Intro To Philo 11 - Module

NOTRE DAME OF NEW ILOILO, INC.
A Diocesan School
NEW ILOILO, TANTANGAN, SOUTH COTABATO
Tel. No. (083) 229 – 1113
Email Address: notredamenewiloilo@gmail.com
SUBJECT: INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY GRADE LEVEL:

ELEVEN
OF HUMAN PERSON
QUARTER: TWO WEEK: THREE (November 9-27, 2020)
I. OBJECTIVES: At the end of the lesson, students are expected to:

1. To realize the consequences of one’s actions;
2. To show situations that demonstrates freedom of choice;
3. To evaluate and exercise prudence in one’s choices;
4. To understand intersubjectivity;
5. To appreciate the talents of persons with disabilities and those
from underprivileged sectors;
6. To perform activities demonstrating the talents of person with
disabilities and those from the underprivileged sectors of
society.
II. PRE-ASSESSMENT
A – Concept mapping: Write your concepts about freedom.
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III. CONTENT/ DISCUSSION/ INFORMATION

Module 5 – FREEDOM OF THE HUMAN PERSON
This lesson highlights freedom from the intellectual, political, spiritual, and
economic aspects. To be free is a part of humanity’s authenticity. In one way,
understanding freedom is part of our transcendence. Freedom consists of going
beyond situations such as physical or economic. For instance, students can be
young and poor, but they can still pursue their dreams of becoming a doctor,
teacher, or a stage actor. As discussed in the lesson, critical thinking is an
important tool toward freedom and truth.
5.1. Realize that “All Actions Have Consequences”

A. Aristotle
THE POWER OF VOLITION
The imperative quality of a judgment of practical intellect is meaningless, apart
from will. Reason can legislate, but only through will can its legislation be
translated into action. The task of practical intellect is to guide will by enlightening
it. Will, in fact, is to be understood wholly in terms of intellect. If there were no
intellect, there would be no will. This is obvious from the way in which will
is rationally denominated.
The will of humanity is an instrument of free choice. It is within the power of

everyone to be good or bad, worthy or worthless. This is borne out:
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(1) By our inner awareness of an aptitude to do right or wrong;
(2) By the common testimony of all human beings;
(3) By the rewards and punishment of rulers;
(4) By the general employment of praise and blame.
Moral acts, which are always particular acts, are in our power and we are
responsible for them. Character or habit is no excuse for immoral conduct.
Attending class is a student’s responsibility. Should the student cut class, then
he/she is responsible for the consequences of his actions. As a result, he/she must
be held responsible for any accident or failure in grades that will befall on him/her.
The student may regret what he/she had done, but all the regrets in the world will
not call it back. The point is, the student should not have cut class in the first
instance. When the matter is sifted down, the happiness of every human being’s
soul is in his own hands, to preserve and develop, or to cast away.
Figure 5.1. Aristotle: Intellectual Freedom

For Aristotle, a human being is rational. Reason is a divine characteristic. Humans
have the spark of the divine. If there were no intellect, there would be no will.
Reason can legislate, but only through will can its legislation be turned into action.
Our will is an instrument of free choice. As shown in Figure 5.1, reason, will, and
action drives each other.
B. St. Thomas Aquinas

Love is freedom
Of all creatures of God, human beings have the unique power to change themselves
and the things around them for the better. St. Thomas Aquinas considers the human
being as a moral agent. As discussed in Chapter Three, we are both the spiritual
and body elements; the spiritual and material. The unity between both elements
indeed helps us to understand our complexity as human beings. Our spirituality
separates us from animals; it delineates moral dimension of our fulfillment in an
action. Through our spirituality, we have a conscience. Whether we choose
to be “good” or “evil” becomes our responsibility.
A human being, therefore, has a supernatural, transcendental destiny. This means

that he can rise above his ordinary being or self to a highest being or self. This is in
line with the idea of St. Thomas that in the plan of God, a human being has to
develop and perfect himself by doing his daily tasks. Hence, if a human being
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perseveringly lives a righteous and virtuous life, he transcends his mortal state of
life and soars, to an immortal state of life.
The power of change, however, cannot be done by human beings alone, but is achi
evedwith cooperation with God. Between humanity and God, there is an infinite
gap, which God alone can bridge through His power. Perfection by participation
here means that it is a union of humanity with God. Change should promote not
just any purely private advantage, but the good of the community.
Aquinas gives a fourfold classification of law: the eternal law, natural law, human
law, and divine law. Human beings, as being rational, have laws that should not
only be obeyed but also obeyed voluntarily and with understanding (for instance,
in following the traffic rules). The natural law, then, in its ethical sense, applies
only to human beings. The first principle and precept of the natural law is that good
is to be sought after and evil avoided (This is the instruct of self-preservation.)
There is inherent in every human being an inclination that he shares with all other
beings, namely the desire to conserve human life and forbids the contrary. For
instance, if there is fire, and its burning heat is felt, then, it is but a human tendency
to avoid it.
Since the law looks to the common good as its end, it is then conceived primarily
with external acts and not with interior disposition. For example, if someone does
not lie to his parents so they will increase his allowance, then the reason of his
goodness stems not because he does not want to lie because it will hurt them but
because he knows that there is a reward for being so. Same goes with government
officials, who use full media coverage when they help their constituents, so that
people would vote for them. A person thus should not be judged through his
actions alone but also through his sincerity behind his acts.
For Aquinas, both natural and human laws are concerned with ends determined
simply by humanity’s nature. However, since a human being is in fact ordained
to an end transcending his nature, it is necessary that he has a law ordering him to
that end, and this is the divine law, or revelation.
It also gives human beings the certitude where human reason unaided could arrive
only at possibilities. It deals with interior disposition as well as external acts and it
ensures the final punishment of all evildoings. Neither of which is possible for
human law. This divine law is divided into old (Mosaic) and the new (Christian)
that are related as the immature and imperfect to the perfect and complete. We
have, however, now passed beyond philosophy, since this rests on reason and
experience alone; the analysis of the divine law is the function of theology.
Eternal law is the decree of God that governs all creation. It is “That Law which is
the Supreme Reason cannot be understood to be otherwise than unchangeable and
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eternal.” Natural law is the human “participation” in the eternal law and is
discovered by reason. Natural law is based on “first principles.” As discussed in
the previous lessons, the principle of sufficient reason states that nothing exists
without a sufficient reason for its being and existence.
For Aristotle, the purpose of a human being is to be happy. To be one, one has to
live a virtuous life. In other words, human beings have to develop to the full their
powers – rational, moral, social, emotional, and physical here on earth. For St.
Thomas, he follows the same line of thinking, but points to a higher form of
happiness possible to humanity beyond this life, and that is perfect happiness that
everyone seeks but could be found only in God alone. St. Thomas wisely and aptly
chose and proposed Love rather than Law to bring about the transformation of humanity.
For Love is in consonance with humanity’s free nature, for Law commands and
complete: Love only calls and invites. Thomas emphasizes the freedom of
humanity but chooses love in governing humanity’s life. Since God is Love, then
Love is the guiding principle of humanity toward his self-perception and happiness
– his ultimate destiny.
C. St. Thomas Aquinas: Spiritual Freedom
Figure 5.2. Spiritual Freedom

