Canson, Sheena Mae C.

August 22, 2023

BA Comm 1-A

UNDERSTANDING THE SELF

Journal 1

1. Socrates
 Unexamined life is not worth living.
 Socrates believed that wisdom was the most important pursuit of human
life, and for him, knowing yourself is the most valuable wisdom one can
acquire. Since we, humans, are rational animals, we should make use of
our intellect to live with contentment. Being unable to evaluate oneself
might lead to depersonalization, which makes you doubt the purpose of
your existence.

2. Plato
 Man is dual in nature.
 Plato reckons that man is a dual being composed of a natural body and a
spiritual body. He believed that the soul will exist even apart from the
body because it is immortal. According to him, there is knowledge
implanted in a man’s soul that is uncultivated due to emotions and
feelings.

3. Augustine
 Man is bifurcated in nature.
 St. Augustine believed that the body of a man is bound to die and decay
on Earth, while the soul will live eternally in communication with God.

4. Descartes
 Cogito Ergo Sum
“I think, therefore, I am”. For Descartes, if a man is using his rational
mind, thinking, and doubting himself, he exists. The body and mind are
two separate entities. He argued that the existence of his physical body
can be doubted, but the existence of his mind cannot.

5. Hume
 Impressions and Ideas
 Hume argued that we, as humans, are tied to the causation habit, in
which we believe that something happens for a reason, which is not a
logical argument. Hume stated that our impression is a perception made
up by our experiences, which are ideas.

6. Kant
 Every man is thus an end in himself.
 Kant believed that humans should not be treated as a medium for
something else. Humans have already acquired value since they have
existed and should not become dependent on other things.

7. Ryle

8. Merleau-Ponty