The Self from various perspective
Few reasons why you might want to know your own nature:
Happiness
Less inner conflict
Better decision making
Resistance to social pressure
Tolerance and understanding of others
Self-control
PHILOSOPHY
PHI LOSOPHY I S FROM THE GREEK WORDS
PHI LO – (LOVING) AND SOPHIA (KNOWLEDGE, WISDOM). AT ITS SIMPLEST, PHILOSOPHY MEANS
“LOVING KNOWLEDGE” OR “LOVING WISDOM.”
SOCRATES
Greek philosopher and one of the very few individuals who shaped Western
thought.
Known for his method of inquiry in testing an idea. This is called the Socratic
Method, whereby an idea was tested by asking a series of questions to determine
underlying beliefs and the extent of knowledge to guide the person toward better
understanding.
Socrates believed that philosophy had a very important role to play in the lives of the people. One of his
most-quoted phrases is, “The unexamined life is not worth living.”
According to Socrates, SELF-KNOWLEDGE or the examination of one’s self, as well as the question about
how one ought to live one’s life, are very important concerns because only by knowing yourself can you
hope to improve your life.
PLATO
Plato was the student of Socrates. He wrote the Socratic Dialogue where
Socrates was the main character and speaker.
He is best known for his THEORY OF FORMS that asserted the physical world is
not really the “real” world because the ultimate reality exist beyond the
physical world
The THREE PARTS OF THE SOUL according to Plato:
The appetitive
(sensual)
The element that enjoys sensual experiences, such as food, drink, and sex.
The rational
(reasoning)
Forbids the person to enjoy the sensual experiences; the part that loves truth hence should rule over the
other parts of the soul through the use of reason.
The spirited
(feeling)
It is inclined toward reason but understands the demands of passion; the part that loves honor and
victory.
ST. AUGUSTINE
One of the Latin Fathers of the Church, one of the Doctors of the Church, and
one of the most significant Christian thinkers.
He believed that the human being was both a soul and body, and the body
possessed senses, such as imagination, memory, reason, and mind through
which the soul experienced the world.
RENE DESCARTES
A French philosopher, mathematician, and scientist. He is considered the father of
modern Western philosophy.
Rene Descartes’ famous line “Cogito ergo sum” translated as, “I think, therefore I
Am” became a fundamental element of Western philosophy as it secured the
foundation for knowledge in the face of radical doubt.
Some distinctions between the SOUL and BODY as pointed out by Descartes
DAVID HUME
A Scottish philosopher, economist, and historian during the Age of
Enlightenment.
Hume is identified with the BUNDLE THEORY wherein he described the “self” or
person as a bundle or a collection of different perceptions that are moving in a
very fast and successive manner.
HUME DIVIDED THE MIND'S PERCEPTIONS INTO TWO GROUPS:
IMPRESSIONS
These are the perception that are the most strong. They enter the senses with most force. These are
directly experienced; they result from inward and outward sentiments.
IDEAS
These are the less forcible and less lively counterparts of impressions. These are mechanisms that copy
and reproduce sense data formulated based upon the previously perceived impressions.
IMMANUEL KANT
Philosopher Immanuel Kant is a central figure in modern philosophy. Kant
proposed was that the human mind creates the structure of human experience.
Kant’s view of the “self” is transcendental, which means the “self” is related to a
spiritual or nonphysical realm. For Kant, the self is not in the body. The self is
outside the body, and it does not have the qualities of the body. The body and its
qualities are rooted in the “self” and the material things together.
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