Self From Western Thoughts

4/18/23, 11:40 AM Self from Western Thoughts
Self from Western Thoughts
Module Objectives
At the end of this Module, you are expected to:
1.understand the different Western Philosophical Perspectives on Self;
2.compare and contrast how the Self has been represented across by various Western
philosophers; and
3.share to the class aspects of the self from the western perspective by observing
proper online communication.
Before anything else, let us try to understand what PHILOSOPHY is.

https://sway.office.com/1HeE7dqIF6RIgxKB 1/10
Philosophy is derived from two Greek words “philo” meaning LOVE and “sophia”,
meaning WISDOM. Thus, it implies love for wisdom or knowledge
(www.philosophybasics.com). Its long history is an attempt to understand the
complexity of the universe and humanity.´´In the succeeding discussion, there will be
several speculations on Self by different philosophers that may lead us to contradicting
and maybe confusing concepts on Self. These thoughts on Self were uncovered in
different historical periods of philosophy: Ancient philosophy (600 B.C.E. –1000 C.E.);
Medieval philosophy (1000 C.E.–1500 C.E.); Modern philosophy (1500 C.E.–1900 C.E);
Contemporary philosophy (1900 C.E. - present), to which philosophers were
categorized.
The phrase “KNOW THYSELF” is probably one of the famous

hear every now and then. Though, it was not invented by Soc
which is engraved on the frontispiece of the Temple of Delphi
challenging people to attain self-knowledge before anything
knowledge of oneself can be achieved through Socratic’s me
(systematic questioning) where the person uses critical think
logic to discover the truths. Socrates believed that it is man’s
know thy self. And if and when man fails to examine his/her
living. To Socrates, this is the worst that can happen to anyon
On another hand, Socrates characterizes the SELF as having

PHYSICAL BODY and the MENTAL/MIND or SOUL. The body
field. It has earthly existence. And mortal as it is, it is transitor
mind or soul, on the other hand is non-material, absolute and
the ideal infinite world. It is in constant search for knowledge
achieving perfection because of its capacity for reason.
This dualistic premise about the Self implies an almost oppo

the body and soul since the latter is viewed as a force that can
attainment of perfection, immortality or divinity (Chaffee, 201
Plato, a student of Socrates, also advocated dualism. He beli

nature of body and soul but he added that there are three co
self: the rational soul, the spirited soul and the appetitive sou
The rational soul (reason) gives man the ability to think deep
critically.
The spirited soul, on the other hand, is man's passion and/o

gives him the capacity for emotional experiences.
While the appetitive soul is man’s basic survival mechanism

needs.
Plato believes that reason (rational soul) enables us to appre

important virtues in life and rise above the controlling body
emotional, immodest impulse (spirit or passion). This further
reason to control their feelings and biological desires and as
wise, virtuous and enlightened beings which, to Plato, is the
existence, that is, the eternal transcendent realm.
St Augustine is a medieval religious philosopher who was o

strengthened the philosophical foundations of Christianity.
that the physical body is inferior to the mind or the soul bu
of the latter. The dualistic relationship of the body and the m
o t e atte e dua st c e at o s p o t e body a d t e
though it was described as controversial.
In St. Agustine's speculation, he believed that the body wh

imperfect, corruptible and finite. It can only thrive in the phy
whereas the soul can stay after death with the all-transcend
to live his life on earth in virtue.
St, Thomas Aquinas, a 13th century scholar and an advocate

adapted some concepts of Aristotle which believes that man
parts: matter and form. Matter or Hyle in Greek, refers to an
in his environment. The body that we have; the clothes and
the house that we own and many others are example of Hyl
On the other hand, form or morphe is the essence of a subs

body was used to make it useful or the clothes and shoes w
person and the house was built to shelter the family then al
serving its essence or purpose.
Finally, to Aquinas, the soul is what animates the body. It is

(Alata, 2018).
The Dualistic and Rational Self
He is the Father of Modern Philosophy and the first modern

that the mind is separate from the body. The mind, that is a t
thing, is completely different from the body which is a non-t
their existence can be independent from one another.
Descartes is also known for his principle of "cogito ergo sum

am." To Descartes, the self is a combination of two distinct e
thing that thinks (the mind) and the extenza (the extension
the body). This further presupposes that when a man starts d
which leads him to conclude that he exists.
Descartes also believes that man's mind has already innate i

as ("priori") which are prerequisite to learning additional fac
The Empiricists’ Self
The philosophy of John Locke generated an alternative to m

speculation of the earlier philosophers. He introduced the co
which gives emphasis on consciousness that provide knowl
self. His thought has set that man has initially an empty min
RASA”, and that the self is formed from the accumulated m
experiences which were perceived and reflected by our inte
processes.
Hume is also an empiricist just like Descartes but an extrem

of definite identity. He believes that the idea of essential sel
exist endlessly in the realm of the divine is unthinkable. To h
omnipresent self that is unchanging across time and space.
For the self, to Hume, is nothing but a collection of ever-ch

