The Self in Western and

Eastern Thought
Prepared by:
Rassil J. Goboleo
Individualistic Self
• A person sees himself as capable of living
his own life, doing the things that he would
love to do, making his own mistakes and
learning from his experiences.
• This is the individual who is aware of his
rights and the limitations of his freedom in
the extant society.
• In US, offspring who reach the age of
eighteen years are expected to move out of
the house to support himself and make his
own decisions. Though family is important,
individual freedom and the ability to stand
on his own is expected.
Collective Self
• In the culture of the East, the development of a collective self is
ingrained into the individual.
• Collective self is the group self to which the person belongs to.
The family and the society control how the group members
should think, act and generally conduct themselves in society.
Ecological Self
• Sees the self as a process that is
undergoing development.
• Human biological and environmental
characteristics like race, gender, social
status and culture are factors that
influence self-development.
• The self here is seen as dynamic,
different and unique in each individual
and is constantly exposed to an ever
changing world
The Self in Confucian Thought
• Kong Zhongni of China, born in the period
of Zhou dynasty in 551 BCE in the small
state of Lu.
• Confucianism - often characterized as a
system of social and ethical philosophy
rather than a religion. It is centered on ren –
human goodness and involves feelings and
thinking which serves as the foundation of
all human relationships.
• Ren further signifies the Chinese cultures’
emphasis on feelings or the heart as the
most important instead of the head in
human nature
Ren can only be realized through:
• Li (propriety) – in order to guide human
actions, rules of propriety should be followed.
Such rules involve adherence to the rituals of
the community.
• Xiao (filiality) – it is the virtue of reverence
and respect for family. Parents should be
revered for the life they had given.
• Yi (rightness) – it is the right way of behaving.
Yi is unconditional and absolute. Right is right
and what is not right is wrong. There are no
gray areas.