FREEDOM
He has to make a
Freedom may be defined in three ways:
First, it is the power or right to act, speak, or
think as one wants without hindrance or
restraint as when we say that we have the
freedom to speak.
Second, it is the state of not being imprisoned or
enslaved as when one say, “Finally, after three
years of my imprisonment, I had tasted freedom
again.”
Thirdly, it is the unrestricted use of something as
when we say, “We had more or less complete
freedom of using our laptop whenever and
wherever we wanted.”
Jean-Paul Sartre in Freedom-
-you have the power to become whoever and
whatever you are. But whatever happens to
you, you are the only person to be blamed since
it was your decision to do things for yourself.
You cannot blame other people.
-man cannot escape freedpm because man is
forever free.
-man freely makes choices but his or her
choices or decisions doesn/\]’t only affects
himself but also other people that surrounds
him and all of mankind.
-your decision doesn/t only affect yourself but
also other people. So when making decisions,
think also how that decision affects other
people.
According to Jean-Paul Sartre, freedom is to be
seen in relation to man’s defining himself. This
means that freedom is no other than man’s
power to be what he wants to be such as being
a lawyer, a politician, an engineer, or a teacher.
Being so, man is responsible as to what happens to
himself. There are no excuses. He cannot blame
others as to what happens to him. He can only
blame his own self.
Moreover, Sartre said that man is condemned to
freedom which implies that man cannot escape
freedom. Man is forever free.
choice all the time. He cannot even choose not to
choose for not choosing is choosing just the same.
However, this freedom of man should not be seen
as something which is chaotic and anarchic.
Freedom for Sartre is a freedom of synthesis which
entails that when man makes a choice, he is not
only making a choice for himself but for all
mankind.
Immanuel Kant of Freedom-
-your decisions are caused by your freedom.
But your freedom is the result of your
rationality. Meaning, in making decisions, you
have to be rational, you have to think of the
outcome of your decision whether it will have
positive of negative effects on you and the
people around you.
-if you are not rational, you are not free, and
when you are not free, you cannot make
decisions.
According to Immanuel Kant, freedom is to be seen
in relation to the autonomy of the will. The will is a
kind of causality belonging to living beings in so far
as they are rational. This entails that freedom is
caused by reason. Conversely, the absence of
rationality entails the absence of freedom. Without
reason, freedom does not exist. Being so, the
exercise of freedom must always be a product of
one’s reason. In terms of action, one’s choice of
action is a result of one’s reason. Thus, before
doing anything, one must think and answer the
question: “Will I will that my will will be willed by
others?” or “Will I will that what I want will be
wanted by others?”
Freedom and Morality-
-Morals are the values set by society. Meaning,
these are the norms or stabndards followed by
people in order to have an organized and
peaceful society.
-for an act to be moral, it has to be a human act.
-for an act to be human act, it must be done
with knowledge, freedom, and voluntariness.
Absence of one of these elements, will make
the act just an act of man, meaning we cannot
determine whether the act is moral or immoral.
For the morality of an act to be determinable, the
act must be a human act. For an act to be a human
act, it must be done with knowledge, freedom, and
voluntariness. Without any of these three elements,
the act is simply an act of man. Its morality or
immorality cannot be determined. In relation to
freedom, if the doer the act has no freedom in
doing the act, then he is not accountable as the
same is not his action. If he has freedom, then
he is accountable for it.
Freedom and Democracy-
-freedom and democracy are synonymous.
Societies must be democratic, meaning, people
have rights. Is a society is not democratic,
people’s rights are limited, or worse they are
eliminated and not exercised
In a democratic society, citizens are afforded with
freedoms and rights, such as freedom of
expression, liberty of abode, right to education,
right to work, and others. This entails that if the
society is not democratic, freedoms and rights are
curtailed or are limited, or they may be eliminated
totally. Thus, freedom and democracy go hand in
hand together, without one, the other cannot exist.