St. Thomas Aquinas establishes the existence of God as a first cause. Of all God’s
creations, human beings have the unique power to change themselves and things
around them for the better. As humans, we are both material and spiritual. We have
a conscience because of our spirituality. God is Love and Love is our destiny.
D. Jean Paul Sartre: Individual Freedom

Sartre’s philosophy is considered to be a representative of existentialism
(Falikowski, 2004). For Sartre, the human person is the desire to be God: the desire
to exist as a being which has its sufficient ground in itself (en sui causa). There are
no guideposts along the road of life. The human person builds the road to the
destiny of his/her choosing; he/she is the creator(Srathern, 1998). Sartre’s
existentialism stems from this principle: existence precedes essence.
 The person, first of all exists, encounters himself, surges up in the world and
defines himself afterwards. The person is nothing else but that what he
makes of himself.
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 The person is provided with a supreme opportunity to give meaning to one’s
life. In the course of giving meaning to one’s life, one fills the world with
meaning.
 Freedom is therefore the very core and the door to authentic existence.
Authentic existence is realized only in deeds that are committed alone, in
absolute freedom and responsibility and which therefore the character of true
creation.
 The person is what one has done and is doing, not what he/she dreams,
hopes and expects.
 On the other hand, the human person who tries
to escape obligations and strives to be en-soi , (i.e., excuses such as “I was born
this way” or “I grew up in a bad environment”) is acting on bad faith ( mauvais
foi ).
E. Thomas Hobbes
Theory of Social Contract
A Law of Nature (lex naturalis) is a precept, or general rule, found out by reason, by
which a person is forbidden to do that which is destructive of his life, or takes
away the means of preserving the same; and to omit that by which he thinks it may
be best preserved.
Given our desire to get out of the state of nature, and thereby preserve our lives,
Hobbes concludes that we should seek peace. This becomes his first law of nature.
The reasonableness of seeking peace, indicated by the first law,
immediately suggests a second law of nature, which is that we mutually divest
ourselves of certain rights (such as the right to take another person’s life) so as to
achieve peace. That a person be willing, when others so too (this is necessary for
peace-building), to lay down this right to all things; and be contented with so much
liberty against other people, as he would allow other people against himself
(Garvey 2006).
The mutual transferring of these rights is called a contract and is the basis of

the notion of moral obligation and duty. For example, one agrees to give up his
right to slap you, if you give up your right to slap him. You have then transferred
these rights to each other and there by become obligated not to hurt each other.
From these selfish reasons alone, you are both motivated to mutually transfer these
and other rights, since this will end the dreaded state of war. Hobbes continues by
discussing the validity of certain contracts. However, one cannot contract to give
up his right to self-defense or self-preservation since it is his sole motive for
entering any contract.
The rational pursuit of self-preservation is what leads humanity to form

commonwealths or states; the laws of nature give the conditions for the
establishment of society and government. They are the rules a reasonable being
would observe in pursuing his own advantage, if he were conscious of humanity’s
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predicament in a condition in which impulse and passion alone rule and if he
himself were not governed simply by momentary impulse and by prejudice arising
from passion. The State itself is the resultant of the interplay of forces; and the
human reason, displayed in the conduct expressed by these rules, is one of the
determining forces. The laws of nature can be said to represent axioms and
postulates that render this deduction possible. They answer the question: What are
the conditions under which the transition from the natural state of war to the state
of human beings living in organized societies becomes intelligible? These systems
are rooted from human nature and are not God-given laws. Nor do they state
absolute values for, according to Hobbes, there are no absolute values
(Sorell, 1996).
In Leviathan, Hobbes asserts:

“The fundamental law of nature seeks peace and follows it, while at the same time,
by the sum of natural right, we should defend ourselves by all means that we can.
It follows from this that there are “some rights that no human being can be
understood by words, or other signs, to have abandoned or transferred.” Contracts
made in the state of nature are not generally binding, for, if one fears that you will
violate your part of the bargain, then no true agreement can be reached. No
contracts can be made with animals since animals cannot understand an
agreement.”