are passing through the so called “theater of the mind” (Ch
any phenomenon at any given time is an experience of bas
impressions which eventually build up ideas or musings. So
vessel for passing sensations and imprints of our experienc
Brooks (2004) as cited in Ariola, said that Kant promoted the

dimensional self: the inner self and the outer self. The idea i
the earlier problems on the location of the non-material sou
by some philosophers. The inner self is comprised of our psy
rational intellect. The outer self includes our sense and the p
inner self, there is apperception or processing of idea and/or
assimilated to the body of ideas that one already possesses.
Kant termed the inner self as empirical self-consciousness. H

endowed with mental faculties or cognitive mechanisms cal
synthesizes and organizes (CONSTRUCT) the sensations and
knowledge from their different experiences.
The philosophy of Gilbert Ryle counters Rene Descarte’s dual

He presented the perspective that mind and body are unified
component exits in the private domain and the body subsist
dimension (Bancui, 2013). Ryle further his view by focusing m
self that is observable, the behavior. To behaviorists like Ryle,
the person’s behavior. To him, what truly matters is the beha
manifests in his day-to-day life (Alata,2018).
It is the pattern of behavior or the person’s behavioral dispos

context or situation that defines the self or the person. Peop
of behaviors caused by the physical workings of the body. A p
through two confirmed histories, one consisting of what happ
public self, and the other consisting of what happens in and to
self. (Ariola, 2018). “The Self is how you behave.”
Churchland’s concept of self was born out of the influence o

on to materialism rather than dualism which was eventually
neurophysiology. Materialism is the belief that nothing but
the physical brain, and not the mind, that is real. The people
hope, love, happiness and the like as well as their experienc
being able to make decisions, solve problems are but result
of neural activation in certain brain areas. Thus, the mind or
no longer separated from its host body. The mind is nothing
He is a French phenomenological philosopher who was stron

Husserl and Martin Heidegger. Phenomenology is a perspect
immediate experience, attempting to describe them as they a
describe every event and object (“phenomena”) as experienc
understood by the person in his human consciousness. Acco
phenomenology, reality is that which the person experience
Those lived experiences that arrived to his senses which the
conscious and aware of turned out to be the primary compon
You now reached the end of the lesson. To che

retained things that you have read, you will ne
assessment.
Alata, Eden Joy, et.al. (2018, 1st ed.). Understanding the Self. Phils. Rex Bookstore
Ariola, Mariano (2018). Understanding the Self. Phils. Unlimited Books Library Services
& Publishing Inc.
Chaffee, John (2016, 5th ed.). The Philosopher's Way: Thinking Critically Abou Profound
Ideas. NY. Pearson
Gilbert Ryle; Standford Encyclopedia of Philosophy; First published Tue Dec 18, 2007;
substantive revision Wed Feb 4, 2015; retrieved from https://plato.stanford.edu/
entries/ryle/
Kant’s View of the Mind and Consciousness of Self; Standford Encyclopedia of

Philosophy; First published Mon Jul 26, 2004; substantive revision Tue Jan 22, 2013;
retrieved from https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/kant-mind/
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4/18/23, 11:40 AM Self from Western Thoughts

Self from Western Thoughts

At the end of this Module, you are expected to:

1.understand the different Western Philosophical Perspectives on Self;

Before anything else, let us try to understand what PHILOSOPHY is.

The phrase “KNOW THYSELF” is probably one of the famous

On another hand, Socrates characterizes the SELF as having

This dualistic premise about the Self implies an almost oppo

Plato, a student of Socrates, also advocated dualism. He beli

The spirited soul, on the other hand, is man's passion and/o

While the appetitive soul is man’s basic survival mechanism

Plato believes that reason (rational soul) enables us to appre

St Augustine is a medieval religious philosopher who was o

In St. Agustine's speculation, he believed that the body wh

St, Thomas Aquinas, a 13th century scholar and an advocate

On the other hand, form or morphe is the essence of a subs

Finally, to Aquinas, the soul is what animates the body. It is

The Dualistic and Rational Self

He is the Father of Modern Philosophy and the first modern

Descartes is also known for his principle of "cogito ergo sum

Descartes also believes that man's mind has already innate i

The Empiricists’ Self

The philosophy of John Locke generated an alternative to m

Hume is also an empiricist just like Descartes but an extrem

For the self, to Hume, is nothing but a collection of ever-ch

Brooks (2004) as cited in Ariola, said that Kant promoted the

Kant termed the inner self as empirical self-consciousness. H

The philosophy of Gilbert Ryle counters Rene Descarte’s dual

It is the pattern of behavior or the person’s behavioral dispos

Churchland’s concept of self was born out of the influence o

He is a French phenomenological philosopher who was stron

You now reached the end of the lesson. To che

Kant’s View of the Mind and Consciousness of Self; Standford Encyclopedia of

Made with Microsoft Sway

Create and share interactive reports, presentations,

You might also like