UNDERSTANDING THE SELF SOCRATES (470-399 BCE)

LESSON 1: FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF  The mentor of Plato

PHILOSOPHY  Wanted to discover the essential nature
of knowledge, justice, beauty and
APPROXIMATELY 600 BCE goodness (Moore and Bruder, 2002)
 He didn’t write anything, he is not a
 The Birth of Philosophy or the “love for writer
wisdom” in Athens of Ancient Greece o A lot of his thoughts were only
 The Greeks in search for knowledge known through Plato’s writing
(The Dialogues)
came up with answers that are both
cognitive and scientific in nature (Price, SOCRATIC METHOD
2000)
 This is Socrates’ method for
For instance… discovering what is essential in the
world and in people
 In this method, Socrates did not
GREEK PHILOSOPHERS IN MILETUS
lecture, he instead would ask
LETUS
questions and engage the person in a
 They chose to seek natural
discussion
explanations to events and
o He would begin by acting as if
phenomena around them instead of
he did not know anything and
seeking for supernatural explanations
would get the other person to
from the gods that was passed down
clarify their ideas and resolve
through generations
logical inconsistencies (Price,
 These philosophers observed changes
2000)
in the world and wanted to explain
 Using this method, the questioner
these changes by understanding the
should be skilled at detecting
laws of nature
misconceptions and at revealing them
 Their study of change led them to
by asking the right questions
the “idea of permanence” (Price, 2000)
o The goal is to bring the person
closer to the final
“The early philosophers sought to understand understanding
the nature of human beings, problems of
morality and life philosophies” (Price, 2000) “The unexamined life is not worth living”
-Socrates
“The only true wisdom is in knowing you know
nothing” -Socrates VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE

IN THE 5TH CENTURY BCE…  Socrates believed that his mission in life
was to seek the highest knowledge and
 Athenians settle arguments by
convince others who were willing to
discussion and debate seek his knowledge with him
 People skilled in doing this were called
Sophists, the first teachers of the West “Be true to thine own self” -Socrates
  According to Socrates, real Plato’s Forms have the following characteristics:
understanding comes from within the 1. The Forms are ageless and therefore
person eternal
o His Socratic method forces 2. The Forms are unchanging and
people to use their innate therefore permanent
reason by reaching inside 3. The Forms are unmoving and
themselves to their deepest indivisible
nature
PLATO’S DUALISM
The aim of the Socratic Method is to make
people think, seek and ask again and again. THE REALM OF SHADOWS
Some may be angered and frustrated, but what
 Composed of changing, ‘sensible’ things
is important is for them to realize that they do which are lesser entities and therefore
not know everything, that there are things that imperfect and flawed
they are ignorant of, to accept this and to
continue learning and searching for answers THE REALM OF FORMS
(Moore and Bruder, 2002)
 Composed of eternal things which are
“Wise men speak because they have something permanent and perfect. It is the source
of all reality and true knowledge.
to say; fools because they have to say
something” -Plato VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE

PLATO (428-348 BCE)  He believed that knowledge lies within

the person’s soul
 His real name is Aristocles
o He was nicknamed “Plato”  He considered human beings as
because of his physical built microcosms of the universal
which means wide/broad macrocosms i.e. everything in the
 Left Athens for 12 years after the death universe can also be found on
of Socrates people – earth, air, fire, water, mind
o When he returned he and spirit (Price, 2000)
established a school known as
SOUL
“The Academy”
Plato described the soul as having three
THEORY OF FORMS components:
1. The Reason is rational and is the
 Plato’s Metaphysics (philosophical motivation for goodness and truth
study on the causes and nature of 2. The Spirited is non-rational and is the
things) will or the drive toward action
 Plato explained that Forms refers to 3. The Appetites are irrational and lean
what are real towards the desire for pleasures of the
o They are not objects body
encountered with the senses
Plato believed that people are intrinsically
but can only be grasped
good. Sometimes however, judgements are
intellectually
made in ignorance and Plato equates ignorance
with evil. (Price, 2000)
THEORY OF LOVE AND BECOMING Greek Philosophers Christian Philosophers
Sees man as basically Sees man as sinners
ALLEGORY OF THE CAVE good and becomes who reject/go against
 What people see are only shadows of evil through ignorance a loving God’s
reality which they believe are real of what is good commands
things and represents knowledge
o What these people fail to ST. AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO (354 – 436 CE)
realize is that the shadows are
not real for according to Plato,  Hippo, Africa
“only the Forms are real”  Became a priest and bishop of Hippo
 Initially rejected Christianity for it
“For love is the desire of the whole, and the seemed to him then that Christianity
pursuit of the whole called love.” -Plato could not provide him answers to
questions that interested him
PLATO’S LOVE
VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE
 Plato’s love begins with a feeling or
experience that there is something 1. GOD as the source of all reality and
truth.
lacking
o This then drives the person to
 Through a mystical experience, a man is
seek for that which is lacking capable of knowing the eternal truths
o Thoughts and efforts are then o This is possible through the
directed towards the pursuit of existence of one eternal truth
which is lacking which is God
o God is within man and
“The deeper the thought, the stronger is the transcends him
love” -Plato 2. The sinfulness of man