The third law of nature is that human beings perform their covenant made. Without
this law of nature, covenants are in vain and but empty words; and the right of all
human beings to all things remaining, we are still in the condition of war. Further,
this law is the fountain of justice. When there has been no covenant, no action can
be unjust. However, when a covenant has been made, to break it is unjust. Hobbes
adds:
“that covenants of mutual trust are invalid when there is fear of non-
performance on either part, and that in the natural condition of war this fear
is always present. It follows therefore that, there are no valid covenants, and
hence no justice and injustice until the commonwealth is established; that is,
until a coercive power has been established which will compel human
beings to perform their covenants.”
Hobbes maintains that human beings seek self-preservation and security; however,
they are unable to attain this end in the natural condition of war. The laws of nature
are unable to achieve the desired end by themselves alone; that is, unless there is
coercive power able to enforce their observance by sanctions. For these laws,
though dictates of reason, are contrary to humanity’s natural passions. Therefore, it
is necessary that there should be a common power or government backed by force
and able to punish. This means that the plurality of individuals should confer all
their power and strength upon one human being or upon one assembly of human
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beings, which may reduce all their wills, by plurality of voices, unto one will. That
is to say, they must appoint one man (or woman), or assembly of human beings, to
bear their person, a person being defined as “he whose words or actions of another
human being, or of any other thing, to whom they are attributed, whether truly or
by fiction.” Hobbes makes a distinction between a commonwealth by institution and
by acquisition.
(A) A commonwealth is said to exist by institution when it has been
established through the covenant of every member of a
multitude with every other member. The multitude of human beings
subjects themselves to a
chosen sovereign from fear of one another.
(B) A commonwealth is said to exist by acquisition when the
sovereign power has been acquired by force. Here,
human beings fear for death or bonds of that human being who
holds power over their lives and liberty.
Neither of these commonwealths affects the sovereignty. The subjects of
a sovereign cannot either change the form of government or repudiate the authority
of the sovereign: sovereignty is inalienable (Sorell, 1996). No sovereign can be
unjustly put to death or in any way punished by his subjects. For, inasmuch as
every subject is author of all the sovereign’s actions, to punish the sovereign would
be to punish another for one’s own actions.
One of the prerogatives of the sovereign enumerated by Hobbes is judging what

doctrines are fit to be taught. Thus, the power of the sovereign being, to all intents
and purposes unlimited, brings forth the question of freedom (if any) to be
possessed by the subjects or ought to be possessed by them. A point of greater
importance is that subjects are absolved from their duty of obedience to the
sovereign, not only if the latter has relinquished his sovereignty, but also if he has,
indeed the will to retain his power but cannot in fact protect his subjects any
longer.
If the sovereign is conquered in war and surrenders to the victor, his subjects
become the subjects of the latter. If the commonwealth is torn asunder by internal
discord and the sovereign no longer possesses effective power, the subjects return
to the state of nature, and anew sovereign can be set up.
F. Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Rousseau is one of the most famous and influential philosophers of the French
Enlightenment in the 18th century. In his book The Social Contract , he elaborated
his theory of human nature. In Rousseau, a new era of sentimental piety found its
beginning.
The “Edsa Revolution” is an example, though an imperfect one, of what the theory
of Social Contract is all about. According to Hobbes and Rousseau, the state owes
its origin to a social contract freely entered into by its members. The two
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philosophers differed in their interpretations. Hobbes developed his idea in favor of
absolute monarchy, while Rousseau interpreted the idea in terms of absolute
democracy and individualism.
Both have one thing in common, that is, human beings have to form a community
or civil community to protect themselves from one another, because the nature of
human beings is to wage war against one another, and since by nature, humanity
tends toward self-preservation, then it follows that they have to come to a free
mutual agreement to protect themselves.
Hobbes thinks that to end the continuous and self-destructive condition of warfare,
humanity founded the state with its sovereign power of control by means of a
mutual consent. On the other hand, Rousseau believes that a human being is born
free and good. Now he is in chains and has become bad due to the evil influence of
society, civilization, learning, and progress. Hence, from these come dissension,
conflict, fraud, and deceit. Therefore, a human being lost his original goodness, his
primitive tranquility of spirit.
In order to restore peace, bring back to him his freedom, and return to his true self,
he saw the necessity and came to form the state through the social contract
whereby everyone grants his individual rights to the general will. The term of
Social Contract is not an actual historical event. It is a philosophical fiction, a
metaphor, and a certain way of looking at a society of voluntary collection of
agreeable individuals. The Constitution and the Bill of Rights constituted, as an
instance of a social contract, however, is not a metaphor, but an actual agreement
and actually “signed” by the people or their representatives (Solomon and
Higgins,1996). The “1986 Edsa Revolution” was not a bloody one. People
gathered in Edsa to voice their disenchantment peacefully and through mutual
effort, successfully ousted Marcos. This had inspired changes not only in our own
country but also in Eastern Europe’s Perestroika.
Figure 5.3. Hobbes and Rousseau: Political Freedom

5. 2. Evaluate and exercise prudence in choices
For B.F. Skinner, the environment selects which is similar with natural

selection. We must take in to account what the environment does to an organism
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not only before, but also after it responds. Skinner maintains that behavior is
shaped and maintained by its consequences. Behavior that operates upon the
environment to produce consequences (operant conditioning)can be studied by
arranging environments in which specific consequences are contingent upon it. The
second result is practical, the environment can be manipulated.
Yelon (1996) accepted that behavioral psychology is at fault for having

overanalyzed the words “reward” and “punishment”. We might
have miscalculated the effect of the environment in the individual. There should be
a balance in our relationship with others and environment. In our dealing with our
fellow human beings, there is the strong and obvious temptation to blame the
environment if they do not conform to our expectations.
The question of freedom arises. Can an individual be free? According to Skinner,

our struggle for freedom is not due to a will to be free as for Aristotle or Sartre, but
to certain behavioral processes characteristic of the human organism, the chief
effect of which is the avoidance of or escape from “aversive” features of the
environment.
The feeling of freedom, according to Skinner becomes an unreliable guide as soon

as would-be controllers turn to non-aversive measures, as they are likely to do to
avoid the problems raised when the controller escapes or attacks. For example, a
skillful parent learns to reward a child for good behavior rather than punish him for
bad. Control becomes necessary in the issue of freedom.
Following the adage of John Stuart Mill, “Liberty consists in doing what one
desires,” Skinner states that when a person wants something he acts to get it when
the occasion arises. Skinner argues that even though behavior is completely
determined it is better that a person “feels free” or “believes that he is free.”

