Learning Module

Understanding
the Self

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

 Netiquette Guide for Online Courses

It is important to recognize that the online classroom is in fact a classroom, and certain
behaviors are expected when you communicate with both your peers and your instructors.
These guidelines for online behavior and interaction are known as netiquette.

Security
Remember that your password is the only thing protecting you from pranks or more serious
harm.
Don't share your password with anyone.
Change your password if you think someone else might know it.
Always log out when you are finished using the system.

Appearance
Bear in mind that you are attending a class,dress appropriately.

General Guidelines
When communicating online, you should always:
Treat your instructor and classmates with respect in email or any other communication.
Always use your professors’ proper title: Dr. or Prof., or if in doubt use Mr. or Ms.
Unless specifically invited, don’t refer to your instructor by first name.
Use clear and concise language.
Remember that all college level communication should have correct spelling and grammar
(this includes discussion boards).
Avoid slang terms such as “wassup?” and texting abbreviations such as “u” instead of
“you.”
Use the prescribed font Palatino Linotype and use a size 10-point font.
Avoid using the caps lock feature AS IT CAN BE INTERPRETTED AS YELLING.
Limit and possibly avoid the use of emoticons like :) or J.
Be cautious when using humor or sarcasm as tone is sometimes lost in an email or
discussion post and your message might be taken seriously or sound offensive.
Be careful with personal information (both yours and other’s).
Do not send confidential information via e-mail.

Email Netiquette
When you send an email to your instructor,teaching assistant,or classmates,you
should: Use a descriptive subject line.
Be brief.
Avoid attachments unless you are sure your recipients can open them.
Avoid HTML in favor of plain text.
Sign your message with your name and return e-mail address.
Think before you send the e-mail to more than one person. Does everyone really need to
see your message?
Be sure you REALLY want everyone to receive your response when you click, “reply all.”
Be sure that the message author intended for the information to be passed along before you
click the “forward”button.

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

 Netiquette Guide for Online Courses

Message Board Netiquette and Guidelines

When posting on the Discussion Board in your online class, you should:
Make posts that are on topic and within the scope of the course material.
Take your posts seriously and review and edit your posts before sending.
Be as brief as possible while still making a thorough comment.
Always give proper credit when referencing or quoting another source.
Be sure to read all messages in a thread before replying.
Don’t repeat someone else’s post without adding something of your own to it.
Avoid short, generic replies such as, “I agree.” You should include why you agree or add
to the previous point.
Always be respectful of others’ opinions even when they differ from your own.
When you disagree with someone, you should express your differing opinion in a
respectful, non-critical way.
Do not make personal or insulting remarks.
Be open-minded.

(Source: http://teach.ufl.edu/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/NetiquetteGuideforOnlineCourses.pdf)

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

Table of Contents

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

 Course Overview
Introduction
(A comprehensive discussion of the course as to what to expect by the learners, including the learning
modules included in this course as well as the scope and coverage.)

Key Learning Competencies

(State the Key Learning Competencies. These are the refined course outcomes identified after the
recalibration of the curricula.)

Course Details:
Course Code: GE 104
Course Title: Understanding
the Self No. of Units 3 units
Classification: Lecture-based,
Pre-requisite / Co-Requisite: None
Semester and Academic Year: First Semester A.Y. 2022-
2023 Schedule
Name of Faculty
Contact Details
Email:
Mobile Number:
Viber: Messener:
Consultation

Assessment with Rubrics

Midterm Examination – Week 9, Coverage Course Packet ___

Final Examination – Week 18, Coverage Course Packet__

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

Final Requirement with Rubrics

Concept Paper

Excellent (41-50) Good (31-40) Fair (21-30) Poor (10- 20)

The contents
pre se nted in the The contents
guide line s are pre se nted in the Select ite ms Contents are not
Content strictly followe d guide line s are conforms with important or
and attaine d the followe d on some the guide line s relevant
overallobjective aspects. Output
of the objective is
requirement somehowachieve

Output is
Output la cks
Output is ge ne rally some what
Organization logicalorder
logicaland illogical and
Output is logical and
effective with a few confusing in
and effective. organization.
minor problem places.

Can unde rs ta nd Can unde rs ta nd

Can understand Can understand
less than half of little of wha t is
Comprehensibility all of wha t is most of wha t is
wha t is being being
being being
communicated. communicated.
communicated. communicated.

Submitted4
Submitted3
Time line ss days onwards
Submitted be fore due Submitted on due days after due
after the due
date date date
date

Grading System

Class Standing Percentage Midterm Final

Assignment/Activities/Modules &
50% Class Standing – 67% Class Standing - 67%
Google class –
Assessment Tasks – After each
50% Term Exam – 33% Term Exam – 33%
Topic

TOTAL 100% Final Rating

60% transmutation will be used. You should get atleast Midterm Grade (50%) + Final Grade (50%) =
60% of the total score Final Rating

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

Course Policy

1. Policy on submission of requirements

a. Make sure you joined the google classroom intended for your section.
b. All Assignments, Activities,Assessments and other requirements intended for each
lesson should be submitted on our google classroom.They should be submitted on
the w eek they are intended for.
c. Example
d. Week 1 Course Packet 1 – Topic 1 Intended for 1 week, that means
August 10-16. Anytime these days you can submit your work or
perform the activities.
e. Pre-assessment,activities,assignment,assessments,post -assessment will be posted in
our google class.Keep on following instructions
2. If face to face class is not possible, keep yourself updated, communications will be
through Facebook Messenger and Google Class.
3. Policies on Student Manual will be implemented.

