• THE SELF FROM VARIOUS
PERSPECTIVES •
CHAPTER 1
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVE OF THE
SELF
• PHILOSOPHICAL ANTHROPOLOGY
THE STUDY OF MAN- Martin Buber
WHO AM I?
man as the subject
man studies himself
“Life is a journey, and every person is a
traveler” - Homo Viator
MAN AS A TRAVELER
the journey begins at birth and ends at
death
John Ruskin- Prominent British Social
Thinker of the Victorian Era
• Who am I?
• Where does man come from? How
does man Come into existence?
• Does man’s life have a purpose?
WHO AM I?
- It is impossible to come up with a single
definite concept of the self.
- Human beings have divergent concepts
and views about the self
• Judeo – Christian / Theological
Approach
• Philosophical Approach
• Scientific Approach (Sociology,
Anthropology, Political and Psychological)
PHILOSOPHY
greek
Philo- Wisdom -immortal
Sophia- Love -distinct
Human search for meaning in life, inquiry
in the nature and essence of man.
• SOCRATES (469 – 369 BC )
William James
“Philosophy as an unusually stubborn Main philosophical intereman
attempt to think clearly. • Epistemology and Ethics
• THE SELF IN GREEK PHILOSOPHY • Rationalistic Moral Philosophy
• Focuses on the moral aspect of man
PHILOSOPHERS AND THEIR
PHILOSOPHIES ABOUT THE SELF
Rationalistic Moral Philosophy
Reason or Rationality is the principal
component in shaping moral
comportment.
Their approach is man-centered
SELF
Greek Philosophers forerunners in Not just a Mind-body Aggregate But
FOCUS:
• Nature of the
Manstudy of man also a MORAL being
• Virtue
• Human Personality 1. Focuses on the moral aspect of man
2. How man should live a morally good life?
• PROTAGORAS
(homo mensura) 3. Happiness without morality is impossible
“Man is the measure of all things” 4. Man must live a good moral life to be happy
5. Rationality / Reason is the key
GREEK PHILOSOPHY
3 Ways To Live A Morally Good Life
underscores the intimate connection
• Focus on improving the quality of the
between:
soul or moral life instead of indulging in
• self • virtue
the chase of material things, fame and
• the very core of our beginning
prestige
• Improvement of the soul can be
•Virtue • Self • Character • achieved through the quest for wisdom
and truth KNOWLEDGE =
VIRTUE
" We must mind the moral character of our • Life must be ceaselessly examined to
actions." know one’s true nature
“KNOW THYSELF”
" The formation of the self primarily consists
of the nourishment of the rational soul of the
The self is the one that thinks, reflects
self. "
and acts on what is right.
Only in the pursuit of goodness can the
SELF self find happiness.
Body – Soul Compound
Rational Soul
-immaterial • PLATO (427 – 3447 BC)
-immutable
-far superior to the body
Philosophical Concept:
Body + Soul = Self
Dualistic, idealistic and abstract view of
reality
• Self as rational consisting of body and
soul
• Soul from the world of ideas
• Body from the world of matter
• ST . AUGUSTINE ( 354-430 AD)
Philosophical Concept:
• Blended Christianity with Philosophy
“The City of God”
• The self is tripartite in being
(st. thomas aquinas)
• Influenced by Plato’s Philosophy
• Dualistic view of reality (just like Plato’s)
“The City of God” - classification
• those who love God and belonged to
the City of God
• RENE DESCARTES (1596 - 1650)
Main Philosophical Interest:
• Separation of mind and body
“Cartesian Dualism”: body and mind
“Substance” – anything that exists in
itself
• Substance - infinite and finite
INFINITE AND FINITE SUBSTANCE
• Infinite Substance - innate idea of god
• Finite Substance - man

MAN IS A SOUL IMPRISONED IN A BODY • City of the World who do not love God

• Body from the world of matter

SELF AS A TRIPARTITE BEING
• Soul from the world of i (St. Augustine and St. Thomas Aquinas)

BODY - outer part of the self, in contact

deas
Theory on Tripartite of the Soul stated
that the soul of the self consists of three
dissimilar elements
• Head - spirited element; emotional
drives
• Heart - element of reason
• Stomach - bodily appetite, desire and
needs
to the world
SOUL - inner part; mind, emotions and
the will
SPIRIT - innermost part; can commune
with God
God created man, body and soul of which
the soul is spiritual, perpetual and
superior to the body.
The soul is created by God to administer
the body.

The body is subjected to mortality.

HOW TO LIVE A MORALLY GOOD LIFE? Self is gifted with freedom by God and
the abuse of this freedom leads to
• Maintain the harmony or balance
misery in the life of the self
between the rational element (head) and
Adam’s Sin is hereditary and our
the irrational ones (heart and stomach).
sinfulness is inherent
• To attain happiness, the self must be
intellectually, emotionally and biologically
• THE SELF IN THE MODERN
balanced.
PHILOSOPHY

• THE SELF IN THE MEDIEVAL

RENAISSANCE
PHILOSOPHY
(rebirth of learning)
• Self as a secondary concern
• The focus of philosophical quest was on
• God and faith is the primary concern
man again
• Man is made by God
• Affirms the dignity and worth of man
• Human reason is meant to strengthen
with regard to the power of his reason to
the faith
know the truth of his nature