Understanding The Self PDF

UNDERSTANDING THE SELF MARIE CRIS R. MENDOZA, RPM “WHO ARE YOU?”  According to Stevens (1996)… The self is separate, self-contained, independent, consistent, unitary, and private PHILOSOPHICAL ANTHROPOLOGY -The study of the Self Martin Buber Jewish philosopher ...

UNDERSTANDING THE SELF MARIE CRIS R. MENDOZA, RPM “WHO ARE YOU?”  According to Stevens (1996)… The self is separate, self-contained, independent, consistent, unitary, and private PHILOSOPHICAL ANTHROPOLOGY -The study of the Self Martin Buber Jewish philosopher  01 THE SELF IN THE GREEK PHILOSOPHY  SOCRATES He believed that man was formerly a soul or (470 BC - 399 BC) a pure mind and knowledge by intuition is stored in his mind. Dualistic View of the Self (Two components): o The Physical body (material component); o The Soul (immaterial / immortal component) “an unexamined life is not worth living.”  PLATO (428/427BCE-348/347 BCE) The body is merely replica of the true self. TWO COMPOSITES OF A HUMAN BEING: Body - being corruptible and susceptible to change Soul –unchanging  PLATO (428/427BCE-348/347 BCE) THEORY OF TRIPARTITE SOUL o Rational Soul (Head)- pertains to our divine essence that enables us to think deeply, make wise choices, and achieve a true understanding of eternal truths. o Spirited Soul (Heart)- which expresses emotional drive, such as aggression, ambition, pride, anger, honor, loyalty, courage, and being protective o Appetitive Soul (Stomach)- refers to our basic bodily appetite such as hunger, thirst and sex.  02 THE SELF IN THE MEDIEVAL PHILOSOPHY ST. AUGUSTINE TWO WORLDS: (354 - 430 BCE) the temporary - the world as it is but a temporary home, where there is pain and evil the real - the world where God is, where there is permanence and infinity. Man is created by God according to His image. ST. AUGUSTINE (354 - 430 BCE) THE SELF AS TRIPARTITE BEING: Body - the outer part of the self through which the self can come in contact with the world Soul - inner part of the self Spirit - through it that the self can communicate with God.  03 THE SELF IN THE MODERN PHILOSOPHY RENE DESCARTES (1596-1650) Consciousness or the act of thinking is the evidence towards his existence. The self is centered on the concept of SUBSTANCE: Infinite - innate idea of God “Cogito Ergo Sum” Finite - refers to man (I think, therefore I am) RENE DESCARTES (1596-1650) “CARTESIAN DUALISM” Body - iindependent of the soul; material, mortal, non-thinking substance Mind - nonmaterial, immortal, conscious being, independent of the physical law of the universe; primary function is to think. “Cogito Ergo Sum” (I think, therefore I am) JOHN LOCKE (1632-1704) He believed that knowledge cannot be innate because mind is like blank sheet of paper (Tabula Rasa) at birth, upon which life experiences are written. As we grow and interact with others, we accumulate knowledge. JOHN LOCKE (1632-1704) ‘MEMORY THEORY’ which forwards the idea that a person is the same person as he is in the past provided that he recalls the events in the past.  DAVID HUME (MAY 7, 1711-AUG.25, 1776) The contents of the mind are fundamentally product of one’s experience in the world. The self is a ‘bundle of perception’ and is subject to change depending on the different experiences that shape the human “The mind does not create ideas person. but derives them from impressions.”  DAVID HUME (MAY 7, 1711-AUG.25, 1776) CONTENTS OF THE MIND ARE DIVIDED INTO TWO: IMPRESSIONS which are the things which the senses perceive and thus experience in the world; IDEAS which refer to the things that are created in the mind about the things experienced through the senses. “The mind does not create ideas but derives them from impressions.” IMMANUEL KANT Man is not only free, but also rational. (APR 22, 1724-FEB 12, 1804) Man possesses reason and free will. Kant also believed that there are TWO ASPECTS OF SELF: The inner self is comprised of our psychological state and our rational intellect. The outer self includes our sense and the physical world. SIGMUND FREUD (1856 TO 1939) He proposes the THREE STRUCTURES OF PERSONALITY: id: embodies the impulses and desires ego: reality principles superego: provides the moral standards SIGMUND FREUD (1856 TO 1939) THE MIND HAS THREE LEVELS Conscious – contains information that we have immediate access to. Preconscious – information that we need to exert effort to recall. Unconscious – contains basic instinctual drives that seeks for immediate gratification. GILBERT RYLE (Aug. 1900 - Oct. 1976) The self is the way people behave. I act therefore, I am! What truly matters is the behavior that a person manifests in his day to day life. PAUL CHURCHLAND (1943-present) He believed that the body-mind problem cannot be solved by philosophers but by NEUROSCIENTISTS. The brain affects the moods, emotions as well as the consciousness of the human person. PAUL CHURCHLAND (1943-present) He did not believe in the idea of Dualism (the idea that the mind and the body are separate) ELIMINATIVE MATERIALISM argues that the ordinary folk psychology of the mind is wrong. It is the physical brain and not the imaginary mind that gives us our sense of self.  MAURICE MARLEAU-PONTY He argued that the body and mind are interconnected. He contends that the self is subject to constant development and what the self becomes depends on what it does to the body.  MAURICE MARLEAU-PONTY Therefore, the self is the body and the body is the self itself. The self lives in a body; hence, without the body the self cannot exist He believed the physical body to be an important part of what makes up the subjective self. SOCRATES, PLATO, ST. AUGUSTINE: “The self has an immortal soul.” DESCARTES: “The self is a thinking thing.” LOCKE: “The self is consciousness.” HUME: “There is no self, only a bundle of constantly changing perceptions.” KANT: “The self is a unifying object.” FREUD: “The self is multi-layered.” RYLE: “The Self is the way people behave.” CHURCHLAND: “The Self is the brain.” MARLEAU-PONTY: “The self is an embodied subjectivity.” THANK JOB WELL DONE. YOU! God bless us all!