What is Philosophy?

Philosophy is often called the mother of all disciplines simply because all fields of study began
as philosophical discourses. It originated is from the Greek words Philo- (loving) and Sophia
(knowledge, wisdom). At its simplest, philosophy means “loving knowledge” or “loving
wisdom.” The term philosophy as originally used by the Greeks meant “the pursuit of
knowledge for its own sake.” Naturally, the need to understand that “self” did not escape the
philosopher’s curious mind. Hence, here are the most relevant philosophical views that will give
you a historical framework in your quest of understanding yourself.

Philosophy is the study of acquiring knowledge through rational thinking and inquiries that
involves answering questions regarding the nature and existence of man and the world we live
in. As such, it is imperative to look into the various explanations from different philosophers their
notion of what the “Self” its nature and how it is formed in order to have a better picture of how
people develop their behaviors, attitude, and actions and to be able to identify and understand
who we are and how we came to be.

What Philosophy Says about the Self

The Self has been defined as “as a unified being, essentially connected to consciousness,
awareness, and agency (or, at least, with the faculty of rational choice) “. Different philosophers
have come up with more specific characteristics of the Self, and over time, these meanings
have transformed from pure abstractions to explanations that hold scientific evidence. The
Philosophy of the self has been defined through distinct philosophical lenses:

● Empiricism - derives explanations of the self from sensory and bodily responses.
We know things because we have experienced them through our bodily senses.
● Rationalism - there is innate knowledge; they differ in that they choose different
objects of innate knowledge. Rationalism explains self from the standpoint of what is
“ideal” and the “truth”, not rooted in what is felt by the senses nor our body.
● Dualism - In the modern world “dualism” most often refers to “mind-body dualism,”
or the idea that the mind is separate from the body.

The Philosophical Framework for Understanding the Self

The framework was first introduced by the ancient great Greek philosophers Socrates, Plato,
and Aristotle. Likewise, the different views of other prominent philosophers regarding the nature
of the self were discussed in this module. Noticeably, they were one in saying that
self-knowledge is actually the prerequisite to a happy and meaningful life. Philosophical
musings have produced some of the most important original ideas over the centuries. Their
contributions to all areas of learning are inestimable. Some views may be more popular, others
a bit unknown, but humanity’s development is founded on the views of our ancient thinkers.
Naturally, the need to understand the “self” did not escape the philosopher’s curious mind.
Hence, here are the most relevant philosophical views that will give you a historical framework
in your quest of understanding yourself:

A. The Classical Antiquity

Socrates: “The unexamined life is not worth living”

Socrates, known as the "father of Western philosophy" was believed to be the first thinker to
focus on the full power of reason on the human self - our existence in the universe, who we are,
who we should be, and who we will become. For Socrates, the self exists in two parts: the
physical body and the soul. The physical body is a tangible aspect of us. It is mortal (it dies),
constantly changing, imperfect, transforming, disappearing. Our soul, which Socrates believed
to be immortal, is eternal, unchanging, perfect, or ideal. Socrates believed that there was a soul
first before a man's body. The soul has all the knowledge that is stored in his mind. However,
once he came to the material world or the world of senses, he forgot most of what he knew. This
resulted in a lack of knowledge or ignorance, which causes problems for men.

Socrates’ conviction is conveyed in his famous statement: "the unexamined life is not worth
living." The most important task one can undertake is to examine one's self, for it alone will give
one the knowledge necessary to answer the question 'how should I live my life.' Socrates
explained: "…once we know ourselves, we may learn how to care for ourselves, but otherwise,
we never shall."

Plato: “The first and the best victory is to conquer self.”

Plato is a dualist; there is both an immaterial mind (soul) and a material body, and it is the soul
that represents the self. Plato believed the soul exists before birth and after death. For him, one
should care about his soul rather than his body. The soul (mind) is divided into three parts:

● Reason - our divine essence that enables us to think deeply, make wise choices and
achieve a true understanding of eternal;
● Physical Appetite - our basic biological needs such as hunger, thirst, and sexual;
and,
● Will or Spirit - is our basic emotion or passion, such as empathy, aggressiveness,
love, anger.