Love is a process of seeking higher stages of  The cause of sin or evil is an act of
being, man’s freewill
 MORAL GOODNESS CAN BE ONLY
The GREATER the love, the MORE intellectual ACHIEVED THROUGH THE GRACE OF
component it will contain GOD

Lifelong longing and pursuit seek even higher “God loves each of us as if they were only one of
stages of love which lead to the possession of us” -St. Augustine
absolute beauty (Moore and Bruder, 2002)
THE ROLE OF LOVE
Christian Philosophers…
 Their concern was with God and man’s For God is love and he created humans for them
relationship with God to also love”
 These Christian philosophers did not
believe that self-knowledge and  Disordered love results when man
happiness were the ultimate goals of loves the wrong things which he
man believes will give him happiness
St. Augustine explains… “What worries you, masters you.” -John Locke
1. Love of physical objects leads to sin of
greed JOHN LOCKE (1632-1704)
2. Love for other people is not lasting and
excessive love for them is the sin of  Born in Wrington, England
jealousy  Interested in politics; Defender of the
3. Love for the self leads to the sin of parliamentary system
people  At 57 years old, He published a book
4. Love for God is the supreme virtue and which played a significant role in the era
only through loving God can man find of Enlightenment (Price, 2000)
real happiness
Locke contended that ideas are not innate but
“Cogito Ergo Sum.” -Rene Descartes rather the mind at birth is a “TABULA
RASA” (i.e. Blank Slate)
RENE DESCARTES (1596-1650)
“No man’s knowledge here can go beyond his
 Father of Modern Philosophy experience.” -John Locke
 One of the Rationalist Philosophers of
Europe VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE
 Cartesian Method and Analytic
Geometry Moral good depends on the conformity of a
person’s behavior towards some law
DESCARTES’ SYSTEM
There a 3 laws according to Locke:
Through math, he discovered that the human
1. LAW OF OPINION – where actions that
mind has TWO POWERS:
are praiseworthy are called VIRTUES
1. INTUITION or the ability to apprehend and those are not are VICES
direction of certain truths
2. CIVIL LAW – where right actions are
2. DEDUCTION or the power to discover enforced by people in authority
what is not known by progressing in an
3. DIVINE LAW – set by God on the actions
orderly way from what is already
of man
known
“A wise man proportions his belief to the
VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE
evidence.” -David Hume
Descartes deduced that a thinker is a thing that DAVID HUME (1711-1776)
doubts, understands, affirms, denies, wills,
refuses and also imagines and feels (Price,  Born in Edinburgh, Scotland
2000)  At the time he was enrolled at the
University of Edinburgh, he lost his faith
“I think therefore I am.” -Rene Descartes  He relied on the scientific method,
believing that it could analyze human
THE MIND-BODY PROBLEM nature and explain the workings of the
mind
The body, according to Descartes, is like a
machine that is controlled by the will and aided
by the mind.
THE HUMAN MIND In the matter of God, Kant stated that the
Kingdom of God is within man
According to Hume, there are two types of
perceptions: God is manifested in people’s lives therefore it
 IMPRESSIONS immediate sensations of is man’s duty to move towards perfection
external reality
 IDEAS recollections of the impressions “The mind is like an iceberg: it floats with one
seventh of its bulk above water.” -Sigmund
In examining the patterns of thinking, Freud

