Understanding the Self
[Toolbox 1] GE 9
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What is the meaning of your name? Write your answer inside the box.
Think About This!
How well do you know yourself? In this chapter, we’ll be comparing different perceptions of self. Do you think
you’ll come across the same perception? Let’s find out!
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CHAPTER I
DEFINING THE SELF: PERSONAL AND DEVELOPMENTAL PERSPECTIVE
ON SELF AND IDENTITY
LESSON I: THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVE
Philosophy
● Came from the Greek words philos (love) and sophia (wisdom).
● Philos + Sophia = philosophy (love of knowledge/ wisdom)
● The study of the fundamental nature of knowledge, reality, and existence, especially in an academic
discipline
● A particular theory that someone has on how to live or how to deal with a particular situation
Questions about self, started with the Greeks when they seriously questioned and moved away from myths to
understand the reality. Therefore, different perspectives and views on the self can be best seen and understood
by revisiting its prime movers (Socrates, Plato and Aristotle) and identify the most important points made by
philosophers from the ancient times up to the contemporary period. Though there are some disagreements on
each other perspectives, most of the agree that self-knowledge is a prerequisite to a happy and meaningful life.
Below are the list of philosophers and their philosophical perspectives about self.
A. SOCRATES
An unexamined life is not worth living.
● The self is synonymous with the soul.
● Believes that every human is composed of body and soul (immortal soul that survives the physical
body)
● He was the first to focus on the full power of reason through a systematic questioning on the human
self: who we are, who we should be and who we will become.
● Suggest that reality is consists of two dichotomous realms
1. Physical Realm – unchangeable, transient and imperfect
Ex. The physical world in which man lives
2. Ideal Realms – unchanging, eternal, perfect, immortal.
Ex. Intellectual essence of the universe, truth, goodness, beauty, soul)
● Because a person has an imperfect body and a perfect/ permanent soul, he said that every person
is dualistic.
Man = Body + Soul
Man = Body (physical realm) + soul (Ideal realm)
Understanding the Self
[Toolbox 1] GE 9
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The soul strives for wisdom and perfection through the use of reason. But as long as the soul is tied
to the body, the quest for wisdom is inhibited by its imperfection. Thus, he suggests that for a man
to have a meaningful and happy life, he must live an examined life and a life of purpose and value
through incessant soul searching. He must begin at the source of all knowledge and significance –
the self. An unexamined life is not worth living for.
A method of carefully examining one’s thought and emotions to gain self- knowledge is called
introspection.
B. PLATO
The self is an immortal soul
● Believes that self is synonymous to the soul like Socrates
● His philosophy can be explained as a process of self-knowledge and purification of the soul.
● Introduces the three elements of ourselves or the three- part soul/self (Components of soul/self).
1. Reason (Rational self) – divine essence that enables man to think deeply, make wise
choices, and achieve a true understanding of eternal truths.
2. Physical Appetite (Appetitive soul) – includes basic biological needs
Ex. Hunger, thirst, sexual desire
3. Spirit/ Passion (Spirited Part) – includes basic emotions
Ex. Love, anger, ambition, aggressiveness, empathy
● These three are in a dynamic relationship with one another, sometimes in conflict. When conflict
occurs, Plato believes that it is the responsibility of Reason to sort things out, exert control and restore
the harmonious relationship of the three. He believes that a happy and meaningful life can only be
achieved if the reason is in control of the two. This is also his concept of justice. If man lives
according to his nature (the reason is in control) then he is giving justice to his existence.
C. ARISTOTLE
The soul is the essence of the self
● Believes that the soul and body are not separate entities; soul is merely a set of defining features.
● Suggests that anything with life has a soul, holds that the soul is the essence of living things, thus the
soul is the essence of self. Only, human differs from other living things because of their capacity for
rational thinking.
● Introduced the three kinds of soul
1. Vegetative Soul – includes the physical body that can grow
2. Sentient Soul – includes sensual desires, feelings and emotions
3. Rational Soul – what makes man human. Includes the intellect that allows man to know
and understand things.
● Since the Rational Soul is what makes a man, a human, he suggests that the rational nature of the
self is to lead a good, flourishing and fulfilling life (Self-actualization) in order to achieve happiness.
D. ST. AUGUSTINE
The self has an immortal soul
● An African philosopher regarded as a saint in the Catholic Church
● Believes that there is an aspect of man (body) which is imperfect, dwells in the world, and
continuously yearns to be with the divine but is bound to die on earth, and an aspect (soul) that is
capable of reaching immortality and can live eternally in a realm of spiritual bliss in communion
with God.
