SECTION 2

WHAT PHILOSOPHY SAYS ABOUT THE SELF

INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
1.DISCUSS THE DIFFERENT PHILOSOPHICAL STANDPOINTS ABOUT THE SELF
2. EXPLAIN HOW PHILOSOPHICAL STANDPOINTS ABOUT THE SELF
3. SYNTHESIZE AND EVALUATE THE DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVES OF SELF AND
4. ANALYZE THE RELEVANCE OF VARIOUS PHILOSOPHICAL STANDPOINTS TO
YOUR SENSE OF SELF.
DIAGNOSTICS
INSTRUCTIONS: If you think the statement is correct , write agree, otherwise, write disagree.
_______________1. Different philosophers hold the same views about the self
_______________2. Philosophers used empirical and rational lens in explaining the
self
_______________3. Philosophy of the self as explained by modern philosophers is
more relevant than that of ancient philosophers.
_______________4. Philosophical views of the self are a useful guide to having a
better life.
_______________5. Philosophy of the self should only be studied by older
individuals and not by younger generations.
 PHILOSOPHICAL STANDPOINTS
PHILOSOPHER ORIENTATION PHILOSOPHY DESCRIPTION
CLASSICAL ANTIQUITY
SOCRATES IDEALISM SOCRATIC • Knowledge is the
PHILOSOPHY personification of good
while ignorance is that of
evil.
• Self –knowledge is the
ultimate virtue. As the
ultimate virtue, it will lead
to ultimate happiness.
PLATO IDEALISM DUALISM AND • Moral virtue is rooted in
IDEALISM the intellect and leads to
happiness.
• Wisdom and knowledge
lead to virtue which will
lead to happiness.
 PHILOSOPHICAL STANDPOINTS
PHILOSPHER ORIENTATION PHILOSOPHY DESCRIPTION
CLASSICAL ANTIQUITY
ARISTOTLE Empiricist Aristotelian Philosophy • Ideal is found inside the
phenomena and the
universals inside the
particulars.
• Ideals are ESSENCE and
Phenomena is MATTER.
• Matter has no form.
Essence has no mass.
• Matter and essence need
each other.
 PHILOSOPHICAL STANDPOINTS

PHILOSOPHER ORIENTATION PHILOSOPHY DESCRIPTION

MIDDLE AGES
ST. AGUSTINE PLATONISM NEOPLATINISM • All knowledge leads to
God.
• Only the pure in heart
can see God.
• Love of God, faith in
Him, and understanding
of His Gospel will
ultimately lead to
happiness.
 PHILOSOPHICAL STANDPOINTS

PHILOSOPHER ORIENTATION PHILOSOPHY DESCRIPTION

RENAISSANCE
RENE DESCARTES RATIONALIST MIND- BODY DUALISM • “I think , therefore, I
am.”
• The mind and soul can
exist without the body.
• Establishing the
distinction of soul from
the body can make
people believe in the
afterlife and the soul’s
immortality.
 PHILOSOPHER ORIENTATION PHILOSOPHY DESCRIPTION
REANAISSANCE
JOHN LOCKE EMPIRICIST THEORY OF PERSONAL • It is consciousness alone
IDENTITY that identity exists, not in
the body and soul.
• There is a distinction
between man and person.
• The soul may change, but
consciousness remains
intact.

DAVID HUME EMPIRICIST SKEPTICAL • All knowledge passes

PHILOSOPHY through the senses
• Separate ideas can be
joined in the mind
• There is no self, only a
bundle of perceptions
 PHILOSOPHER ORIENTATION PHILOSOPHY DESCRIPTION
IMMANUEL KANT RATIONALIST/ EMPIRICIST METAPHYSICS OF THE • Reason is the final authority
SELF of morality
• There is inner self and outer
self
• The inner self includes
rational reasoning and
psychological state/
• The outer self includes the
body and physical mind,
where representation occurs.

GILBERT RYLE EMPIRICIST THE CONCEPT OF MIND • “I act therefore, I am”.

• The mind is not the seat of
self. It is not a separate,
parallel thing to our physical
body.
• The mind is a category
mistake, brought about by
habitual use. The only way
it can affect the other is
through the external world
PHILOSOPHER ORIENTATION PHILOSOPHY DESCRIPTION
PATRICIA EMPIRICIST NEUROPHILOSOPHY • A fully matured
CHURCHLAND neuroscience will
eliminate the need for
beliefs since “they are
not real.”
• The physical brain gives
us a sense of self.

MAURICE- MERLEAU- EXISTENTIALIST PHENOMENOLOGY OF • Both empiricism and

PONTY EMPIRICIST PERCEPTION intellectualism are
flawed in nature.
• “We are our bodies”
• Our bodily experiences
do not detach the
subject/ objectm mind/
body, rational/ irrational.
 EXERCISE 1.2.1 HOW DO I SEE MYSELF?

 Name:_____________________________________________ Section:________________________
 INSTRUCTION: Read the different statements below and answer the suceeding questions. In answering, take not
of the three discerning points between empiricism and rationalism.
RATIONALISM EMPIRICISM

The primary and most superior source of knowledge
about reality is reason.
Some experience is an unreliable and inadequate route
to knowledge
The fundamental truths about the world can be known a
priori: either innate or self- evident to our minds.
The only source of genuine knowledge about the world
is sense experience.
Reason is an unreliable and inadequate route to
knowledge unless it is grounded in the solid bedrock of
sense experience.
There is no such thing as innate knowledge because
knowledge is derived from experience. The mind before
experience is a tabula rasa, a blank slate
EXERCISE 1.2.1

 1. When you are studying or reviewing lessons, are you more likely to
take the rationalist viewpoint or empiricist viewpoint? Why?
 2. How do you apply empiricism and /or rationalism in studying your
lessons? Be specific and concrete. Try to remember your habits and how
you make sense of the lessons.
 3. Is it possible to make use both philosophical approaches? Why or Why
not?
EXERCISE 1.2.2 HOW DO I SEE MYSELF WITH OTHERS?

 Name;_________________________________________ Section:___________________________

Instructions: Form groups of four. Share your answers to the three questions in Exercise 1.2.1. Integrate your
responses in the space below.
EXERCISE 1.2.2

 1. Based on your answers in the previous questions, your group should be able to come up with one philosophical
statement of your sense of self. Your philosophical statement should encompass the points of view of all the
members.
What is our philosophy of the self?

2. Choose one representative who will present your philosophical statement. Prepare a PowerPoint presentation to
detail your individual philosophical standpoints and your general statement.
ASSIGNMENT 2 METACOGNITIVE READING REPORT

 Name: ______________________________________________ Section:__________________

 INSTRUCTIONS: Read the articles referenced and answer the items that follow.
 1. Chaffee, J. (2013) Who are you? Consciousness, identity and the self. In The philosopher’s way: Thinking
critically about profound ideas (pp. 154-155). Boston, MA : Pearson.
 2. Mahdi, M. (1962). Philosophy of Plato and Aristotle. New York, NY: The Free Press of Glencoe.
 3. Speaks, J. (2006). Ryle’s behaviourist view of the mind. Retrieved from www3.nd.edu/-jspeaks/courses/2006-
7/20208/ryle-behaviourism.html
 1. List down three things that you significantly learned from the readings.
 2. List down three things that are still unclear to you.
 3. List down three questions that you want to ask about the readings.