Understanding the self

(udself030)
COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course is intended to facilitate the

exploration of the issues and concerns
regarding self and identity to arrive at a
better understanding to one’s self. It strives
to meet this goal by stressing the integration
of the personal with the academic –
contextualizing matters for better learning,
generation a new appreciation for the
learning process, and developing a more
critical and reflective attitude while enabling
them to manage and improve themselves to
attain a better quality of life.
COURSE DESCRIPTION

(con’t.)

The course is divided into three

major parts: The Self from
Various Disciplinal Perspectives,
Unpacking the Self, and
Managing and Caring for the
Self. This course also includes
the mandatory topics on
Family Planning and
Population Education.
COURSE/SUBJECT OUTCOMES

At the end of the semester, the students

must have:

1. Understood the construct of the Self

from various disciplinal perspectives:
philosophy, sociology, anthropology, and
psychology – as well as the more
traditional division between the East and
West – each seeking to provide answers
to the difficult but essential question of
“What is the self?”
COURSE/SUBJECT OUTCOMES

2. Delved into some of the various aspects

that make up the self, such as the
biological and material up to and
including the more recent digital self.
3. Explored three areas of concern:
learning, goal setting, and
managing stress
4. Practically applied the concept discussed
in this course and has developed self-
help plans for self-regulated learning,
goal setting, and self-care.
 Chapter 1
THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES

Objectives:

1.Discuss the different representations

and conceptualizations of the self
from various disciplinal perspectives

2. Compare and contrast how the self

has been represented across
different disciplines and perspectives
 Chapter 1
THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES

3. Examine the different influences,

factors, and forces that shape the
self

4. Demonstrate critical and reflective

thought in analyzing the
development of one's self and
identity by developing a theory of
the self
Chapter 1. THE SELF FROM VARIOUS PERSPECTIVES
Topic 1 - The Philosophical Self

Objectives:

- To explain the importance of

understanding the philosophical
nature of the Self

- Discuss the different views about the

self based on selected philosophers
Chapter 1. THE SELF FROM VARIOUS
PERSPECTIVES
Topic 1 - The Philosophical Self

INTRODUCTION
What is “philosophy?”
-the branch of knowledge or
academic study devoted to
the systematic examination
of basic concepts such as
truth, existence, reality,
causality, and freedom
-a precept, or set of
precepts, beliefs, principles,
or aims, underlying
somebody's practice or
conduct
Microsoft® Encarta® 2009
Chapter 1. THE SELF FROM VARIOUS
PERSPECTIVES
Topic 1 - The Philosophical Self

INTRODUCTION

What do you think is your

meaning of life?

It usually depends on a life

philosophy that you have
and you hold.
In this lesson, we will try to examine
the nature of man in two philosophical
perspectives, the essentialist view and
existentialist view
eternal and unchangeable
human nature
Essentialism
individual existence, freedom
and choice
Existentialism
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE HUMAN PERSON
AND THE SELF

The Essentialist /Avocado View

•An avocado-
• pear-shaped tropical fruit
• yellowish flesh
• a single large seed at the center

The seed at the center contains

all the essential information
about what makes an avocado
an avocado.
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE HUMAN PERSON
AND THE SELF

Essentialism. The claim that human

nature is determined by the set of
necessary and sufficient properties of
humanness, coupled with the claim
that the properties that are part of
human nature are distinctive of human
beings.
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE HUMAN PERSON
AND THE SELF

The essence of being a triangle, for

example, would be ‘having three
sides’. Any object that had more than
three sides could not be a triangle. In
the case of human beings, this
essentialist view usually translates into
the claim that things like intelligence,
humor, morality, reason, and
language are distinctively and
essentially human. They are what
define us and mark us out as different
from other animals.
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE HUMAN PERSON
AND THE SELF
According to Judaic and Christian Traditions

• Humans are made in the image and

likeness of God
• Animals may have instincts and
intelligence but they are not made in
God’s likeness
• We are self-conscious
• We have the capacity to love
• We have fleshy outward
appearance but inside we share
the divine nature
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE HUMAN PERSON
AND THE SELF
According to the Greek Rationalist Tradition

• Reason is at the core our being

• Our reasoning ability sets us apart from
other terrestrial beings
• Reason controls emotions & appetites
• We may act like animals at times, but
only because we are not using reason
to control the other parts of
our being
• Humans alone are capable
of living according to reason
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE HUMAN PERSON
AND THE SELF
According to the Theocentric Tradition
(St. Augustine of Hippo)

• The most important part of a person is

the inner person, i.e., the mind.
• Ethically, the most important part of the
mind is not the intellect (or reason) but
the will.
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE HUMAN PERSON
AND THE SELF
According to the Theocentric Tradition
(St. Augustine of Hippo)

• The orientation of the will determines

whether we love lower goods (such as
bodily goods, wealth, and reputation)
or higher goods (virtue and, above all,
God).
• Although originally neither
good nor bad, the human will
become corrupted so that it is
in most cases inclined to love
lower rather than higher goods.
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE HUMAN PERSON
AND THE SELF

Existentialist / Protean View

(or Artichoke or Cabbage View)

Named after Proteus

– the shape –shifter
of Greek mythology
(green tree, a blind
man, blinding fire)
depending on the
situation demanding
him to change forms
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE HUMAN PERSON
AND THE SELF

Existentialist / Protean View

(or Artichoke or Cabbage View)
Like an artichoke or
cabbage, as the layers
are removed, one finds
there is no central core,
this view agrees that
we are nothing but
layers and finds this
reasonable and healthy
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE HUMAN PERSON
AND THE SELF

Existentialist / Protean View

(or Artichoke or Cabbage View)
• This idea says that humans are many
layers that function at
• various times in life
• Life is such that we need to be able to
react in many different ways
• This is consistent with the idea that
there are no moral absolutes or
certain truth
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE HUMAN PERSON
AND THE SELF

Existentialist / Protean View

(or Artichoke or Cabbage View)

Existentialism (Self-created self)

- emphasizes individual existence,
freedom, and choice
- views that humans define their own
meaning in life
- views that man is able to make
rational decisions despite his
existence in an irrational universe
Existentialist / Protean View
(or Artichoke or Cabbage View)
• We have no fixed essence as human
beings
• We live in the moment and create our own
selves moment by moment
• As we choose our path, we are
accountable for our choices
• “You create a self for yourself.” Mitchell, 1995
• “I am the master of my fate;
I am the captain of my soul.”
(From “Invictus” by William Ernest Henley – 19th cent)
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE HUMAN PERSON
AND THE SELF

Existentialist / Protean View

(or Artichoke or Cabbage View)

• Life has no inherent meaning – no core

to give purpose or direction. You can be
anything you want to be. But you have
no one to blame but yourself. Mitchell, 1995

• Your are the master of your fate.

 Probing questions

• Do we have a clearer view of ourselves

as human persons?
• Do we find our existence meaningful?
• If we do, then how deep and how wide
have we shared our meaningful life with
others?

Only you and I can

measure it.