The issue is controllability. We cannot change genetic defects by punishment; we
can work only through genetic measures that operate on a much longer time
scale. What must be changed is not the responsibility of autonomous individual but
the conditions, environment or genetic, of which a person’s behavior is a
function (Gines, 1998). Example, a student was praised by a teacher who said to
him “Very good!” for a solution to a problem or for giving the correct answer to a
question.
Skinner thinks that the problem is to free human beings not from control but from
certain kinds of control, and it can be solved only if we accept the fact that we
depend upon the world around us and we simply change the nature of
dependency. Skinner proposed that to make the social environment as free as
possible of aversive stimuli, we do not need to destroy the environment or escape
from it. What is needed, according to Skinner, is to redesign it.
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Life is full of paradoxes; nobody could nor should control it. We have to be open
to life, learn to accept and live with paradoxes. Learning with contradiction is not
the same as living in contradiction (Guevarra, 1997). The paradoxes account for
the reasons why life cannot be held still. Defining or conceptualizing insists on
regarding one aspect of life at the same time disregarding the other.
In the spirituality of imperfection, we learn to accept that life, our environment, is

both “evil” and “good”. In recognizing life’s open-endedness, we learn to be
flexible and adaptable. B.F. Skinner believes that morality is a conditioned
response impressed on the child by society. Despite this view, however, creating a
static environment e.g. controlled environment is not applicable in the realities of
everyday world.
Skinner is right, however, in pointing out the influence of environment especially

in the socialization of children. Unfortunately, there is an emphasis today in the
acquisition of money, property and prestige, regardless of values – or lack of those
children learns.
There should not just be a re-engineering of the environment, but a total

transformation of how we view our environment, beginning with our own
orientation. How do we view life? Is it merely a life concerned with power that,
according to Buddha, is the cause of despair? Or should it be a life of cooperation,
vision and concern with other living beings?
Indeed the theory of freedom has negative and positive tasks. Our lives should not
be merely controlled by rewards and punishments. As human beings, we are
capable of reaching different level of heights and ideals. According to Yelon
(1996) punishment is an educative measure, and as such is a means to the
formation of motives, which are in part to prevent the wrong doer from repeating
the act and in part to prevent others from committing a similar act. Analogously, in
the case of reward we are concerned with incentive.
However, much more important than the question of when a person is said to be
responsible is that of when he himself feels responsible. Evidently, not merely that
it was he who took the steps required for its performance; but there must be added
awareness that he did it “independently”, “of his own initiative” or whatever
the term is. This feeling is simply the consciousness of freedom, which is merely
the knowledge of having acted of one’s own desires. And of “one’s own desires”
are those which have their origin in the regularity of one’s character in the giving
situation, and are not imposed by an external power e.g. stimulus. The absence of
external power expresses itself in the well-known feeling that one could also have
acted otherwise.
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Indeed the environment plays a significant part in our lives. However, since the Sto
ne Agewe had proven that we are not completely under its mercy. We have and
shall continue to tame and adapt to the changes in the conditions of the
environment. As Plato believes, the soul of every individual possesses the power of
learning the truth and living in a society that is in accordance to its nature.
We are responsible, whether we admit it or not, for what is in our power to do; and
most of the time we cannot be sure what it is in our power to do until we
attempt. In spite of the alleged inevitabilities in personal life and history, human
effort can re-determine the direction of events, even though it cannot determine the
conditions that make human effort possible. It is true that we did not choose to be
born.
It is also true that we choose, most of us, to keep on living. It is not true that
everything that happens to us is like “being struck down by a dreadful
disease.” The treatment and cure of disease – to use as an illustration – would
never serve as a moral paradigm for the whole human situation – would never have
begun unless we believed that some things that were did not have to be, that they
could be different, and that we could make them different. And what we can make
different we are responsible for.
5.3 Choices have consequences and some things are given up while others are obtained
in making choices
Twentieth century gave rise to the importance of the individual, the opposite of
medieval l thought that was God centered. For Ayn Rand, individual mind is the
tool for economic progress vis-à-vis laissez faire capitalism. Since the mind is
important, the sector that molds it should not be controlled by the
government. Similar with Aristotle, Rand believes that thinking is volitional. A
person has the freedom to think or not. Though, for Rand, the majority belongs to
the passive supporters of the status quo who choose not to think.
Individual rights, as espoused by Hobbes and Rousseau, are not merely

numbers. Rand rejects collectivism because of its brute force. Though human
beings have rights, there should also be responsibility. Individual rights were
upheld in capitalism that is the only system that can uphold and protect them. The
principle of individual rights represented the extension of morality into the social
system.
Rand cited the right to gain, to keep, to use and to dispose of material values. Most
developed countries have disposed their toxic wastes to
developing countries. Disposing material values, thus, is not just a matter of
throwing waste but projecting where to dump wastes that would not impinge on the
rights of others.
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Individualism, as espoused by Rand, is lined in
family dependency because Easterners believe that the individual needs the
community and vice versa. The Filipino and Chinese, for instance, stress the
human relationships that emphasize that the person is not necessarily an
independent entity. In Filipino’s loob, for instance, the individual is the captain of
his own ship on a sea that is not entirely devoid of uncertainties. Loob touches the
daily human aspect of the Filipinos.
Loob sought to avoid fragmentation. It embraced family and political parties.

