Module 1.

1: The Self from Various Philosophical Perspectives

Name: Navarro, Princess M.

Review

Give three importance of understanding the self? (3 points)

1. Self-love- If you know yourself, the good, the bad and the ugly, you can start to accept who you are - exactly as you are. It

can feel like a challenge to accept some aspects of your character that you don’t perceive as positive, such as laziness.

However, if that is part of you, it is important to honour that instead of denying it. It is still there, even if you deny it.

Learning to see the benefits of laziness, enjoying it and not letting it work against you will lead you to be able to embrace it

as part of who you are, and to, therefore, love it. From love, you can move on to nurturing, to growing, developing, thriving

and flourishing.Independence- Self-knowledge makes you independent of the opinions of others. If you know what works for

you - what is good for you and, therefore, what isn’t - it is irrelevant what others might think and advise. You are the expert

of your own being. You are in charge of your thoughts and you are your own personality.

3. Clear decision making- As we know, with knowledge comes insight and confidence - and this can make the decision-

making process (for both simple and complicated choices) much easier. There is not a lot of space for doubt once you have

gained that full insight.

Concept Notes (5 points)

Defined self (soul) as the He argued that the self and

PLATO
SOCRATES

ARISTOTLE
essence of living being. the body are inseparable
He considered the body and the self is the
and the self as a separate actuality of the body.
entities. When the body dies the
He thus, claimed that self ceases to exist.
mind-body dualism where
the body is from the
material world, but the self
is from the immortal world
of ideas

Pre-Printed Notes

For Socrates, the goal of philosophy was to "Know thyself". Knowing others is wisdom. Knowing the self is enlightenment.
Mastering others requires force. Mastering the self requires strength. "Self-knowledge alone eradicates misery". Self-
knowledge alone is the means to the highest bliss." "Absolute perfection is the consummation of Self-knowledge."
Knowledge of oneself can be achieved only through the Socratic Method, that is to say, the dialogue between the soul and
itself, or between a student and his teacher. Socrates is as often in the role of questioner, as an attendant emotional. Socrates’
questions because he knows nothing, knows he knows nothing, has nothing to learn, but it can help its followers to discover
the truths they have in them. Without this work on yourself, life is worthless according to Socrates.

Plato is a dualist; there is both immaterial mind (soul) and material body, and it is the soul that knows the forms. Plato
believed the soul exists before birth and after death. Thus he believed that the soul or mind attains knowledge of the forms, as
opposed to the senses. Needless to say, we should care about our soul rather than our body. The soul (mind) itself is divided
into 3 parts: reason; appetite (physical urges); and will (emotion, passion, spirit.) The will is the source of love, anger,
indignation, ambition, aggression, etc. When these aspects are not in harmony, we experience mental conflict. The will can
be on the side of either reason or the appetites. We might be pulled by lustful appetite, or the rational desire to find a good
partner. To explain the interaction of these 3 parts of the self, Plato uses the image is of the charioteer (reason) who tries to
control horses representing will and appetites. Elsewhere he says that reason uses the will to control the appetites.
 Module 1.1: The Self from Various Philosophical Perspectives
GE 1- Understanding the Self

Aristotle defined the soul as the core essence of a living being, but argued against its having a separate existence. For
instance, if a knife had a soul, the act of cutting would be that soul, because 'cutting' is the essence of what it is to be a knife.
Unlike Plato and the religious traditions, Aristotle did not consider the soul as some kind of separate, ghostly occupant of the
body (just as we cannot separate the activity of cutting from the knife). As the soul, in Aristotle's view, is an activity of the
body, it cannot be immortal (when a knife is destroyed, the cutting stops). More precisely, the soul is the "first activity" of a
living body. This is a state, or a potential for actual, or 'second', activity. "The axe has an edge for cutting" was, for Aristotle,
analogous to "humans have bodies for rational activity," and the potential for rational activity thus constituted the essence of
a human soul. Aristotle used his concept of the soul in many of his works; the De Anima (On the Soul) provides a good place
to start to gain more understanding of his views.

St. Augustine in his Confessions takes this idea and expands it into an entire genre that critically inquires what it means to be
a person. This identity is achieved through a twofold process: self-presentation, which leads to self-realization. Only in the
presence of the Omnipotent and the Omniscient can the self attain happiness and completeness.

Descartes thought that the self is a thinking thing distinct from the body. His first famous principle was” Cogito, ergo sum",
which means “I think, therefore I am." Although the mind and body are physically together as a whole, the mind and body
are mentally independent and serve their own function.

Comprehension Activity

Directions: Compare and contrast the idea of Plato and Aristotle towards self. (6 points)
 Module 1.1: The Self from Various Philosophical Perspectives
GE 1- Understanding the Self

PLATO ARISTOTLE

Independent Practice

Directions: According to St. Augustine, our identity is achieved through a twofold process: self-presentation that
leads to self-realization. Inside the box, draw an object that best represents you and reflect on why it
represents you. (5 points)
 Module 1.1: The Self from Various Philosophical Perspectives
GE 1- Understanding the Self

Reflection:

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Additional Practice – Enrichment Activity

Directions: Read the situation and write your answer to the question on the space provided below.

Situation: Say for instance you are in front of a mirror and having a dialogue.
Below write the questions that you
wanted to ask about yourself and give an honest answer to it. (6
points)

1. __________________________________________________________
 Module 1.1: The Self from Various Philosophical Perspectives
GE 1- Understanding the Self

Ans. ______________________________________________________

2. __________________________________________________________

Ans. ______________________________________________________

3. __________________________________________________________

Ans. ______________________________________________________