Hume formulated three principles on how ideas SIGMUND FREUD (1856-1939)

relate to one another:
 Austrian Neurologists
 THE PRINCIPLE OF RESEMBLANCE  His psychodynamic theory has
characteristics of philosophical thought
 THE PRINCIPLE OF CONTIGUITY
 Freud made use of methods like free
 THE PRINCIPLE OF CAUSE AND EFFECT association and dream analysis for his
clinical practice
“I have no knowledge of myself as I am, but
merely as I appear to myself.” -Immanuel Kant THE STRUCTURES OF THE MIND

IMMANUEL KANT (1724 - 1804) In Freud’s illustration, he made use of the

typical iceberg to show how the mind works
 Lived in the town of Konisberg in East based on his theorizing
Prussia (presently Western Russia)
 Founder of German Idealism The three levels of the mind are structured by
 Wrote three books: Critique of Pure the following components:
Reason, Critique of Practical reason and
Critique of Judgment ID – based on the pleasure principle
EGO – based on the reality principle
SUPER EGO – primarily dependent on learning
VIEWS OF THE MIND the difference between right or wrong

Kant argued that the mind is not just a passive Freud in his 1920 book, Beyond the Pleasure
receiver of sense experience but rather actively Principle, he presented 2 kinds of instincts that
participates in knowing the objects it drive individual behavior:
experiences
EROS – Life Instinct; the energy is called LIBIDO
VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE AND THE SELF and urges necessary for individual and species
survival like thirst, hunger and sex
“When the self sees an object, it tends to
remember its characteristics and applies on it, THANATOS – Death Instinct; behavior that is
the forms of time and space” directed towards destruction in the form of
aggression and violence
The term he used for this experience of the self
and its unity with objects is TRANSCENDENTAL
APPERCEPTION
VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE Patricia coined the term NEUROPHILOSOPHY,
who together with Paul was dissatisfied with
“Man’s behavior by his pleasure seeking life the particular approach of philosophers and
instinct and his destructive instinct is said to be instead sought to guide scientific theorizing
born with his ego already in conflict” with philosophy and guide philosophy with
scientific inquiry
Man then lives his life balancing the forces of
life and death – making mere existence a The philosophy of neuroscience is the study of
challenge the philosophy of the mind, the philosophy of
science, neuroscience and psychology.
“Man need not be degraded to a machine by Aims to explore the relevance of the
being denied to be a ghost in a machine.” neuroscientific studies to the philosophy of the
-Gilbert Ryle mind

GILBERT RYLE (1900-1976) “There isn’t a thing called the mind. The mind is
just the brain.” -Patricia Churchland
 English Philosopher
 Contradicted Cartesian Dualism Patricia claims that the man’s brain is
 Stated that many of the philosophical responsible for the identity known as ‘the self’
problems were caused by the wrong use The biochemical properties of the brain
of language according to this philosophy is really
responsible for man’s thoughts, feelings and
VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE AND KNOWLEDGE behavior

Ryle touched two types of knowledge: VIEW OF THE HUMAN NATURE

 KNOWING-THAT “Man is endowed with more than just physical

Refers to knowing facts/ information or neurological characteristics. Despite research
 KNOWING-HOW findings, neurophilosophy states that the self is
Using facts in the performance of some real, that it is the tool that helps the person
skill or technical abilities tune-in to the realities of the brain and the
extant reality”
“A person may acquire a great bulk of
knowledge but without the ability to use it to “We know not through our intellect but through
solve some practical problems to make his life our experience.” - Maurice Merleau-Ponty
easier, this bulk of knowledge is deemed to be
worthless” -Gilbert Ryle MAURICE MARLEAU-PONTY (1908-1961)

“To understand the mind, we must understand  French Phenomenological Philosopher

the brain.” -Patricia & Paul Churchland  ‘Philosopher of the Body’
 Center of his philosophy is the emphasis
PATRICIA & PAUL CHURCHLAND placed on the human body as the
primary site of knowing the world
Patricia Churchland
 Born on July 16, 1943
Paul Churchland
 Born on October 21, 1942
VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE MEAD’S SOCIAL SELF