Loob does not only fulfill reasons of the mind but of the heart and personal
involvement as well. Whereas Rand upheld the individual, Filipinos’ loob is
essentially an interpersonal and social concept before it is a privately, personal
concept. Further, Filipinos look at themselves as holistic from interior dimension
under the principle of harmony. Loob encompasses Filipinos’ humanity,
personality and theological perspective and daily experiences. It aspires harmony
with others and nature to be in union with God. Loob stresses a being-with-others
and sensitivity to the needs of others that inhibits one’s on personal and individual
fulfillment. There is the apprehension on the group oriented approach of the
Filipino that might hamper the individual’s initiative and responsibility. It
is contended that the individual should be disciplined from within rather than fear
from authority figure. Discipline and responsibility should be inculcated especially
through education.
Filipinos’ loob is the basis of Christian value of sensitivity to the needs of others
and gratitude. It encompassed “give and take” relationship
among Filipinos. As such, repaying those who have helped us is a manifestation of
utang na loob or debt of gratitude. Loob is similar with other Eastern views that
aspire for harmony ( sakop ) with others, God and nature. Loob prioritized family,
relatives, and even non kinsmen. It bridges individual differences and is the
common factor among human beings.
The concept of Rand’s free individual and Filipino’s view of the free human being
may have differences but can be overcome. The potential of the Filipino should be
able to grow so that he will be aware of his uniqueness. Children should be brought
up to the identity of the members of the family and simultaneously with that of the
nation. Self-sufficiency (kasarinlan) should recognize human worth and dignity.
Individualism thus, should not be seen as selfishness but an affirmation of a truly

human self that is the supreme value of human living. To be a free individual is to
be responsible not only for one’s self but also for all. Thus, the individual becomes
a free and creative person who asserts one’s uniqueness.
Kagandahang loob, kabutihang loob, kalooban are terms that show sharing of one’s self
to others. This is the freedom within loob. Loob puts one in touch with his fellow
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beings. Great Philippine values in fact are essentially interpersonal. The use of
intermediaries or go betweens, the values of loyalty,
hospitality, pakikisama (camaraderie) and respect to authority are such values that
relate to persons. In short, the Filipino generally believes in the innate goodness of
the human being.
Filipino ethics has an internal code and sanction than other legalistic moral
philosophies that are rather negative. The Filipino, who stresses duties over rights,
has plenty in common, once again with Chinese or Indians. The Filipino looks
at himself as one who feels, wills, thins, acts, as a total whole – as a “person”,
conscious of his freedom, proud of his human dignity and sensitive to the violation
of these two.
5.4 Show situations that demonstrate freedom of choice and the consequences of their
choices
In lieu of the Philippine situation, I suggest Rand’s individualism be adopted by

Filipinos. Individualism based on freedom, should not be attained at the expense of
others but for the advancement of a person. As Filipinos, we should unlock the
change of Philippine backwardness. According to Rand, individual freedom should
be aligned with economic freedom. The Filipino “sakop” or harmony can be a
helping value to the full development of the Filipino if it opens up to embrace the
whole Philippine society. However, there are cases where the Filipino “sakop” may
adversely affect the social and financial status of the one moving upward the social
ladder. For instance, the more well off members of a family share their gains with
their relatives or friends in need.
However, sometimes, the beneficiaries of the monetary assistance (Utang or loan)
just use the money for non-essentials (i.e. drinking sprees) when there are more
important concerns which should be prioritized (i.e. tuition fee). Hence, Filipino
“sakop” must begin to raise its members in a more responsible way and the
members should likewise take this attempt to raise them financially and socially
seriously so as not to squander the help bestowed on them. Moreover, they must
come to realize that their personal worth and dignity is not exterior to themselves;
it is found not in the body of the “sakop” but in one’s “kalooban”. If these are
fulfilled, the Filipinos shall not only be better persons but a better nation with a
sound economy(Andres, 1989).
A leader or a manager with “ magandang kalooban ” is not passive but plays active
role in economic development. Leaders should not just focus on the impact of job
performance but treats every individual worker as persons and not as
objects. Filipinos can attain a sound economy through an integrative system as
such there is support and help among unit of organizations within a company. To
make up for the inferiority complex of Filipinos, a good Filipino leader/manager
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must encourage fellow Filipinos to believe in themselves so that they can bounce
back as an economic power.
Rand presupposed that greater creativity will be achieved if the government will
minimize influence on individuals. Filipinos should take the initiative by following
Rand’s suggestion and adopting individualism in their value system. The author
thinks that individualism will provide Filipinos an opportunity to be more aware of
their capacity, to harness fully their strengths and to commit themselves to
life. Individualism reinforces kasarilihan (self-sufficiency) as such it discourages
subservience from external control higher than itself.
“Kasarilihan” promotes entrepreneurship which minimized foreign control of

Filipinos (i.e. from the control of monopolies and multinational companies). Other
than entrepreneurship, individualism also prioritizes countryside development, a
self-help concept among the country dwellers which discourage dependence on
government loans which would leave the locals to follow whatever conditions the
government sets in favor of the loan. Furthermore, for Andres(1986), the spirit of
self-help is the root of all authentic growth in rural development which is a source
of national productivity and efficiency.
As a result, entrepreneurship and countryside development economically and

politically emancipate Filipinos from local and foreign intervention. Moreover,
Filipinos learn to be self-sufficient which leads to self- respect and consequently,
enhances Filipinos’ amor propio (pride and respectability).Education has its own
part to fulfill in giving importance to individual students and in promulgation of
the concept of individualism. Mounting a continuing education among Filipinos,
education should not shape the students’ mind to be subservient.
Educators should be aware of the individual talents of students, the differences in

their family background, gifts and capabilities. Rand proposed that the main task of
education is to teach students how to be trained in theories i.e. concepts. The
students have to be taught the eventual of knowledge discovered in the past so that
they will be equipped to acquire further knowledge of their own effort
(Binswanger, 1986).
However, individualism should be tied with social responsibility and should not be

