THE PHYSICAL SELF

The Self As Impacted by the Body

What part of your body do
you like the least?

What part of your body do

you like the most?
 ORIGINS OF
PERFECTION
In ancient Greece, it
was the Greek sculptor
Polyclitus who was the
first artist to devise a
canon for the human
body with the idea that
certain proportions
would operate as a
model of perfection.
The human head forms a Golden Rectangle with the
eyes at the mid-point. The mouth and nose can each be
placed at Golden Sections of the distance between the
eyes and the bottom of the chin. With this information
it is possible to construct a human face with
dimensions exhibiting the Golden Ratio. This is exactly
how some modern surgeons are creating
beauty.
 THE “GROOMING” INDUSTRY: THE BATTLE
FOR WOMEN’S BODIES

The beauty industry is a multibillion dollar

business which is controlled by just a handful of
multinationals that emerged in the first half of
the twentieth century, namely: Estée Lauder,
L’Oréal, Shiseido and Unilever.
For Orbach, there is a strong cultural belief in a
‘perfectible body’ which, ironically, has made the body
increasingly ‘unstable’ and ‘a site of serious suffering and
disorder.’

With the ubiquity of pernicious images of airbrushed

perfection, young people women in particular) have
become increasingly focused on, and deeply dissatisfied
with, the appearance of their bodies.
• Germaine Greer comments that ‘every woman
knows that, regardless of her other achievements,
she is a failure if she is not beautiful.’
• Media presents images of women which make them
feel deeply unhappy with themselves. Wolf calls this
‘the beauty myth.’
• Wolf does not argue for women not to want to feel
beautiful, but the problem for her resides in when
women feel forced to wear make-up so as to not lose
a job or just to feel womanly.
 NIP ’N’ TUCK
Natasha Walter, author of the acclaimed text
Living Dolls, takes a dim view of a culture where
breast implants, fake nails, spray tans and a
myriad of other alterations and additions to the
female body are suggested by the media to be
liberating and empowering. For Walter they are
blatantly not.
MALE BEAUTY
 MALE BEAUTY

It might also be argued that many more men are

now also victims of the beauty industry with rising
numbers of males getting waxed, using numerous
beauty products and sometimes resorting to
surgery for everything from rhinoplasty (nose
shaping) to tummy tucks (abdominoplasty).
 Indeed, the term “METROSEXUALITY” has been
coined to describe a type of man, usually located
within a metropolitan setting, who devotes a lot of time
to beautifying his body and spending considerable
amounts of money on contemporary fashion.
 AGEING
Ageing or aging is the process of becoming
older. It is now a key topic in cultural studies. Its
popularity may be due to the fact that growing “old”
is something which directly affects everyone,
unlike other identifications such as, say, ethnicity
or disability.
This is why gerontophobia (fear of ageing) is
such a powerful anxiety in that it is not simply a
fear of a quantified, minority group but a terror that,
one day, we might become part of that group
 Like all identifications, ageing is not merely
biological but cultural. Bodies will age biologically
but how this is identified is culturally mutable and so
what is deemed “old” will vary according to
geographical and historical context.
Many anti-ageing creams and lotions identify
the signifiers of age as a
“concern” that needs to be treated.
 Physical self-concept is the individual's
perception of themselves in areas of physical ability
and appearance. Physical ability includes concepts
such as physical strength and endurance, while
appearance refers to attractiveness.
Physical Self refers to the body, this marvelous
container and complex, finely tuned, machine with which
we interface with our environment and fellow beings.
The Physical Self is the concrete dimension, the tangible
aspect of the person that can be directly observed and
examined. 
Being human is so much more than just the
physical, doing a self-concept assessment by
looking from the spiritual perspective to find
answers that you long for… to help you to
navigate this human journey with a little more
ease and grace, and a sense of well-being,
enabling you to hold the space for others to do
the same… all the way to the end of life.
 Many people carry an image of themselves
that is distorted… and doesn’t truly reflect who
they really are. They get stuck in judging their
physical concept of self, ending up being highly
critical of themselves (and others). They base their
entire lives on the premise they themselves have
made up from a limited belief they are holding,
and live life through the lens of not liking
themselves very much. Do you know anyone like
this?
Our self-perceptions can be harsh, and
sometimes we spend a lot of time criticizing the
way we look. At the end of life, does it really
matter what we “look like”? We are either old with
wrinkles, or sick with dry skin, thinned bodies,
incontinent, and whatever else comes with aging
and being sick. We are NOT our bodies. We live in
our bodies, but our bodies do not make up WHO
we are.
Being born into your physical self takes courage
Let’s face it, being born into a physical
human body takes courage, determination,
and a lot of effort! It’s not for the faint of
heart, and it’s no easy task. Imagine taking
teeny tiny particles of matter (that we cannot
physically see with our eyes, otherwise known
as that “invisible” stuff), and transforming
them into a tangible, physical form of dense
matter… called a human body (somewhat like
a model airplane, where this part goes here,
and that part goes there). It’s a definite
commitment to be in a physical body, for as
long as we live.
Self-concept Model
When we see ourselves as part of
a bigger picture, we may feel that
sense of peace, but we have no
written or drawn-out blueprint. We
make it all up as we go along. We use
our individual imaginations, our filters,
our conditioning, our beliefs, our
thoughts, and our experiences… all of
which determines our outcome, our
results… and how we feel about
ourselves, and our lives. It’s about
the attitude we generate from
within.
TAKING CARE OF OUR PHYSICAL SELF
1. Allow your Physical Self to move and express
itself. Dance, walk, and stretch…
2. Notice all the physical things around you. Use
all five senses: sight, sound, taste, touch and
smell. Experience each as fully as you can.
3. Love your body. Tell each body part you love
and appreciate it.
4. Keep healthy and fit. Eat right, sleep well and
exercise.
5. Live a life that is pleasing and glorifying to your
maker.
Physical Self
Activity 2
Create a collage ( 1 long bond paper) using your
own picture (minimum of 5 pictures) to show
how you developed from the time you were
born up to the present. For each picture, write a
caption to tell a story about how you developed.
Focus on the physical changes manifested while
you were growing up. Be creative.