 According to Merleau-Ponty, The  Social Behaviorism – the approach

world and the sense of self are Mead used to describe the power of
emergent phenomena in the ongoing environment in shaping human
process of man’s ‘becoming’ behavior. At the center of his theorizing
 In addition he stated that perception is is the concept of self.
not purely the result of sensations nor  He described the self as “dimension of
is it purely interpretation. Rather, personality that is made up of the
consciousness is a process that individual’s self-awareness and self-
includes sensing as well as image” (Macionis, 2012)
interpreting/reasoning  According to Mead, the self cannot be
separated from the society.
LESSON 2: FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF  He explained through a set of stages
SOCIOLOGY which the person undergoes in the
course of his development.
 Sociology is one of the disciplines in the
social sciences which aims to discover THE PREPARATORY STAGE
the ways by which the social
surrounding/environment influences Mead believed that a self did not exist at birth
people’s thoughts, feelings, and but develops over time. It depends on social
behavior. interaction and social experience.
 The discussions and observations of the
sociologists represented a progression At this stage…
on how the self has developed through  Children’s behavior are primarily based
the process of socialization to how the on Imitation. They become familiar with
person manages self-presentation in symbols (verbal and non-verbal) as they
order for him to be accepted by others. interact and these symbols are the bases
of Communication
GEORGE HERBERT MEAD  Knowing and Understanding the symbols
are important to constitute their way of
 Born on February 27,1863 in communicating with others throughout
Massachusetts, USA their lives (Schaefer, 2012)
 Graduated and taught Grade School at
Oberlin College THE PLAY STAGE
 Enrolled in Harvard University in 1887
where his interests were Philosophy This stage is where the child widens his
and Psychology perspective and realizes that he is not alone and
 He wrote and published articles and there are others around him which he has to
book reviews but did not publish his consider.
own book.
 His students put together number of his At this stage…
 Knowing and Understanding the symbols
articles and edited them for publication.
of communication to constitute basis for
 He died in 1931 due to Heart Failure
socialization to form social relationship.
 Role-taking is the process of assuming
the perspective of another person to see
how this person might behave or
 respond in a given situation (Schaefer, THE “I” AND “ME”
2012)
 Mead explained that the person’s
THE GAME STAGE capacity to see the self through others
implies that the self has 2 parts:
The child now has the ability to respond not just  I Self – when the person initiates, the
to one but several members of his social self functions as subject. This subjective
environment element of the self is the I.
 Me Self – when the person takes the
At this stage… role of the other, the self function as
 Begins to consider several tasks and object. The objective element of the self
various types of relationships is the Me.
simultaneously.
 Generalized other was used to explain OTHER SOCIOLOGICAL APPROACHES TO
the behavior when a person considers UNDERSTANDING THE SELF
other people in the course of his action.
Through this, the person realizes the CHARLES HORTON COOLEY (1864-1929)
cultural norms, beliefs, & values
incorporated to each self. With this, it  American sociologist who made use the
forms the basis of self-evaluation Sociopsychological approach to
understand how societies work.
STAGES OF SELF FORMATION (GEORGE MEAD)  Earned his Doctorate at the University
of Michigan and taught as a Sociology
STAGE OF EXISTENCE CHARACTERISTICS Professor until the end of his life.
SELF OF SELF  He discussed the formation of the self
Preparatory None Imitates another through interaction in his written work,
Stage Human Nature and the Social Order
Play Stage Developing Role-Taking (1902)
Game Stage Present Generalized other  Looking-glass self – the self that is a
product of social interaction. Seeing
MEAD’S THEORY OF THE SELF oneself is based on contemplating one’s
personal qualities and the view of the
 Theory of the Self: The self is not present self is also influenced by the impression
at birth but begins as a central character of other people.
in a child’s world.  Cooley believed that developing a self
 Children sees themselves as “universe” has 3 phases: (Schaefer, 2012)
and is having difficulty understanding o People imagine how they present
people around them. themselves to others
 As they grow and mature, they begin to Ex: You dress-up elegantly at the prom
see other people and is concerned about o People imagine how others evaluate
their reactions. them
 His family plays a major role in the Ex: Others will see you as pretty by the way you
formation of the self. They are the fix yourself
Significant others – strongly influence o People develop some sort of feeling
his development. (Schaefer, 2012) about themselves as a result of those
impressions.
Ex: You may see yourself as confident.
 I am not what I think I am human. The field looks into man’s
I am not what YOU think I am physical/biological characteristics, social
I am what I think YOU think I am. relationships, and the influence of his
culture from the dawn of civilization up