Freedom and Religion
One of the fundamental freedom that man has is
religion, that is, freedom of religion. If man is free,
then he has the right to choose his own
religion. According to the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights, "Everyone has the right to freedom
of thought, conscience and religion; this right
includes freedom to change his religion or belief,
and freedom, either alone or in community with
others and in public or private, to manifest his
religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and
observance."
On Individual Differences
- We are not the only person living on this earth.
There are also other people, and we call them
“THE OTHER”. “The other” is totally different
from you in all aspects. We have differences
and these differences should not be the reason
why we cannot be united. Instead, our
differences is the reason why we should unite
and help each other. Our differences are the
sources of learnings so that we can improve
and develop ourselves.
According to Emmanuel Levinas, there is someone
who exists aside from me and that is no other than
the other – the other person. This other is not me.
This other is different from me. Being different from
me, I have to recognize his otherness. Otherness
means anything that is not me. Otherness entails
difference. And, I have to see this difference every
time that I encounter the other. In so doing, I am
giving justice to him. In recognizing that the other is
different from, I am seeing the other as truly
another.
In looking at the other as someone different, I have
to understand that his views, opinions, beliefs,
ways of believing, ways of talking, ways of eating,
and others are different from me. The same holds
true with his intelligence.
According to Dr. Howard Gardner, the traditional
notion of intelligence, based on I.Q. testing, is far
too limited because human beings have different
intelligences. He said that there are eight different
intelligences. These intelligences are:
Linguistic intelligence (word smart);
Logical-mathematical intelligence
(number/reasoning smart);
Spatial intelligence (picture/image smart);
Bodily/Kinesthetic intelligence (body smart);
Musical intelligence (music smart);
Interpersonal intelligence (people smart);
Intrapersonal intelligence (self- smart); and,
Naturalist intelligence (nature smart);
On Environmental Philosophy
- the philosophy concern with issues
concerning the environment. Climate change,
weather disturbances, and any environmental
issue caused by actions of human beings.
Environmental philosophy is a branch of
philosophy that is concerned with the natural
environment and humans' place within it. It asks
crucial questions about human environmental
relations such as "What do we mean when we talk
about nature?" "How should we respond to
environmental challenges such as environmental
degradation, pollution and climate change?" and
"What is our place in the natural world?"
It is concerned with defining environment and
nature, how to value the environment, moral
status of animals and plants, endangered
species, environmentalism and deep ecology,
aesthetic value of nature, restoration of nature,
and consideration of future generations.
Environmental philosophy includes the following
areas: environmental ethics, environmental
aesthetics, ecofeminism, environmental
hermeneutics, and environmental theology.
Areas of Environmental Philosophy
Environmental philosophy has five areas, namely,
environmental ethics, environmental aesthetics,
ecofeminism, environmental hermeneutics, and
environmental theology.
Environmental ethics is the part of environmental
philosophy which considers extending the
traditional boundaries of ethics from solely including
humans to including the non-human world.
Example:
1.Should humans continue to clear cut forests
for the sake of human consumption?
2. Is it right for humans to knowingly cause
the extinction of a species for the convenience of
humanity?
Environmental aesthetics the interaction between
an individual and the environment, in relation to
beauty.
Example: environmental paintings,
landscaping, artwork based on nature
Ecofeminism is an area of environmental
philosophy that links feminism with ecology. It
seeks to eradicate all forms of social injustice, not
just injustice against women and the environment.
Example: environmental group led by women
against deforestations, illegal fishing, illegal
selling of wild animals, and illegal usage of
animal products for fashion.
Environmental hermeneutics is an area of
environmental philosophy that applies the
techniques and resources of the philosophical field
of hermeneutics to environmental issues. It
addresses issues of interpretation as they relate to
nature and environmental issue.
Example: history of the ecosystem in that
affected area, scientific facts to prove the
ecology of that area
Lastly, environmental theology is an area of
environmental philosophy that focuses on the
understanding of God's relationship to the
cosmos or Creation.
