UNDERSTANDING THE SELF

GEC101 A1-1

MTh (7:30-9:00)

1st YEAR BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN HOSPITALITY MANAGEMENT

Emelyn Q. Abillar

Self-Understanding and the Care for Being: Heidegger's Ethical Thought

 TABLE OF CONTENTS

I. CONTENT…………………………………………………………………………………………. 2

Self-Understanding and the Care for Being: Heidegger's Ethical Thought …….. 2

What did Heidegger mean by being? ...................................................................... 2

Heidegger and the Question of Ethics ……………………………………………….... 2

Self-Understanding ……………………………………………………………………….. 2

Authentic self-understanding ………………………………………………………….... 3

The Phenomenon of Care ……………………………………………………………..... 3

II. DEFINATION OF TERMS …………………………………………………………………..….. 3

III. SUMARRY ……………………………………………………………………………………..... 4

IV. REFLECTION AND INSIGHTS ……………………………………………………………… 4

V. REFERENCES ……………………………………………………………………………….…. 5
I. CONTENT

Self-Understanding and the Care for Being: Heidegger's Ethical Thought

To understand oneself a certain way is to engage others in a certain way, this means
that Being is ethically enacted in the world. Heidegger describes this form of ethical
engagement as the care for Being.

What did Heidegger mean by being?

According to Heidegger, human being should instead be conceived as Dasein, a common

German word usually translated in English as “existence” but which also literally means
“being there.” By using it as a replacement for “consciousness” and “mind.” Heidegger points
out that '" the meaning of Being' and 'the truth of Being' mean the same" (WBGM.274).1O
Heidegger views Being as a possibility of understanding oneself; that is, as linked to the
ethical practice of Being in-the-world. A concept of Being is what allows us to make sense of
ourselves, others, as well as things. Moreover, we have the freedom to understand
ourselves in a particular way; that is, to care for others, things, in a particular way.

Heidegger and the Question of Ethics

Heidegger's thought is primarily ethical, and his concept of ethical life is concerned with
genuine self-understanding. Heidegger associates the concept of inauthentic Dasein with the
"they-self," which he differentiates from the authentic self. This relationship is captured by
the term "self-understanding," which he uses. Heidegger views Being as a possibility of
understanding oneself, others, and things in a particular way, and his concept of the truth of
Being is not a postmodern supra-metaphysical-mystical ground.

Self-Understanding 

Understanding, according to Heidegger, is a fundamental mode of Dasein's Being because it

opens up new ways of seeing, saying, and acting. Heidegger asserts that no single person
or institution determines the everyday concept of understanding, and that authentic self-
understanding can be either authentic or inauthentic. Understanding oneself as a whole is a
prerequisite for a certain kind of ethos, which enables one to engage in mutual acts of
solicitude with others while respecting their freedom, and to show concern for things in a
variety of ways through the affirmation of differences.
Authentic self-understanding

Heidegger's concept of authentic self-understanding radicalizes individual autonomy by

emphasizing ethical and global engagement with others. To truly understand ourselves,
everything, including death, must be positively validated. Authentic self-understanding
requires a certain tenacity, a certain courage and a certain style in order to be developed
into personal identity, your ethical Being.

The idea of caring for Being goes back to two claims Heidegger makes in Sein und
Zeit:

 Dasein's Being reveals itself as care" (SZ.182)

 and, "Reality is referred back to the phenomenon of care" (SZ. 211).

The ethical question is this: How shall I relate to others, and how shall I relate to the
world?

Heidegger believes that Self-understanding is internal to self-understanding, which can be

either authentic or inauthentic, enabling different ways of existing in the world.

The Phenomenon of Care

The care for Being As an ethical practice means simply that without human beings there
is no "meaning" of Being. Conversely, in order to understand ourselves, no matter how
rudimentary, we need a concept of Being. He believes that understanding ourselves as a
whole is required for understanding ourselves and our finitude, and that caring for Being as a
whole, inclusive, is an affirmation of our finitude.

II. DEFINATION OF TERMS

 Heidegger - Martin Heidegger was a German philosopher best known for his work in
phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. He is regarded as one of the
twentieth century's most important and influential philosophers.
 Dasein - a common German word usually translated in English as “existence” but
which also literally means “being there.”
  Self-Understanding - is the ability of the individual to understand his or her own
behaviors, actions, and reactions.
 Authentic self - what you say in life aligns with what your actions. It is who you are
at your deepest core.
 Finitude - The state or characteristic of being finite; limitedness.

III. SUMARRY

First and foremost, Heidegger's thought is primarily ethical. Second, he proposes a

definition of ethics as authentic self-understanding, or understanding oneself as a whole.
Third, genuine self-awareness is attained through solidarity with others and concern for
things. Heidegger does not believe in a postmodern supra-metaphysical or mystical
substrate for the truth of Being; rather, he sees Being as the potential of seeing oneself,
others, and objects in a certain way. Heidegger distinguishes between the true self and the
"they-self," which he refers to as the inauthentic Dasein. A certain type of ethos, which
enables one to engage in reciprocal acts of solicitude with others while respecting their
freedom, and to exhibit concern for things in various ways through the affirmation of
differences, requires an understanding of oneself as a precondition. Understanding
ourselves as a whole, according to Heidegger, is essential for understanding ourselves and
our finitude. The fundamental experience that enables us to care for Being in a broader
sense is Heidegger's experience of finitude, which decouples individual self-understanding
from the everyday and reveals the "belonging together" of human nature and Being.

IV. REFLECTION AND INSIGHTS

Genuine existence is how Heidegger's philosophy of caring is stated. It is a way of

being in the world, in relationships with oneself and others, care is based on Being-there,
giving existence purpose. Heidegger employs the term Dasein to describe the uniquely
human experience of being. As a result, it is a state of being that is aware of and must
confront issues such as personhood, mortality, and the dilemma or paradox of living in
relationship with other humans while ultimately being alone with oneself. In our case, as the
beings being studied, the context is the type of world we live in. Heidegger concludes that
"care" is the primordial state of Being as Dasein strives for authenticity. To say that the self
(Dasein) is care means that we understand and care about ourselves in the world in terms of
being connected with what we can and cannot do. Because of the connectedness brought
about by care, it matters that we can act, and we must act to choose among our own
possibilities. Care comes before and encompasses our being ahead of ourselves, already in
the world, and together with others. It defines both our fundamental being and our potential
being. As a result, every act, mode, mode of attunement, projection, thrones, being in, being
with, every understanding, and every appropriation of possibilities is grounded in care, and
this care takes different forms depending on what is done.

V. REFERENCES

 CF McNicolls (March 1998) MacSphere: Self-Understanding and the Care for

Being https://macsphere.mcmaster.ca/bitstream/11375/13907/1/fulltext.pdf
 A Theory Channel (2022) Care & Dasein | Heidegger - Being and Time
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=243Hics0LJE&t=178s

 Reich W Classic Article (1995): “History of the Notion of Care”

https://theology.georgetown.edu/research/historyofcare/classicarticle/#:~:text=Briefly
%2C%20Heidegger%20claims%20that%20we,seek%20security%20in%20the
%20crowd.