It is noticed that Cooley used the word Imagine. to the present.
This may mean that there is a possibility that  Everything in anthropology is
people develop self-identities based on the interconnected and a complete
wrong perception of how others see them. understanding is necessary to achieve
Wrong perceptions, however, can still change better understanding of oneself.
based on positive social experiences  Anthropology makes the person aware
that what he is maybe determined by his
ERVING GOFFMAN (1922-1982) past, and present condition, his
biological characteristics, the way he
 Canadian-American sociologist know for communicates, the language that he
his role in the development of Modern uses and the manner in which he
American Sociology. chooses to live his life.
 The Presentation of the Self in Everyday  There are 4 subfields of Anthropology
Life – people early in their social that suggests that human beings are
interactions learned to slant their similar and very different at the same
presentation of themselves in order to time:
create preferred appearances and
satisfy particular people or altering how o ARCHAELOGY
the person presents himself to others
which he called Impression  Archeologist is a scientist who studies
Management. artifacts in order to discover how people
 He sees similarities of real social lived their lives. As a result,
interaction to a theatrical presentation. archaeologists have discovered humans
This is the reason for the label adapted to changes in their environment
dramaturgical approach to his view. in order for them to survive.
 He used the phrase face-work to  They believe that homo sapiens did not
describe another aspect of the self. This become extinct because of their ability
was observed in situations where face- to think, use tools, and learn from
saving measures are resorted to in the experience.
maintenance of a proper image of self in  These discoveries made people realize
frustrating or embarrassing situations that the most important aspect of
(Schaefer, 2012) human life is survival. Human Behavior
according to School of Functionalism,
“Choose your self-presentations carefully, for continues to adapt, in order to survive.
what starts out as a mask may become your  Men are similar, but the manner they
face” - Erving Goffman use to survive differs. This is the
dilemma that archaeology continuously
LESSON 3: THE SELF FROM THE PERSPECTIVE searching for answers.
OF ANTHROPOLOGY
o BIOLOGICAL ANTHROPOLOGY
 Anthropology is a field of the social
sciences that focuses on the study of  Biological Anthropologists Focus
man. Not just on one aspect of man, but primarily on how the human body
the totality of what it means to be adapts to the different earth
 environments. They look at the probable  Cultural Anthropologists focus in
cause of diseases, mutation and death. knowing what makes one group’s
They are interested in explaining how manner of living particularly to that
biological characteristics of human group and forms an essential part of the
beings affect how they lived their lives. member’s personal and social identity.
 They study people in different places  Cultural diversities are manifested in
and discovered that while human beings different ways and at different levels of
vary in their biological make-up and depth. Symbols are considered the most
behavior, there are a lot more superficial level of culture and values
similarities among them than there are belong to the deepest level or are
difference considered as the core of culture.
 Biological characteristics of humans  Ways in which culture may manifest
beings share may earn for them itself in people:
complete dominion over all earth
creatures and at the same time be the o Symbols – words, gestures,
cause of their extinction. symbols, that have recognized
meaning in a particular culture.
o LINGUISTIC ANTHROPOLOGY Ex: Rings that signify
commitment
 Human survival is primarily linked to
their ability to communicate and an o Heroes-person from the past or
essential part of human communication present who have
is language. characteristics that are
 Language – identifies group of people; important in a culture. They may
words, sounds, symbols, writings and be real or fictitious and are
signs that are used are reflections of a models of behavior.
group’s culture. Ex: Real – Jose Rizal; Fictitious –
 Linguistic Anthropologists used language Darna
to discover a group’s manner of social
o Rituals – activities, may be
interaction, to create and share
religious or social, participated
meanings to form ideas, concepts, and
in by a group of people for the
to promote social change, and how
fulfillment of desired objectives
language change over time.
and are considered to be socially
 Language is reflective of the time and
essential.
mode of thinking of the people using it.
Ex: Baptism, Wedding
As societies change and technologies
develop, so do the symbols and meaning o Values – are unconscious, and
people use through language as their can neither be discussed nor be
way of communicating. directly observed but can only
be inferred from the way people
o CULTURAL ANTHROPOLOGY act and react to circumstances
and situations.
 Culture – group of people’s way of life. Ex: Kissing of the hand of elders
Including their behavior, beliefs, values,
and symbols that they accept, socially
transmitted through communication and
imitation from generation to generation.
THEORY OF CULTURAL DETERMINISM THE ‘ME’ AND THE ‘I’