● For him the goal of every human person is to attain communion and bliss with the Divine by living
his life on earth in virtue. He is convinced that the self is known only through knowing God.
● The body is the “spouse” of the soul, both attached to one another by a “natural appetite”
● The body is united with the soul, so that man may be entire and complete, and that the soul is what
governs and defines man.
E.
RENE DESCARTES
I think, therefore I am.
● French philosopher and father of modern philosophy.
● Cogito ergo sum – a Latin Phrase which means, “I think, therefore I am” is a keystone of his concept
of self. For him, human self is also a combination of two distinct entities (Dimensions):
1. Cogito – the thing that thinks (mind)
2. Extenza – extension of the mind (body)
● Human self has a self as a thinking entity or a thinking self (Soul) which is a non – material, immortal,
conscious being and independent of the physical laws of the universe and a physical body which
is a material, mortal, non-thinking entity fully governed by the physical laws of nature.
● The thinking entity (soul) and the physical body is independent of one another. One can exist
without the other.
● For him, the act of thinking about the self – of self being self, is in itself proof that there is a self.
● The essence of the human self is that it is a thinking entity that doubts, understands, analyzes,
questions and reasons.
F.
JOHN LOCKE
Understanding the Self
[Toolbox 1] GE 9
The self is consciousness
● An English philosopher who believe that the human mind, at birth is tabula rasa or a blank state.
● Self or personal identity is constructed primarily from sense experiences (see, hear, smell, taste, feel)
which then shape and mold the self throughout a person’s life.
● Conscious awareness of self as a thinking, reasoning and reflecting identity is the essence of the
self and memory of previous experiences are the keys to understanding the self.
G. DAVID HUME
There is no self
● A Scottish philosopher who suggests that there is no self and that what people experience is just a
bundle or collection of different perceptions divided into two distinct entities:
1. Impressions – basic sensations of people’s experience such as hate, love, joy, grief, pain,
cold and heat. These are vivid perceptions and are strong and lively
2. Ideas – thoughts and images from impressions so they are less lively and vivid.
● The idea of personal identity is a result of imagination.
H. IMMANUEL KANT
We construct the self.
● Agrees with Hume that everything starts with perception/ sensation of impressions.
● There is a mind that regulates these impressions and the self in the form of consciousness organizes
these different impressions that gets in relation to his own existence.
● The self is not only personality but also the seat of knowledge
● From the impressions organized by the self, it constructs its own reality, creating a world that is
familiar, predictable and most significantly, mine.
I.
SIGMUND FREUD
The self is multilayered
● An Austrian psychoanalyst who believes that the self is consists of three layers
1. Conscious Self – governed by the “reality principle”. Rational, practical and appropriate
to the environment and usually takes into account the realistic demands
of the situation, the consequences, and the need for balance in the self.
2. Unconscious Self – contains the basic instinctual drives including sexuality, aggressiveness
and self-destruction; traumatic memories; unfulfilled wishes and
childhood fantasies; and thoughts and feelings that would be
considered taboo. It is governed by the “pleasure principle”
3. Preconscious Self – contains material that is not threatening and is easily brought to mind.
Located between the conscious and the unconscious part of the self.
J.
GILBERT RYLE
The Self is the way people behave
● A British philosopher who believes that the self is best understood as a pattern of behavior, or the
tendency of a person to behave in a certain way in certain circumstance, providing the
philosophical principle, “I act, therefore I am”
● The mind which expresses the entire system of thoughts emotions and actions make up the human
self is intimately link to the body therefore; the self is the same as the bodily behavior.
K. PAUL CHURCHLAND
The self is the brain
● A Canadian philosopher who advocates the idea that all a person has is the brain and so if the
brain is gone, there is no self
● The physical brain and not the imaginary mind gives people the sense of self.
● The mind does not really exist because it cannot be experienced by the senses.
L.
MAURICE MERLEAU-PONTY
The self is embodied subjectively
● A French philosopher who said that the mind and body are so intertwined that they cannot be
separated from one another.
● The living body, his thoughts, emotions and experiences are all one
Sources:
https://www.coursehero.com/file/p63m25gt/Moi-is-a-persons-basic-identity-Personne-Personne-onthe-other-hand-is-composed/
https://courses.lumenlearning.com/atd-hostos-childdevelopment/chapter/human-languagedevelopment/
http://www.psy.gla.ac.uk/~steve/courses/archive/CERE12-13-safari-archive/topic3/webarchiveindex.html