The three elements of our “self” are in a dynamic relationship with one another. Sometimes,
they work in concert, sometimes in conflict. For instance, we may develop a romantic
relationship with someone who is an intellectual companion (Reason) or with whom we are
passionately in love (Spirit) and or with whom we find sexually attractive, igniting our lustful
appetites (Appetite). Plato believed that true and genuine happiness could only be achieved if
we consistently make sure that our reason is in control of our Spirits and Appetites.

Aristotle: “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.”

Plato’s idea of the truth about the human self was even more expounded and formalized by his
prized student, Aristotle. While Plato emphasized the separation of ideal and phenomenal
existence (or being), Aristotle suggested that the ideal is subsumed in the phenomena. Aristotle
called the ideal as “essence” and the phenomena as “matter”. He also emphasized that the two
co-exist and are co-dependent, the essence provides meaning and purpose to the matter, and
the matter provides substance and solidity to essence. As we may already know, Plato is sure
that the true self is the soul, not the body. And to be specific, the true self for Plato is the rational
soul which is separable from the body. Aristotle’s concept of the self is quite the opposite.
Aristotle’s concept of the self is more complicated. However, there is one main theme in
Aristotle’s narrative of the soul that guides us in understanding his concept of the self, that is,
the human person is a “rational animal”. In other words, for Aristotle, the human person is simply
an animal that thinks.

B. The Middle Ages

St. Augustine: “Accepting God is the path to know thyself.”

Augustine believes that man is created in the image and likeness of God, and he is essentially a
soul whose goal is to be with God. St. Augustine's sense of self is his relation to God, both in his
recognition of God's love, and his response to it. It is achieved through self-presentation then
self-realization. Augustine believed one could not achieve inner peace without finding God's
love and through faith and reason, our self seeks to be united with God. Augustine believes that
God is transcendent, and everything created by God, who is all good, is good.

St. Augustine's sense of self is his relation to God, both in his recognition of God's love and his
response to it—achieved through self-presentation, then self-realization. Augustine believed one
could not achieve inner peace without finding God's love.

C. The Rennaisance

Rene Descartes: “Cogito ergo sum (I think; therefore I am.)”.

René Descartes is the "founder of modern philosophy." Descartes' principle, cogito ergo sum
(Latin), is the keystone of his concept of self. For Descartes, this is the essence of self— you
are a "thinking thing" (I exist because I think: I think, therefore I exist). The mind is what matters.
But what about your body? Descartes believes that our physical body is secondary to our
personal identity. Descartes declares that the essential self, or the self as a thinking entity, is
radically different from the self as a physical body. The thinking self—or soul—is a non-material,
immortal, conscious being, independent of the physical laws of the universe. The physical body
is a mortal, non-thinking material that is fully governed by the physical laws of nature. Further,
your soul and your body are independent of one another. Each one can exist and function
without the other. This, in a way, echoes the dualism of Plato.

John Locke: "The Self Is Consciousness"

John Locke is known for his theory that the mind is a tabula rasa, a blank slate. Locke believed
that we are born without thoughts, or our mind was empty and that knowledge is instead
determined only by experience. According to Locke, our memory plays a key role in our
definition of the self. He theorized that we are the same person as we were in the past for as
long as we can remember memories from that past. It is our memory or our consciousness of
our past that makes us that same person as we were in the past. Thus, to Locke, our conscious
awareness and memory of previous experiences are the keys to understanding the self. It is our
consciousness that makes possible our belief that we are the same identity at different times
and in different places.

David Hume: "There Is No “Self”

David Hume believed that the source of all genuine knowledge is our direct sense of
experience. He believes in the existence of the mind, and what’s inside the mind is divided into
two: impressions and ideas. Impressions are those things we perceive through our senses as
we experience them. Like when I see the sky, and my sense of sight tells me I am looking at a
blue sky. That is now my impression. Ideas, on the other hand, are those things that we create
in our minds even though we are no longer experiencing them. For example, even when I’m
already inside my room and can no longer see the sky, I can still think of the idea of the sky, like
it’s a nice day, it’s not likely to rain, maybe I can do the laundry, or maybe I can go out to the
park. Whenever we think of simple ideas, it must have as a basis a simple impression.

Hume's idea of the self follows this philosophical pattern. In his mind, he finds a stream of
impressions and ideas, but no impression that corresponds to a self that endures through time.
For Hume, the self keeps on changing, like how one looks, one feels, one thinks they constantly
change. There is no permanent and unchanging self. A person is a bundle of perceptions. Thus,
we cannot observe any permanent self because we continuously undergo change. In
conclusion, there is no self.