 Where culture has a strong impact on 1. All human thoughts are owned by some
how individual view of himself. personal self.
 According to this theory, human nature 2. All thoughts are constantly changing or
is determined by the ideas, meanings, are never static.
beliefs, and values learned as member 3. There is a continuity of thoughts as its
of a society. focus shifts from one object to another.
 Who or what a person is maybe 4. Thoughts deal with objects that are
determined by the kind of culture he is different from and independent of
born into and grew up in. consciousness itself.
 Having different cultures, Cultural 5. Consciousness can focus on a particular
Anthropologists suggests that there is object and not others.
no universal or right way of being
human. The right way is always based THE ‘ME’ SELF
on culture. Since cultures vary, there is
no one way of understanding human  A separate object or individual that
nature. the person to when discussing or
 This theory has positive and negative describing their personal experiences.
implications
POSITIVE NEGATIVE Examples:
Human beings can be People have no 1. The gifts were sent to ME.
shaped to have the control over what they 2. The person is smiling at ME.
kind of life they prefer. learn. They blindly
There is no limit accept the learning  James called the ‘ME’ self as
placed on the human their cultures expose the empirical ME.
ability to be or to do them to. They are  Divided into three components: the
do whatever they set seen as helpless and material self, the social self, and
their minds and hearts do only what their the spiritual self.
into. culture instructs them
to do. 1. THE MATERIAL SELF

LESSON 4: THE SELF FROM THE PERSPECTIVE  Consists of the things or objects that
OF PSYCHOLOGY belong to the person or entities that a
person belongs to.
WILLIAM JONES (1842-1910) (e.g. The person’s body, his family, clothes, his
money)
 American Philosopher and Psychologist
 Professor of Psychology and Philosophy 2. THE SOCIAL SELF
at Harvard University
 One of the great pragmatists  Refers to the person is in a particular
 “Theory of the Self” social situation
 Wrote a book entitled “The Principles of  Changes in behavior usually result from
Psychology” the different social situations the person
finds himself in.
3. THE SPIRITUAL SELF REAL AND IDEAL SELF-CONCEPTS

 Refers to the self that is more concrete CARL ROGERS (1902-1972)

or permanent when compared to the
material and social selves.  Proposed a personality theory known as
 The most subjective and intimate part the ‘Person-Centered Theory’
of the self.  Self-concept – used to refer how
 Always engaging in the process of a person thinks about or perceives
introspection (self-observation). himself.

THE ‘I’ SELF Two types of self-concept:

 Pure Ego = person’s soul or mind 1. The real-self concept

 Comprises the totality of the person’s - Refers to all information and perception
identity the person has about himself.
- ‘Who am I?’
OTHER SELVES IN PSYCHOLOGY
2. The ideal-self concept
GLOBAL AND DIFFERENTIATED SELF MODELS - Refers to what the person aims for
himself to be
 THE GLOBAL SELF - Who do I want to be?
 Represents the overall value that a
person places upon himself. CONGRUENCE = HAPPY AND SATISFIED
 The group of people that you interact
with everyday strongly influences you. THE SELF-DISCREPANCY THEORY
 The global self is the product of all
experiences that he had in the society  By Edward Tory Higgins (1987)
which accounts for the kind of person  Self-guides - internalized standards to
he presently is. which people use to compare themselves

