PHILOSOPHY
The perdurable question, "Who am I?" points to a deeply rooted need within the human
species to understand the basis for the experience of unitary consciousness known as
the Self. Today, the word "Self" has come to refer to a host of intersecting ideas,
questions, concerns, and problems that are central to the human condition and
predicament. At the same time, our fundamental experience of selfhood has inevitably
led to the pursuit of the related but equally enigmatic question of "What is the Self?"
Historically, concepts and theories of what constitutes the Self abound and at times
have been so disparate that the term has assumed radically different meanings across
disciplines.
Philosophers definition of self in philosophical and psychological perspectives:
Socrates stated "The unexamined life is not worth living" he believed that the most
important thing in life is the state of an individual's soul.
Plato and his theory of forms believed that "soul" is indeed the most divinr aspect of
human being.
St. Agustine also adopted the Plato's view that the self is an immaterial and he believed
that human being is both body and soul.
Rene Descartes famous line is "Cogito ergo sum" means "I think therefore I am" he
asserted that the soul is distinct from the body.
John Locke claimed that the human knowledge is derived from experience (tabula
rasa).
David Hume asserted that "self" does not exist, for him the perceptions are only active
for as long as an individual is conscious.
Immanuel Kant believes that self is not in the body and he stressed that the body and its
qualities are rooted to the self.
Sigmund Freud proposed the existence of the unconscious. He practiced
psychoanalysis in answering questions about the human psyche.
Gilbert Ryle stated " I act, therefore Iam" believed that an individual's action define
his/her concept of "self"
Paul Churchland views that the immaterial soul does nor exist because it cannot be
experienced by the senses
Maurice Merlaeu-Ponty is known for his belief on embodied subjectivity.
The aim of the Perspectives on the Self lecture series is to thus provide an objective
overview of the evolving notion, construct, and experience of the Self, without losing
sight of the subjective value that makes these matters so vital to each of us. By enabling
an interdisciplinary discourse among prominent experts in various fields of
contemporary science and the humanities, ranging from evolutionary psychology and
neuroscience to philosophy and religion, this six-part lecture series seeks to analyze
and foster deeper reflection and insight on the current concept and theories of the Self
and their moral, ethical, and social implications.
SOCIOLOGY
Another topic of self from various perspective is sociology. From a classical sociological
perspective, the self is a relatively stable set of perceptions of who we are in relation to
ourselves, others, and to social systems. The self is socially constructed in the sense
that it is shaped through interaction with other people. As with socialization in general,
the individual is not a passive participant in this process and have a powerful influence
over how this process and its consequences develop.
According to Giddens the most patent, major characteristics of modernity are
Industrialism, Capitalism, Institutions of surveillance, and Dynamism.
George Simmel expressed that people create social networks by joining is called social
groups. There are two types of social group, the organic and rational. Organic is highly
influenced by your family while rational occur in modern societies made from different
people.
ANTHROPOLOGY
The study of people past and present. Focuses on understanding human condition in its
cultural aspect. Concerned with understandinghow human evolved and how they differ
from one another.
Dwfinition of self in modern anthropology
Unit but unitary.
Prof. Katherine Ewing described self as encompassing “physical organism,
possessingpsychological functioning and social attributes.”
Aspects of self (Joseph LeDoux)
Implicit – self that you are consciously aware of.
Explicit – self that is not immediately available to the consciousness.
“The self is not static, it is added to and subtracted from genetic maturation,
learning,forgetting, stress, ageing, and disease.”
Self-representation (Culturally shaped “self”)
Ewing (1989) asserted that “self is illusory.” People construct a series of self
-representation that are based on selected on selected cultural concepts of person and
selected ‘chains’ of personal memories.
Catherine Raeff (2010) believed that culture can influence how you view:
relationship,personality traits, achievement, and expressing emotions.
PSYCHOLOGY
-A scientific study of how people behave, think and feel. Everything that concerns the
human beings is a concern of psychology.
-Piaget's three basic cognitive theory are Schemas, Adaption, and Stages of cognitive
development. Cognitive development also had a 4 stages. First is the sensorimotor from
age 0-2years old, Preoperational from 2-7 years old, Concrete Operations from 7-11
years old, and lastly the Formal Operations from 12+ years old.
Harter's self-development concept asserted that the broad developmental changes
observed across early childhood, later childhood, later childhood and adolescence.
William James in known for his masterpiece "The Principles of Psychology". According
to him self has two elements: the I-self and the Me-I-self.
Real self vs. Ideal self: Ideal self is the person that you would like yourself to be; while is
the person you actually are.
Multiple vs Unified selves
William James said "Properly speaking, a man has as many social sleeves as there are
individuals who recognize him and carry an image of him in their head. On the other
hamd, Roy Baumeister said "But the concept of the self loses its meaning if a person
has a multiple selves... The essence of the self involves integration of diverse
experience into a unity".
The Unity of Consciousness
Human experience is always that of unity. Unity of consciousness is a central topic in
modern philosophers. For Immanuel Kant unity of consciousness can be decribed as " I
am conscious not only of single experience but of a great many experience at the same
time.
One self or Many selves
Contempotary psychological studies challenged notion of a single distinct "only one" notion of self.
Several major personality theorists proposed that the mind is made up of several sub sleeves.
Allport's Personality theory
Psychologist Gordon Allport proposed his "personal trait" theory asserting that every
person possesses "traits". According to him trait is your essential characteristics that
never ever changes.
True vs Fals selves
False self is the product of early experience according to Winnicott. It is a defensive
organization formed by the infant because inadequate mothering while True self
flourishes in infancy if the mother is positively responsive to the child's spontaneous
expressions.
THE SELF IN WESTERN AND ORIENTAL/EASTERN THOUGHT
Western Concept of self
Rene Descartes famous "I think, therefore, I am" is the epitome of the Westen idea of
self. Frank Johnson a osychiatrist outlined four categories of self. First is analytical,
monotheistic, individualistic, and materialistic.
Easteen Concept of self
Vedas is the earliest religious writings of the east. Dharma is the principle of cosmic
order. Brahman is a divine universal consciousness. Annata doctrine taught by Buddha
which means no self or no soul. In Confucianism, self terms to be substance, spirit,
body or essence that does not exist. It presented by four beginnings. Jen, Yi, Li and
Chih.
Individualistic vs Collective Self
Collectivism refers to the extent that we value our duty to groups to wich we belong, and
to group harmony while, individualistic self are persons oriented to be independent
instead of having the mentality of identifying with a group. Countries that have
individualistic cultures: USA, Australia, Great Britain, Canada etc.