just “tayo-tayo” or “kami-kami ”. Our own individuality should interact with the
individuality of others. In this light, every Filipino should be given equal chance to
cultivate their talents that inevitably contribute in the development of the
society. Further, as individuals who are free, Filipinos should recognize their
own brand of uniqueness, instead of copying foreign cultures. “Loob” does not
only develop the self of an individual but the welfare of others.
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For Aristotle and Rand, reason and will or volition is part of our being human. In
relation to this, Filipinos had proven matured thinking, pertaining to Edsa
Revolution. Filipinos becomes overeign people who stood up for what they believe
is right even before physical threat. Miranda (1987) viewed Edsa Revolution a
salvific event, Filipinos did not become fatalistic. Instead, Filipinos took matters in
their own hands. During Edsa Revolution, Filipino actuations were based on
reason; Filipinos exemplified a conscious decision of ousting a dictator.
The decision is based on the Filipinos’ belief in freedom. They also voluntarily

risked their lives as they face danger. Again, the Edsa Revolution is one example
of social contract as discussed in early sections of this chapter.
Filipinos’ self is rooted in “loob” (Alejo, 1990). Individualism should thus spring

from our “loob” which is the basis of a person’s authenticity. Individualism could
only progress to real change if it springs from the innermost depth of “l oob ” and
not just for “ pakitang tao ”(outward appearance’s sake). Through
a person’s “loob”, individualism manifests changes within (loob) and outside
(labas) the person.
Further, “loob” is the only identical factor among people’s diversity in creed, color
and status in the society. Through “ loob”, there is no way that Filipinos will have
no equal chance to become worthy individuals. The author also took note of the
interplay of Western philosophy that emphasizes modern science and technology;
the East, however, is more concerned on the inner and personal nature of the
self. The Eastern thinker is acquainted through one’s personal experience and
intuitive grasp of reality which is of higher value than the analytical speculation.
Module 6 – INTERSUBJECTIVITY
Realize that Intersubjectivity Requires Accepting Differences and Not to