Example: the relationship of God the creator
and His creations
Environment-related Worldviews
There are three worldviews which are related to the
environment, namely, biocentrism, ecocentrism,
and anthropocentrism.
Biocentrism is a world-view that upholds that all
living beings have inherent value and humans
are not superior to others. It is an ethical point of
view that extends inherent value to all living things.
It is an understanding of how the earth works,
particularly as it relates to
its biosphere or biodiversity. It stands in contrast to
anthropocentrism, which centers on the value of
humans. Biocentrism does not imply the idea of
equality among the animal kingdom, for no such
notion can be observed in nature. Biocentric
thought is nature-based, not human- based.
Advocates of biocentrism often promote the
preservation of biodiversity, animal rights, and
environmental protection.
-that all life deserves equal moral
consideration or has equal moral standing.
Ecocentrism is a world-view which puts forward
the value of the ecosystems (both its living and
non-living components) above all. As such, the
value of biodiversity is above the value of
individuals or single species (including humans).
Ecocentrism denotes a nature- centered, as
opposed to human-centered (i.e. anthropocentric),
system of values.
Anthropocentrism is a world-view that puts the
human being at the center stage and, hence,
nature and ecosystems are sources of
resources for human use. It is the belief
that human beings are the most important entity
in the universe. Anthropocentrism interprets or
regards the world in terms of human values and
experiences. Anthropocentrism is considered to be
profoundly embedded in many modern human
cultures and conscious acts. It is a major concept in
the field of environmental ethics and environmental
philosophy, where it is often considered to be the
root cause of problems created by human action
within the ecosphere.
Philippine Laws Protective of the Environment
There are three different laws in the Philippines that
protect the environment. These laws are the
following:
Sec. 16, Art. II, 1987 Philippine Constitution.
This provision mandates that the State shall protect
and advance the right of the people to a balanced
and healthful ecology in accord with the rhythm and
harmony of nature.
This law provides that it is the policy of the State to
adopt a systematic, comprehensive and ecological
solid waste management program which shall: a)
ensure the protection of the public health and
environment; b) utilize environmentally-sound
methods that maximize the utilization of valuable
resources and encourage resource conservation
and recovery; and, c) set guidelines and targets for
solid waste avoidance and volume reduction
through source reduction and waste minimization
measures, including composting, recycling, re-use,
recovery, green charcoal process, and others,
before collection, treatment and disposal in
appropriate and environmentally sound solid waste
management facilities in accordance with
ecologically sustainable development principle.
Republic Act No. 9275 (Philippine Clean Water
Act of 2004). This law provides that the State shall
pursue a policy of economic growth in a manner
consistent with the protection, preservation and
revival of the quality of our fresh, brackish and
marine waters. To achieve this end, the framework
for sustainable development shall be pursued. As
such, it shall be the policy of the State: a) to
streamline processes and procedures in the
prevention, control and abatement of pollution of
the country's water resources; b) to promote
environmental strategies, use of appropriate
economic instruments and of control mechanisms
for the protection of water resources; c) to
formulate a holistic national program of water
quality management that recognizes that water
quality management issues cannot be separated
from concerns about water sources and ecological
protection, water supply, public health and quality
of life; and, d) to formulate an integrated water
quality management framework through proper
delegation and effective coordination of functions
and activities.
Republic Act No. 8749 (Philippine Clean Air Act
of 1999). This law provides that the State shall
pursue a policy of balancing development and
environment protection. To achieve this end, the
framework for sustainable development shall be
pursued. As such, it shall be the policy of the State
to: a) formulate a holistic national program of air
pollution that shall be implemented by the
government through proper delegation and
effective coordination of function and activities; b)
encourage cooperation and self-regulation among
citizen and industries through the application of
incentives market-based instruments; and, c) focus
primarily on pollution prevention rather than on
control and provide for a comprehensive
management program on air pollution.