The Self and Culture

Remaining the same person and turning chameleon by adapting to one’s context seems
paradoxical. However, the French Anthropologist Marcel Mauss has an explanation for this
phenomenon. According to Mauss, every self has two faces: personne and moi. Moi refers to a
person’s sense of who he is, his body and his basic identity, his biological givenness. Moi is a
person’s basic identity. Personne, on the other hand, is composed of the social concepts of
what it means to be who he is. Personne has much to do with what it means to live in a
particular institution, a particular family, a particular religion, a particular nationality, and how to
behave given expectations and influences from others.

Ang Moi ay ito yung nagpapakita ng pakiramdam ng tao kung sino sya, katawan at
pangunahing pag kakakilanlan ng tao.

Ang Personne ito ay ang panlipunang konsepto kung ano ang ibig sabihin ng pagiging sino siya

Malaki ang kinalaman ng Personne sa kung ano ang ibig sabihin ng mamuhay sa isang
partikular na institusyon, isang partikular na pamilya, isang partikular na relihiyon, isang
partikular na nasyonalidad, at kung paano kumilos ayon sa mga inaasahan at impluwensya
mula sa iba.

¹) In the story, Jon might have a Moi but certainly he has to shift Personne from time to time to
adapt his social situation, he knows who he is and more or less. However, at some point, he has
to sport his stern professorial look. Another day, He has to be the strict father that he is. Inside
his bedroom, he can play goofy with his wife, Joan, in all this and more.

[Jon retains who he is, Hes being Jon-his-moi that part of him that is stable and static all
throughout.]

Si Jon ay merong Moi ngunit kelangan niyang magpalit o msg pa bago bago ng Personne
paminsan-minsan upang iakma ang kanyang sitwasyon sa lipunan, alam niya kung sino siya
higit pa sa iba. Isang araw kelangan niyang maging isang mahigpit na ama, sa loob ng kwarto
nakikipag play sya ng goofy kasama ang kanyang asawa

Si Jon ay nanatili kung sino sya, si Jon at ang Moi na bahagi nya sa lahat ng dako.

²) [The dynamic and capacity for different Personne can be illustrated better cross-culturally.]

An overseas Filipino worker (OFW) adjusting to life in another country. In the Philippines, many
people unabashedly violate jaywalking rules. A common Filipino treats roads, even National
ones as basically his, and so he just merely crosses whenever and wherever. When the same
Filipino visits another country with strict traffic rules, Say Singapore, you will notice how
suddenly law-abiding the said Filipino becomes.
Maraming tao sa Pilipinas ang walang pakundangan na lumalabag sa jaywalking rules.
Itinuturing ng isang karaniwang Pilipino ang kalsada bilang sa kanila, kaya tumatawid nalang
sila kung saan-saan.
Pero kapag ang parehong Pilipino ay bumisita sa ibang bansa na may mahigpit na mga
patakaran katulad ng Singapore mapapansin natin ang pagiging masunurin ng Pilipino sa batas.

³) In language being gender neutral.

In English, Spanish, and other Languages, the distinction is clear between a third person male
and third person female pronoun.

He and She - English

El and Ella - Spanish

In Filipino, it is plain "Siya"

[There is no specification of gender, Our language is not specify between male and female. We
both call it "Siya"]

[In this varied examples, we have seen how language has something to do with culture. It is a
salient part of culture and ultimately has a tremendous affect in our crafting of the self. This
might also be one of reasons why cultural divide spells out differences in how one regards
oneself.]

[Dahilan kung bakit ang kultural na paghahati ay nagpapakita ng mga pagkakaiba sa kung
paano pinapahalagahan ang sarili.]

GEC3
BSBA- M.M
VINCENT L. CAMITAN