(3) Spirited or passion includes basic emotions

The Philosophical Perspective of

such as love, anger, empathy.
Understanding the Self  These three basically allow man to live in
accordance to his nature, then he is giving
Prominent philosophers have different
justice in his existence therefore everyone
views regarding the nature of the self. The
in this world has a purpose for each one of
ancient philosophers explained the self from their
us should do our part.
conceptual understanding of the world since
 Always remember that good is above God.
scientific evidence was hard to obtain due to lack
of measures. Meanwhile, contemporary
ARISTOTLE: THE SOUL IS THE ESSENCE OF
philosophers have incorporated science to their
THE SELF
theories in the light of the technological
 He defined man as a rational animal for we
advancement they have been exposed to.
have free will and intellect. Only man in
 
God's creation has the ability to think. So,
SOCRATES: AN UNEXAMINED LIFE IS NOT
therefore, we should use our decisions
WORTH LIVING
wisely and this will definitely lead us to
 As what I have understood, each one of us
self-actualization.
should be conscious of what is good to be
 
able to have a good life. Don't let
ST. AUGUSTINE: THE SELF HAS AN
ignorance overcome you. If you don't
IMMORTAL SOUL
know such thing, never hesitate to ask for
 St. Augustine is regarded as a saint in the
the help of others for you to learn
Catholic Church. As a religious
something new. Our soul strives for
philosopher, he contemplated on the
wisdom and perfection to achieve exalted
nature of man with an emphasis on the
state.
soul as an important element of man. He
 
believed that the soul is what governs and
PLATO: THE SELF IS A DUAL NATURE OF
defines the human person.
BODY AND SOUL
 Plato was the student of Socrates who also
RENE DESCARTES: I THINK THEREFORE I AM
believed that the self is synonymous with
 Man is a thinking man that has an entity
the soul. Plato elaborated the concept of
to doubt, understand, analyze, question,
the soul; specifically, he introduced the
and the most important thing is to reason
idea of a three-part soul: rational soul,
out that can exist independently in the
appetitive soul, and spirited soul.
physical body. The Latin phrase "Cogito
(1) Rational is the divine essence that enables us
ergo sum" is the concept of self by
to think deeply, make wise choices, and achieve a
Descartes which means "I think therefore
true understanding of eternal truths.
I am."
(2) Appetitive includes our basic biological needs
such as hunger, thirst, and sexual desires.
  Cogito is the thing that thinks, which is
the mind. Extenza or extension of the
mind is the body.
 

JOHN LOCKE: THE SELF IS CONSCIOUSNESS

 For Locke, the human mind at birth is
tabula rasa or blank slate. The self or
personal identity is constructed primarily
from sense experience - specifically, what
people see, hear, smell, taste, and feel.
These experiences shape and mold the self
throughout a person's life. For Locke,
conscious awareness and memory of
previous experiences are the keys to
understanding the self.

DAVID HUME: A BUNDLE OR COLLECTION

OF DIFFERENT PERCEPTIONS
 Man is a bundle of all sensation and
perception. When people will examine
their content of experience what they can
see are just impressions and ideas that
result to imagination.
 

IMMANUEL KANT: WE CONSTRUCT THE

SELF
 It is the self that is constructing and
organizing principles of experiences which
creates a world that is familiar,
predictable, and significantly be called as
mine. For example, I myself is the one
who's discovering the world for I am the
driver of my life. Nobody will do it for me
for it transcends the experience in my
mind as well as the senses of mine.