FREEDOM OF THE HUMAN

PERSON
DEFINITION FREEDOM
AND IT’S KIND
What is Freedom?
- The ability to make choices and perform those choices.
- The ability to be what we want and to decide and create
oneself
- It is an intrinsic and essential property of the person
Two concepts that will help us fully understand freedom:

1. Freedom itself According to Merriam Dictionary, it is the

quality or state of being free. It is our capacity to choose of what
we wanted and an inner awareness of what is right and wrong
that is traced to our free will according to Aristotle. It is also an
intrinsic and an essential property of a human person which
basically means, it is a part of our human nature
2. Free will Our free will allows us to decide on things we do
depending on the situation. It is our ability to choose between
two different possible courses of action, independently. Simply
put it, free will is our ability to choose things according to our
moral reasoning.
To sum it all, our freedom then could trace down in a person’s
exercise of his rationality/intellect and free will. Simply that
individual actions as it is freely chosen by an individual it then
defines who and what kind of person one is. We all are free to
choose, to be good person and act on it accordingly or be a bad
person and act in a bad way. As our actions and choices reflects us
doing what is good and acting on it is what makes you a good person
while on the other hand doing the negative will also give a negative
impression to an individual. This has been tackled on the previous
lesson that selfdetermination or the ability to choose on what is right
and wrong, that a person’s action determines what kind of person he
or she becomes.
KINDS OF FREEDOM

1. Physical Freedom Physical freedom refers to the absence of any

physical restraint. The person has the freedom of mobility to go where
he or she wants to go. He or she is not impeded in his or her actions
by any physical force. Granted that the person has natural limitations,
physical freedom allows him or her to act and move in determined
manner. You cannot be everywhere at once, but your freedom allows
you to move one place to another and to go whenever you want to go.
2. Psychological Freedom

Psychological freedom is also called freedom of choice. The person is

free to perform actions that he or she considers right and wise. A
person is also free to act or not to act. Psychological freedom is innate
and cannot be denied to a person. No outside force or influence can
compel a person to take action against his or her will.
3. Moral Freedom

Moral freedom refers to using freedom in a manner that upholds

human dignity and goodness. Freedom is not an object that a person
may use in whatever way he or she pleases. A person must use his or
her freedom to grow as a person. A person becomes freer when he or
she uses freedom well, but becomes less free when he or she uses it in
a bad way. Humans have a natural inclination for what is true and
good, and when a person uses his or her freedom to do acts that
violates human dignity and goodness, he or she dehumanizes himself
or herself and effectively negates human freedom.
3. Moral Freedom

Moral freedom refers to using freedom in a manner that upholds

human dignity and goodness. Freedom is not an object that a person
may use in whatever way he or she pleases. A person must use his or
her freedom to grow as a person. A person becomes freer when he or
she uses freedom well, but becomes less free when he or she uses it in
a bad way. Humans have a natural inclination for what is true and
good, and when a person uses his or her freedom to do acts that
violates human dignity and goodness, he or she dehumanizes himself
or herself and effectively negates human freedom.
ELEMENTS OF FREEDOM
There are two elements that define freedom:

1. Voluntariness
It is the ability of a person to act of his or her own free will
and selfdetermination. A person may decide to do things or
not to do it according to his own free will. It also means
that even though she/he is not required to do such things
he/she could still do it or take action on it.
Voluntary acts are free acts which can be assigned a
corresponding moral value. One must always remember
that in every action we make, in every choice we make
there is an equivalent consequence. These consequences
affect not just the individual who does the decision but also
other people in their surroundings. With that, one must
always accept the consequences that results from his or her
decisions or actions and take responsibility for them.
2. Responsibility

Responsibility refers to the person being accountable for

his or her action and their consequences. Taking
responsibility can mean either you take responsibility to
your action voluntarily or other people will hold you
responsible. For example, if you made a bad action it’s
either you take responsibility of it or other people will hold
you responsible for it.
Example of voluntariness and responsibility
There are important factors to consider in the exercise of
freedom.
These are Prudence and Self-reflection.
 Prudence is the ability to govern and discipline oneself
with the use of reason; it is having caution and giving good
judgments in making decisions. Because once we made a
decision there is no turning back, there is no rewind, so we
should always reflect first on the possible outcomes of the
choices that we are going to make. Self-reflection is very
important in exercising freedom.
Self-reflection allows us to be more rational in making
choices, because sometimes human beings tend to be slaves by
their emotions and moods whenever they act certain things. As
free beings, exercising our freedom responsibly is very
important. Thus, it requires us to reflect on the actions that we
are going to make by considering its possible effects and the
benefits it has to the people affected by it.
EXERCISING FREEDOM IN
A RESPONSIBLE AND
BENEFICIAL MANNER
Freedom should be exercised with control and
reasonable limits. As humans, we enjoy freedom, but
we need to understand that it is not absolute. Meaning,
we should exercise our freedom with control and
reasonable limits.
Examples:
1. A student may be first in line in a grocery store but chooses
to give way to an elderly woman next to her.
2. You may be very upset to a friend for losing a thing she
borrowed but refuses to confront her because you already know
that she already feels bad of herself for the thing she had done.
3. You may be very angry with your teacher for scolding you in
front of the entire class, but you refrained from answering back
at him/her since it will be considered as disrespectful act.
Giving limits to our personal freedom simply means sacrificing
certain selfinterest and accept that there are things beyond our
control. Our ability to think and know what is right and what is
wrong serves as guide in recognizing and deciding the
limitations of our freedom.
Freedom should be exercised with regard for knowledge and
truth.

