Ralph Columa

A62C
MIND, SELF, AND SOCIETY

As I start my reflection, let us first have a brief background about the “Mind, Self, and
Society”. George Herbert Mead (1934) expands the concept of the looking-glass self of Charles
Horton Cooley (1902) through his book titled “Mind, Self, and Society”. In the looking-glass
self, the individual bases his personality on others’ opinions. This concept, however, talks about
the self, which is composed of the “Me” and the “I”. The “Me” depends on what other people
think about you, and the “I” is your perception of yourself. The “Me” and the “I” can agree or
disagree.

The mind is composed of the different gestures that we make. It is also composed of
symbols and language. Gestures are significant if you and the other person have the same
understanding (Mead, 1934). For example, Filipino words. The word tayo. It can be said in two
ways. The first is when the first syllable is stressed (TA-yo). It means that when we say tayo it
refers to “us”. If the second syllable is stressed (ta-YO), it means we should stand up. When
using words like that have different stresses, we must be more careful because a change in stress
can change the meaning. Another example of a Filipino word is tara. When we say it, we ask the
person to go or move forward or move. When we make a gesture like nodding the head, we mean
yes, and if we shake our head, it means no. However, other countries do the exact opposite,
particularly in India. Here, they shake their head when they say yes, but nod their head when
they say no. So, gestures have different meanings depending on which culture or country of
origin. 

For Mead (1934), the self is developed depending on the society where he belongs and
what he learns. For example, the man speaks a particular language. The language he speaks
depends on what is taught to him, what he hears, and what he is used to since he was young.
Another example would be that the man is influenced by the actions of the people around him.
For example, his religion is Roman Catholic. Catholics around him influenced him by praying to
God just like them. 

According to Mead (1934), we develop a sense of self through interacting with other
individuals. Our interactions with other people can help us to know who we are as individuals in
this society. An example would be how other people judge you for your actions or talk to you
about the characteristics they notice. Through their judgment of you, you are knowing yourself
better. You can either agree or disagree with their opinions depending on how accurate their
judgments of you are. These lead us to the two components of the self, the “me” and the “I”. 

           First, let us talk about when the ‘me’ agrees with the ‘I’. This concept is related to the
looking-glass self. I sometimes base my knowledge of myself on what other people are saying. I
do agree with their statements. That is how people see me in the social world. But I am fully
aware that these characteristics are part of me. One example would be my personality which is
Ralph Columa
A62C
approachable and friendly. It has always been my nature to be kind, friendly, and approachable
to people. 

For the second one, let us now talk about how the “Me” and the “I” disagree. For
example, the opinions of others, the “me”, say that I am weak because I am not as tough as the
other guys are. They think that I am not capable of doing something. Here, I have a personality
that clashes with what people think of me. One example is that people think I am not as good as I
thought when doing the things that I love. I am doing something they think I cannot do, although
I know I can. 

Their opinions about me seem to matter because they reflect who I am as an individual.
Like in the looking glass self, I try to know myself based on their thoughts. What others think of
me might make or not make up who I am, so it depends on what they say about me. The “me”
and the “I” can either agree or disagree, depending on what is said to the person. It means that
nobody knows you better than you. 

References

Melilio, B. (2011, August 22). Summary: Mind Self and Society. The Sociology Project.

https://thesociologyproject.wordpress.com/2011/08/22/summary-mind-self-and-society/

Mead, G.H. (1934). Section 18: The Self and the Organism. In Morris, C. (Ed.) Mind Self and

Society from the Standpoint of a Social Behaviorist (p. 135-144). University of Chicago,

Chicago. https://brocku.ca/MeadProject/Mead/pubs2/mindself/Mead_1934_18.html

Mead, G.H. (1934). Section 19: The Background of the Genesis of the Self. In Morris, C. (Ed.)

Mind Self and Society from the Standpoint of a Social Behaviorist (p. 144-152). University of

Chicago, Chicago. https://brocku.ca/MeadProject/Mead/pubs2/mindself/Mead_1934_19.html

Mead, G.H. (1934). Section 23: Social Attitudes and the Physical World. In Morris, C. (Ed.)

Mind Self and Society from the Standpoint of a Social Behaviorist (p. 178-186). University of

Chicago, Chicago. https://brocku.ca/MeadProject/Mead/pubs2/mindself/Mead_1934_23.html

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Mead, G.H. (1934). Section 24: Mind as the Individual Importation of the Social Process. In

Morris, C. (Ed.) Mind Self and Society from the Standpoint of a Social Behaviorist (p. 186-192).

University of Chicago, Chicago.

https://brocku.ca/MeadProject/Mead/pubs2/mindself/Mead_1934_24.html

Mead, G.H. (1934). Section 25: The "I" and the "me" as phases of the self. In Morris, C. (Ed.)

Mind Self and Society from the Standpoint of a Social Behaviorist (p. 192-200). University of

Chicago, Chicago. https://brocku.ca/MeadProject/Mead/pubs2/mindself/Mead_1934_25.html