s needs are something that we must first meet if we want to be able to think of and begin to question our existence as a well-nourished, loved, respected individual can stand a better chance of finding fulfillment in their life than someone who is malnourished (neglectful of their bodies’ needs, unadjusted, inactive individual. THE PHYSICAL SELF AND RELIGION Religious organizations also have varying concepts regarding our physical body and what we should do with it! Some ask us to treat our bodies with respect and kindness as we carry within our selves some degree of divine blessing (Brahmanism) while some encourage us to cultivate our bodies and to push past their limits to reach true fulfillment. There are some encourages us to leave our physical and material self behind to live a live of complete detachment to the evil, physical world so full of temptations (Buddhism) whereas there are also others who emphasize the need to have a pure and strong physical body to be able to fully grow and reach enlightenment (Christianity). Those that believe in the Middle Path would urge us to always practice moderation and to allow our bodies to grow in a healthy way that is not too much or too less. TAKING CARE OF OUR PHYSICAL BODIES Regardless of whether or not you believe in the theories of the psychologist or of the aforementioned religious groups, one thing remains for certain and that is that our bodies are important. Whether you see them as your “home, vessel, vehicle, temple” and what not, one cannot deny that you cannot perform your daily tasks without your body. It is through our bodies that we can interact with other people and other living organisms in our environment. The fact that we only have one body, unique to each one of us, and that this physical self of ours is something that will only degrade in time naturally, means that we should take active steps in taking care of it, both externally and internally. This is where the idea of self-care comes in! What is self-care? Self-care is usually characterized as a set of activities that are scheduled or undertaken in order for one to be able to focus on and take care of one’s needs, may it be physically, mentally, emotionally, or spiritually. It is the intentional, planned, and actual act of taking the time to attend to our basic physical, mental, and emotional needs. It is an act of love and kindness for ourselves. Self-care can manifest in a lot of different ways. Some people take the time to rest and offer our bodies the chance to replenish lost energy utilized in one’s day to day life. Self-care usually occurs in three levels: physical, mental, and emotional. Taking care of one level also, sometimes, necessitates taking care of the other levels as well. You cannot have a mentally sound and healthy individual that has a sickly body and an unstable emotions in the same way that you cannot have a physically healthy individual that is mentally and emotionally starved.