Immanuel Kant: "We Construct the Self'

Immanuel Kant refutes Hume’s theory that there is no “self” and argues that it is possible to find
the essence of the self. For Kant, man is a free agent, capable of making a decision for himself.
Man is a free agent, for he is gifted with reason and free will to enable him to organize the data
gathered by the senses. From these data and the way we organize them, we can build an idea
of who we are. According to him, the reason is the final authority of morality. Every human
being has his inner self and outer self; · The inner self includes rational reasoning and
psychological state while the outer self includes the body and physical mind, where
representation occurs.

Sigmund Freud 'There Are Two Selves: One Conscious, One Unconscious
Sigmund Freud is not a philosopher, but his views on the nature of the self have had a
far-reaching impact on philosophical thinking. He is a great influence in the fields of psychology
and psychoanalysis, the theory he founded. Freud believes that there are two levels of human
functioning: the conscious and the unconscious. In his psychoanalytic theory, the conscious
refers to all mental processes of which we are aware; the unconscious refers to mental
processes that are not easily accessible to our awareness. Freud believes that even if the
conscious self plays an important role in our lives, it is the unconscious self that has the
dominant influence on our personalities.

The unconscious contains basic instinctual drives that include aggressiveness, sexuality, and
self-destruction; traumatic memories; childhood fantasies and unfulfilled wishes; thoughts and
feelings that would be considered socially taboo. This unconscious level is characterized by the
most primitive level of human motivation and functioning. Our most basic instinctual drives in the
unconscious level seek immediate gratification or discharge. The impulses at this level are
governed solely by the “pleasure principle.” Our unconscious self exists and influences us
throughout our

D. The Modern Times

Gilbert Ryle: "The Self Is How You Behave".

Gilbert Ryle simply focused on observable behavior in defining the self. No more inner selves,
immortal soul, states of consciousness, or unconscious self: instead, the self is defined in terms
of the behavior that is presented to the world. From Ryle's point of view, the self is best
understood as a pattern of behavior, a person’s tendency or disposition to behave in a certain
way in certain circumstances. In short, the self is defined by the observable behaviors we
project to the world around us.

He contends that every human being has both a physical body and a non-physical mind which
are ordinarily “harnessed together” while we are alive. However, after the death of the body, our
minds may continue to exist and function. This “dualistic” conception of the mind and body is
analogous to the dualism of Socrates and Plato who viewed the self as being comprised of a
mortal body and an immortal soul, According to him, “The self is the way people behave”.
The self is basically our behavior. This concept provided the philosophical principle, “I act
therefore I am”. In short, the concept means the self is the brain

Paul Churchland: "The Self Is the Brain".

When it comes to learning of human experience, the concept of dualism is that the mind and the
body are separate. In other words, we do have a single brain and have a separate mind, too.
Paul Churchland disagrees with the concept of dualism. Churchland asserts that since the mind
cannot be experienced by the senses, it does not exist. It is the physical brain, not the imaginary
mind, that gives us our sense of self. To Churchland, the self is the brain. He focused on the
brain states rather than the mental states. Neuroscience is at the fore of understanding the self.
When people want to ask what is going on with themselves, they might go for an MRI scan or
CT scan to understand the condition of the brain and how it works. Churchland believes that the
term “mind,” our moods, emotions, actions, consciousness are deeply affected by the state of
our brain that altered our actions, and physical state when they are manipulated,

Maurice Merleau-Ponty: "The Self is An Embodied Subjectivity"

Maurice Merleau-Ponty takes a very different approach to the self. His ideas suggest that there
is unity in our mental, physical, and emotional disposition, and they all affect how we experience
ourselves. For instance, when you wake up in the morning and experience your gradually
becoming aware of where you are or how you feel, what are your first thoughts of the day?
Perhaps something like, “Oh no, it’s time to get up, but I’m still sleepy, but I have a class that I
can’t be late for.” Note that at no point do you doubt that the “I” you refer to is a single integrated
entity, but a blending of mental, physical, and emotional structure around a core identity: your
self. Our self is a product of our conscious human experience. The definition of self is all about
one’s perception of one’s experience and the interpretation of those experiences. To
Merleau-Ponty, the self is an embodied subjectivity. He entirely rejected the idea of the mind
and body dichotomy because, for him, man is all about how he sees himself.