Impose on others
Most of the time, we look at our differences and may have labels toward one
another. You can be a “misfit”, a “loner”, a “partygoer” or “easy-go lucky”. In our
lives, somehow, we have collected and given labels ourselves toward others.
Though we are part of our society, we are still different individuals living in this
society. Each of us will have different appearances or points of view. This chapter
focuses on building strength despite our various differences.
Labels could be negative or limiting. You may be called "impatient”,"whiny” or
“stubborn”. Nevertheless, we could go beyond the labels, for as emphasized in this
book, as humans, we are holistic. As humans, we are to be regarded in our totality.
Thus, we can redesign the labels to something new and exciting. So, instead of
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“impatient”, you are “compelling”. If one is “whiny” you are “analytical” and if
one is “stubborn” one is “assertive or persistent".
If the negative labels can be contagious, so can the positive ones. Let us focus on
the positive for these labels can strengthen not just your relationships among
friends, but most especially to your family.
Intersubjectivity as Ontology: The Social Dimensions of the Self
For this section, Martin Buber`s and Karol Wojtyla's views will be used as the
main framework in understanding intersubjectivity. Both philosophers were
influenced by their religious background. They believed in the notion of concrete
experience/existence of the human person. They also think that one must not lose
the sight of one's self in concrete experience. Both refused to regard the human
person as a composite of some kind of dimensions, such as animality and
rationality.
For both views, the human person is total, not dual. For Wojtyla, the social
dimension is represented by “We relation” and for Buber, the interpersonal is
signified by the “I-You relation”.
Martin Buber is a Jewish existentialist philosopher. He was born in Vienna and
was brought up in the Jewish tradition, In his work I and thou (Ich and Du) (1923,
he conceives the human person in his/her wholeness, totality, concrete existence
and relatedness to the world.
Saint Pope John Paul ll or Karol Wojtyla was born in Wadowice, Poland. He was
elected to the Papacy on October 16, 1978 (264th pope) and was considered a great
pope (88%) during his lifetime. He was also an architect of
Communism`s demise in Poland. In his encyclical letter, Fides et ratio, he
criticized the traditional definition of human as "rational animal”. He maintains
that the human person is the one who exists and acts (conscious acting, has a will,
has self-determination).
For Wojtyla, reveals the nature of the human agent. Participation explains the
essence of the human person. Through participation, the person is able to fulfill
one`s self. The human person is oriented toward relation and sharing in the
communal life for the common good. As St. Augustine of Hippo said, "No human
being should become an end to him/herself. We are responsible to our neighbors as
we are to our own actions.”
We participate in the communal life (We). Our notion of the “neighbor” and
“fellow member” is by participating in the humanness of the other person (I-You).
The neighbor takes into account humanness.
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Buber's I-thou philosophy is about the human person as a subject, who is a being
different from things or from objects. The human person experiences his wholeness
not in virtue of his relation to one's self, but in virtue of his relation to another self.
The human person establishes the world of mutual relation, of experience.
The human persons as subjects have direct and mutual sharing of selves. This
signifies a person-to-person, subject-to-subject relation or acceptance, sincerity,
concern, respect, dialog, and care. The human person is not just being-in-the-world
but being-with-others, or being-in-relation.
In contrast, to realm of meeting and dialog, Buber cites the I-It relationship. This I-
it relationship is a person to thing, subject to object that is merely experiencing and
using; lacking directedness and mutuality (feeling, knowing, and acting).
6.2 Appreciate the Talents of Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) and those from
the Underprivileged Sectors of Society and Their contributions
A. On PWDs
The process of suspecting, recognizing, and identifying the handicap for parents
with PWD will include feelings of shock, bewilderment, sorrow, anger, and guilt.
Whether these pertain to deafness or spirited children, denial, for instance, is
universal. During diagnosis, isolation of affect occurs when the parents
intellectually accepts deafness of their child. The loss should require mourning or
grief; otherwise, something is seriously wrong.
Feeling of impotence or questioning "Why me?" are some feelings of ambivalence
regarding a child's condition. Some parents turn to religion, and consider "heaven
sent blessing in disguise" However, this denies the real implications of the
disability Mapp 2004). Additional reactions include fear of the future when parents
worry about how the disability of the child will affect his/her productivity, or
become a lifelong burden. Parents whose children were diagnosed with disability
have to let go of their dream child. Realization and grief can blind parents to their
child's uniqueness.
There are many categories of PWD or persons with disabilities. To mention some,
there are the hearing impaired, diabetic, asthmatic, or cystic fibrotic persons. In a
certain study, mothers of asthmatic children scored consistently more positively
than any other groups of mothers. On the one hand, fathers of cystic fibrotic
children had higher parent attitudes and were more sociable than the other fathers.
On both these scales, parents of hearing impaired youngsters had the highest
problematic scores.
Parents of cystic fibrotic kids reported the most special problem areas and
caretaking needs. Parents of hearing impaired children have more behavior
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management issues. While parents of cystic fibrotic children reported the highest
levels of family importance (Mapp 2004)
A study in North America shows that 50% of deaf children read less than the
normal children. For the deaf total communication is recommended, which
includes the traditional method with use of finger spelling and sign language.
On the other hand, spirited kids and children with ADHD (Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder) are different. A spirited perceptive child will notice
everything going on around her but will be able to process that information quickly
and will be able to select the most important information to listen to. An ADHD
child will find it difficult to focus or complete a task, despite her best efforts.
B. On Underprivileged Sectors of society
Dimensions of Poverty
The notion of poverty is not one-dimensional; rather it is multidimensional. A
number of different concepts and measures of poverty relate to its various
dimensions. Each of these dimensions has the common characteristic of
representing deprivation that encompasses:
 Income
 Health
 Education
 Empowerment
 Working condition
The most common measure of the underprivileged is income poverty, which is
defined in terms of consumption of goods and services. There is lack of goods and
services. The World Bank categorizes poverty in two levels: poor and extremely
poor. Those living below US $2,00/day are considered poor, while those living
below a US $1.25/day are extremely poor.
There is a growing recognition that income poverty is not the only important
measure of deprivation. Poor health is also an important aspect of poverty.
Globally, millions die due to AIDS, Ebola virus, tuberculosis and malaria as well
as number of infant deaths from largely preventable causes of diarrheal disease.
Health deprivation had become focal point for the underprivileged.
Human rights are also relevant to issues of global poverty in its focus shortfalls in
basic needs. Extending human rights into the realm of foreign direct investment is
also an imperative. The Church, in its pro-poor stance, is constantly challenged
wherein justice is being denied for sectors like farmers, fisher folks, indigenous
people and victims of calamity and labor.
In 1712, Jean Jacques Rousseau said that women should be educated to please
men. Moreover, he believes that women should be useful to men, should take care,
advise, console men, and to render men's lives easy and agreeable. Rousseau also
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influenced the development of modern political, sociological, and educational
thought.
Mary Wollstonecraft, in Vindication on the Rights of Women (1782), argued that
such education would produce women who were mere propagators of fools. She
believes that women must be united to men in wisdom and rationality. Society
should allow women to attain equal rights to philosophy and education given to
men. Further, for Wollstonecraft, women should not just to be valued until their
beauty fades; it is the fate of the fairest of flowers to be admired and pulled to
pieces by the careless hand that plucked. For Wollstonecraft, if men would snap
women's chains, they would find women more observant daughters, more
affectionate sisters and faithful wives, more reasonable mothers and better citizens.
She maintains that women must learn to respect themselves. Men's should not be
based on the vanity of women and babies, for this degrade women by making them
mere dolls. She stressed that women should not marry for a support. Instead, they
should earn their own "bread”. During her time, even women in upper echelons of
the society are oppressed.
In the Philippines, women are subjected to oppression, among others, of class and
sex. “Babae”, sung usually during women's month (March), is a song that
problematizes the gender role assigned by the social order to women since their
childhood.
Opposing the identity reinforced by dominant patriarchal institutions like the
family education, the law, and the media, the song advances the alternative image
of the woman aspiring for liberation (“Mga babae, ang mithiin ay lumaya!”).
Citing the example of heroines from Philippine history like Gabriela, Teresa, and
Tandang Sora as well as women martyrs in the ongoing people's war in the
countryside like Lisa. Liliosa, and Lorena, the song challenges the stereotype of
women as represented in Philippine literature by the figures of Maria Claras, Hule,
and Sisas.
These are the realities that the song, “Babae” calls on to study and question ("Ang
ating isip ay buksan /At lipuna'y pag-aralan") Ultimately, Inang Laya's song goes
to the end with the message that gender roles, being social constructs resulting
from the interplay of power relations in a particular historical juncture, are also
arenas for struggle.
The song, moreover, demonstrates that Filipina women are not simply oppressed
but have been actively participating in movements that not only seek empowerment
for their sector but for other marginalized groups as well as (“Silay
nagsipaghawak ng sandata / Nakilaban, ang mithiin ay lumaya”)
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6.3 Explain the Authentic Dialog that Is Accepting others Regardless of
Individual Differences
We Are a Conversation
In his essay, Martin Heidegger says that humankind is a conversation.
Conversation is more than an idle talk but dialog. This means that humanity is
progressively attuned to communication about Being, Language, as one of human
possession, creates human world. Language is a tool for communication,
information, and social interaction. However, language can also be amazement.
A dialog is a conversation that is attuned to each other and to whatever they are
talking about. Mutual tuning is perfected in the attunement. For Heidegger (1997),
all conversations are really one conversation, the subject of which is Being (maybe
God, Tao or YHWH). A conversation, which Heidegger envisages, is creative,
poetic, and deep that allows humanity to exist as more than entities.
In a conversation, there could be a stammer which is trying to express the
unnamable. For Heidegger, a conversation attempts to articulate who and what we
are, not as particular individuals but as human beings. We are human beings who
care about more than information and gratification.
For Buber, a life of dialog is a mutual sharing of our inner selves in the realm of
the interhuman. Between two persons is a mutual awareness of each other as
persons: avoiding objectification. Being is presenting what one really is, to present
to the other one's real self. Personal making entails the affirmation of the other as
person who is unique and has distinct personality. There is the acceptance of the
person unfolding the other actualize himself/herself.
An authentic dialog entails a person-to-person, a mutual sharing of selves,
acceptance, and sincerity. This relationship is the I-thou relation. I-You of Wojtyla
refers to the interpersonal which fulfills and actualizes oneself. The human person
attains fulfillment in the realm of the interpersonal, In meeting the other; thus there
is a genuine dialog. For Wojtyla, in participation, we share in the humanness of the
other. We cannot escape a world that is also inhabited by others.
All of the philosophers mentioned talks about the same type of relation that is, a
dialog of human beings based on mutual sharing of selves, acceptance, and
sincerity.
6.4 Perform Activities that Demonstrate the Talents of PWDs and
Underprivileged Sectors of Society
The Philippine government supports persons with disabilities (PWDs) to "land a
job. It is a negative perception that they are less productive. In reality, PWDs do
face a number of barriers in finding a job whether through inaccessibility of
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transportation in the workplace, discrimination, and a negative perception of their
capacity. As of 2014 the National Statistics Office estimated that about 1.44
million Filipinos have some form of disability in the employable 15-64 years old
age bracket.
The country has enough laws to protect the PWDs, such as Executive Order 417;
however, in reality, these are hardly implernented. EO 417 mandates all national
government agencies and state run corporations to allot at least one percent of their
annual budget for programs that will benefit the sector. Further, EO 417 addresses
the need for government to provide capitalization for PWDs livelihood activities,
which include support for technical skills through labor department.
One of the major reasons why many PWD enterprises fail is because of the lack of
market for their products As part of your contribution to affirming their skills, the
activity for this section will also be a chance for the PWDs products (if they have
any) to be displayed and sold in campus. Disability is considered a development
issue because of its relationship to poverty. Poverty may increase the risk of
disability. People with disabilities incur additional expenses to achieve a standard
of living similar to those without disabilities such as health care services, costlier
transportation options, and special diets, among others.
In relationship to poverty, human trafficking has become a form of modern-day
slavery. Globally, men, women, and children are forced into prostitution,
cybersex/pornography, and other forms of exploitation that assault human dignity,
Millions of poor and helpless Filipinos have become a part of this criminal
enterprise, Pope Francis calls this as “crimes against humanity” and has this called
upon many to fight for human dignity and sacredness of life This is what Buber
calls as I-It relation, where the other human being is perceived as an object rather
than as human being.
IV. ASSESSMENT
A - DIRECTION: Give what is being asked. Write your answers on a separate
sheet of paper.
1. As a student, how can you be responsible to your A.) family? B) in your use
of technology (i.e. cellular phone)?
2. Who are the underprivileged sectors in the society? How similar or different
are we with one another? How can you show sensitivity to PWDs? The
underprivileged? How do you respond to them when you interacted with
them in the activities?
3. How can you be a “whole” person in your relationship to others?
4. How do you react when you see street children? Why?
B - DIRECTION: Choose two concepts and expound. Write your answers on a
separate sheet of paper.
a. Great love and great achievements involve great risks.
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b. Respect for self, respect for others, and responsibility for your actions.
c. The future is fixed; how one’s life unfolds is a matter of destiny. Agree or
Disagree?
C - DIRECTION: Create slogan regarding freedom. Use a long bond paper.
Slogan Criteria:
Relevance to the lesson – 40%
Originality - 30%
Creativity - 30%
100%
V. FEEDBACK
________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________
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NOTRE DAME OF NEW ILOILO, INC.