As a rational beings, it is natural for us to think before we act.

We use our freedom to acquire knowledge, which in turn are
useful in making right and sound decisions essential in dealing
with our life situations
- Example: To correctly answer a multiple-choice item in an
examination, a student has to study his/her lessons. Otherwise,
he/she cannot answer the test.
We should also be equipped with the ability to acquire
information and truthful knowledge because it will aid us in
making wise and informed choices.
Example: In casting our votes during SSG election, we will not
vote to a candidate because of she/he is attractive or appealing
but because she/he is knowledgeable on the important school
issues.
Freedom should be exercised to uphold the freedom of
others.

Freedom is recognized and guaranteed right for all persons.

Meaning, freedom should be enjoyed by all. But it is important
to remember that freedom should be exercised not as a tool to
restrict the freedom of others, but as a means to enable others to
fully enjoy their own freedom
Example:
A teacher doing his/her class discussion under the Narra tree
instead of having it inside the classroom.

You shared your hard-earned money to cater the needs of your

friend who is in dire needs of it for the realization of his/her
school project.
 Freedom is an intrinsic and essential property of a human
person.
 Human person by nature seeks freedom and our freedom
makes us distinct from other beings.  Freedom gives us the
power/ability to be what we want and to decide and create
ourselves.
 There are three kinds of freedom. Physical freedom refers to
the absence of physical restraint. Psychological freedom is the
freedom of choice. Moral freedom refers to the responsible use
of freedom which upholds human dignity and goodness.
 The two important elements of human freedom are
voluntariness and responsibility. Voluntariness refers to the
ability of the person to act out of his or her own free will.
Responsibility refers to the person being accountable for his or
her action and their consequences.
 As a person possessing self-determination, individual actions
as it is freely chosen by an individual then defines who and
what kind of individual we are.
 Having freedom and exercising it bears responsibilities. All
our actions have consequences that come with it. Therefore, it is
important to act with prudence and reflect on possible courses
of actions in making decision.
 Freedom should be exercised in a responsible and beneficial
manner. One must control and recognize limits of his or her
freedom for it is our responsibility as persons to uphold not only
our individual freedoms, but also the freedom of others.
1. This refers to the ability to make choices and
perform actions. It is an intrinsic and essential
property of the human person.
2. A type of freedom from physical restraint.
3. This is the kind of freedom which allows a
person to perform actions which he or she
considers right and wise.
4. It is the ability to act out one’s free will and
self-determination.
5. This means that a person is being accountable
for his or her actions and their consequences.
6. Your family is experiencing financial difficulty. You are being
enrolled in a private school with a high tuition fee but your parents
do not want you to transfer to a public school despite your situation.
As their daughter/son what are you going to do?
a.You are going to stay in your school because that is what your
parents want you to do.
b. You won’t mind because that is your parent’s problem.
c. You will explain to your parents that transferring school is the best
way to resolve the family’s financial problem.
d. You will stop going to school.
7. A teacher informed you that your brother has to repeat some subjects due to his
failing grades. She asked you to tell your parents about it and that she wanted to
meet them. But your brother asked you not to tell your parents and that he will
find another person to stand as your parents. What are you going to do?
a. You will not tell your parents because your brother asked you not to do it.
b. You will not tell your parents in exchange of your brother’s allowance.
c. You won’t mind because you do not care about your brother’s problem.
d. You will tell your parents because you know that granting your brothers
request will not do any good but instead will just lead him to do to things that
could again affect his studies
8.Your best friend humiliated you, making you a laughing stock in
your school. As her best friend you also knew a lot about her that
would humiliate her as well when exposed. What then are you
going to do?
a. You will not do what she did to you because you know that it
will not do any good.
b. You will expose her secrets so that she will have the same fate
as you.
c. You will confront and start a fight with her.
d. You will not do the same, instead you’ll do actions that will
gain back your friendship
9. You are invited to a debut party of your best friend. She expected
you to be there. Her birthday falls on a Wednesday but you’re
having a final exam the next day. How are you going to deal with
the situation?
a. You will go to the party and will not study for your exam.
b. You will not go to the party and you will study for your exam.
c. You will go to the party but you will go home early to study.
d. You will not go to the party and will not study
10. You saw a classmate bullied by your schoolmates outside your school. You
just turned a blind eye and walked the other way because you do not want
to get involved. The next day, you heard the news that your bullied
classmate was admitted to the hospital due to injuries. The school and the
family of the bullied child is asking if someone saw the incident to have
someone to testify. The bullies already warned you not say a single word
otherwise they will do the same to you. What are you going to do then?
a. You will not report because your safety is at stake.
b. You will report to prevent the bullies from doing it again.
c. You will not report because you do not care about your classmate.
d. You will report the incident in exchange for money.
11. Instead of spending her excess allowance on a new pair of shoes.
Reyna decides to open a bank account and start saving up for her future.
12. Despite the threats made on his life, the witness decided to make
forward and divulge important information regarding the crime he
witnessed.
13. A woman used the Internet to humiliate her ex-boyfriend by
spreading lewd photos of him on social media.
14. Despite knowing that many of his clients were poor and desperate, a
moneylender continues to impose very high interest rates on loans.
15. A businessman did not accept a high-paying position in an overseas
firm and instead decided to start his own business and spend more time
with his family.
16-18. What are the three kinds of Freedom?

19-20. What are the two important elements of

freedom?