 THE DIFFERENTIATED SELF When the self is found to be deviating

 Murray Bowen (1913-1990) from these guides, the result is self-discrepancy
o came up with the concept of a that causes emotional discomfort.
differentiated self
o observed that there are two MULTIPLE AND UNIFIED SELVES
forces affecting the person:
togetherness and individuality  Multiple Selves Theory - suggests that
= BALANCE there exists in the individual different
 affected by the presence of others and aspects of the self
has the ability to separate feelings and  A unified being is essentially connected
thoughts to consciousness, awareness, and
 Enables the person to develop and agency.
sustain his unique identity, make his
own choices, and accept responsibility A psychologically healthy individual is a person
for his behavior and still be able to stay who is able to make sense of the sometimes
emotionally connected with his family confusing and conflicting aspects of themselves
and friends.
TRUE AND FALSE SELVES 1. INTENTIONALITY
- D.W. WINNICOTT (1896-1971) - Actions performed by the person with
full awareness of his behavior.
THE TRUE SELF THE FALSE SELF Example: Kenneth went online to apply
 Creative  Lacks for a passport because he wants to
 Spontaneously spontaneity travel outside his country.
experiencing  Dead and empty
each day of their  The mask that 2. FORETHOUGHT
lives hides the true - Person’s anticipation of likely outcomes
 Appreciate person for fear of his behavior.
being alive of pain of Example: Kenneth chose an interview
 High level of rejection and date for his passport application where
awareness in failure most likely he will be on-leave.
the person of  At times, enable
who he is the person to 3. SELF-REACTIVENESS
 Recognizes his form superficial - Process in which the person is
strengths but motivated and regulates his behavior as
 Accepts his productive he observes his progress in achieving
limitations social his goals.
 Enjoys winning relationships Example: Kenneth saves a larger portion
and success of his salary in the bank so he can have
 Learns from enough cash to travel to Japan.
mistakes
4. SELF REFLECTIVENESS
True and false selves are present in all - The person looking inward and
individuals. They should be functional for the evaluating his motivations, values, life
advantage of both the person himself and his goals, and other people’s effect on him.
society. Example: Kenneth believes that he has
to enjoy and experience life a little
THE SELF AS PROACTIVE AND AGENTIC while still able and capable.
(SELF-EFFICIENCY)
-ALBERT BANDURA (1925-PRESENT)
SELF-REGULATION
 The Social Cognitive Theory - A person reactively attempts to
o Man seen as proactive and minimize the discrepancies between
agentic has the capacity to what he has already accomplished and
exercise control over his life. what he still wants to achieve.
o learning through observation
o suggested that human beings
are proactive, self regulating,
self-reflective, and self
organizing
o The human agency is the
essence of being human
 LESSON 5: THE SELF IN WESTERN AND - The person/self in Descartes view exists
EASTERN THOUGHT regardless of his environment
- Kant, on the other hand believed that
INDIVIDUALISTIC SELF the self is capable of own actions that
- He sees himself as being capable of his entitles it to have rights as an
own life, doing the things that he would autonomous agent.
love to do, making his own mistakes - The West introduced ecological self
and learning from his own experience. which sees the self as a process that is
- He wants to achieve something that he undergoing development.
defines him and inspire others that
being in the world meant making it THESELF IN CONFUCIAN THOUGHT
better not only for himself but also for
others. Thus, his legacy CONFUCIUS
- There are many cultures particularly in - King Zhongni of China
the West that encourages individualism. - Born in the period of Zhou dynasty in
- Individual freedom and the ability to 551 BCE in the small state of Lu
stand on his own is expected. - Came to be known as ‘Master Kong and
as ‘ Great Sage and Teacher’
COLLECTIVE SELF - His philosophy came to be known as
- The family and the society control how humanistic social philosophy.
the group member should think, act
and generally conduct themselves in REN
society - Guides human actions and to go against
- Observed that strong bonds of unity are the ren means abandoning what is truly
formed and developed human
- All decisions are made group decisions - It makes life worth living
- Group members depend on each other,
individual thinking and decision making LI (PROPRIETY)
are frowned upon - In order to guide human actions, rules
- Fosters nationalistic attitude as long as of propriety should be followed
this is what the group believes - These are the customs, ceremonies and
- Individual freedom is sacrificed for the traditions that form the basis of li
benefit of the group. - “to m aster oneself and return to
- Establish strong bonds particularly with propriety is humanity
their families. - conforms to the norms of humanity
- Bound by the customs, beliefs, and - Self-Mastery includes self-development
traditions of the group and characterized by self-control

THE SELF IN WESTERN THOUGHT XIAO (FILIALITY)

- The self, plays a central role in almost - The virtue of reference and respect for
all perspectives of intellectual inquiry family
- The self has been an area of interest by
the French and English philosophers YI (RIGHTNESS)
and an entity whose proof of existence - The right way of behaving
is most challenging as is ascertained in
the early Greek philosophies of Socrates
and Plato.