SUBJECT: INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY GRADE LEVEL:

I. OBJECTIVES: At the end of the lesson, students are expected to:

III. CONTENT/ DISCUSSION/ INFORMATION

5.1. Realize that “All Actions Have Consequences”

The will of humanity is an instrument of free choice. It is within the power of

Figure 5.1. Aristotle: Intellectual Freedom

B. St. Thomas Aquinas

A human being, therefore, has a supernatural, transcendental destiny. This means

Figure 5.2. Spiritual Freedom

D. Jean Paul Sartre: Individual Freedom

The mutual transferring of these rights is called a contract and is the basis of

The rational pursuit of self-preservation is what leads humanity to form

In Leviathan, Hobbes asserts:

One of the prerogatives of the sovereign enumerated by Hobbes is judging what

Figure 5.3. Hobbes and Rousseau: Political Freedom

For B.F. Skinner, the environment selects which is similar with natural

Yelon (1996) accepted that behavioral psychology is at fault for having

The question of freedom arises. Can an individual be free? According to Skinner,

The feeling of freedom, according to Skinner becomes an unreliable guide as soon

In the spirituality of imperfection, we learn to accept that life, our environment, is

Skinner is right, however, in pointing out the influence of environment especially

There should not just be a re-engineering of the environment, but a total

Individual rights, as espoused by Hobbes and Rousseau, are not merely

Loob sought to avoid fragmentation. It embraced family and political parties.

Individualism thus, should not be seen as selfishness but an affirmation of a truly

In lieu of the Philippine situation, I suggest Rand’s individualism be adopted by

“Kasarilihan” promotes entrepreneurship which minimized foreign control of

As a result, entrepreneurship and countryside development economically and

Educators should be aware of the individual talents of students, the differences in

However, individualism should be tied with social responsibility and should not be

The decision is based on the Filipinos’ belief in freedom. They also voluntarily

Filipinos’ self is rooted in “loob” (Alejo, 1990). Individualism should thus spring

Realize that Intersubjectivity Requires Accepting Differences and Not to

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