For face to face classes:

4. Students should be responsible for keeping the classroom clean and organize. Class
officers will facilitate and initiate the cleaning of classrooms.
5. The use of cellphone and other gadgets is not allowed except if they will be used for
classroom activities allowed by the instructor
6. To know their status in the midterm period and how their grades are actually
computed, students will be computing their Midterm Grade
7. Attendance
Students are expected to attend class and actively participate in class discussions.
Ever y absence will be considered a deduction from your total attendance
Be on time, 10 minutes’ grace period is given but being late for more than 10 minutes
will be considered late and will be a deduction on your total attendance.
If you are absent during the meeting, you can schedule a consultation with your
professor.
You will be considered dropped if you incur 20% absences of the total attendance.
6. Assignments/Exercises/Activities
Perform all activities and submit on or before the scheduled date.
A deduction of 10 points for every hour late will be implemented
No special activity will be given for those who are absent if the activity is given and
required to be accomplished during the meeting)
8. Quizzes / Examinations
Examinations are to be announced.
Special examination will be given to students with valid reasons and supporting
evidence for being absent.
For missed quizzes you are given 1 w eek to take the quiz
9. Course requirements/projects will be submitted on the day/time agreed upon by the
professor and students.Students will be given enough time to accomplish the
requirements
10. Topic report if any will be given a w eek before it will be reported.
11. Communications,announcement, activities,requirements will be thru the class
presidents and to be posted on Google Classroom.

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

 Module Overview
Introduction
Understanding the Self as a New General Education Course deals with the nature of identity,
as well as the factors and forces that affect the development and maintenance of personal
identity. It is intended to facilitate the exploration of the issues and concern regarding self and

identity to arrive a better understanding of oneself. It strives to meet this goal by stressing the
integration of the personal with the academic-contextualizing matters discussed in the
classroom and in the everyday experiences of the students-making for better learning,
generating a new appreciation for the learning process, and developing a more critical and
reflective attitude while enabling them to manage and improve their selves to attain a b better
quality of life.

This module will instill an understanding of the self to fully understand the self would discuss
the following topic:

Topic 01: Philosophical Perspective of Self

Learning Outcomes
In this Chapter, the students will understand the construct of self from various disciplinary
perspectives (Philosophical, Sociological/ Anthropological, Psychological, and according to
Western and eastern Perspective) and likewise reflect those perspectives in relation to their
concrete and real experiences. At the end of the chapter, the student, the student will be able
to:
1. Understand the importance of knowing one’s self.
2. Discuss the different representations and conceptualizations of self from various
perspective.
3. Compare and contrast how the selfish being represented across different disciplines
and perspective.
4. Recognize and examine the different factors, and forces that influenced the self.

Minimum Technical Skills Requirement

Critical thinking skills
Oral and Written Communication skills

Learning Management System

Google Classroom: Understanding the Self
Class Code:

Duration

Topic 01: Philosophical Perspective of Self = 9 hours

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

Delivery Mode
Blended Learning (Synchronous via Zoom or Google Meet & Asynchronous via Google
Classroom)

Module Requirement with Rubrics

Students are expected to follow instructions on the module and keep themselves updated
through the google classroom.
Readings provided in this module or uploaded in google class is expected to be read and
understood. Scheduled online classes will be conducted to facilitate further learnings.

This module will cover the midterm and final examination.

Activities, Assignments, Assessments are provided in google class for enhanced learning.

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

 Learning Module

Understanding
The Self
Course Packet 01
Philosophical Perspectives
of Self

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

 Course Packet 01

Communication, Processes,
Principles and Ethics
Introduction
This topic will present the different perspective of 11 renowned philosophers who discussed
the essence and nature of man in order for us to understand or know ourselves and somehow
answer the perennial question: ‘Who am I?’.

Objectives
At the end of the lesson the students would be able to
1. Know and understand the theories and concepts relative to the philosophical quest
to know the self;
2. Discuss, compare and contrast the perspective ofdifferent philosophers about man
and himself;
3. Reflect these philosophical quests of knowing oneself to his real experiences in
order to identify some factors and forces that influenced; and
4. Develop/formulate his own philosophy of life

Duration
(Specify the number of hours allotted for this course packet.)

Topic 01: Philosophical Perspective of Self = 6 hours

(6 hours self-directed learning with practical exercises and assessment)

Delivery Mode
Blended Learning (Synchronous via Zoom or Google Meet & Asynchronous via Google
Classroom)

Assessment with Rubrics

An essay type of assessment will be given.

Requirement with Rubrics

No other requirement will be provided aside from the given Activities, Assignment and post
assessment. Numerical rating will be used.

Readings
Refer to your google classroom for the copy of Instructional Materials – Course Packet 01
and readings applicable to this topic.

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

Philosophical Perspective of Self

Introduction

This topic will present the different perspective of 11 renowned philosophers who discussed
the essence and nature of man in order for the learner to profoundly understand and know
himself and somehow answer the perennial question: ‘Who am I?’

The philosophers that will be presented here are the following: Socrates (469-399 BCE); Plato
(427-347 BCE); Augustine (354-430 CE); Rene Descartes (1596-1650 CE); John Locke (1632-1704
CE); David Hume (1632-1704 CE); Immanuel Kant (1724-1804 CE); Sigmund Freud (1856-1939
CE); Gilbert Ryle (1900-1976 CE); Paul Churchland (b. 1942); and Maurice Merleau-Ponty.

Answer the short exercise before proceeding with the content Pre-Assessment

(This is meant to onboard the learners. This will likewise assess the knowledge of the learners
on the topic.

Items to be included in the pre-assessment shall cover the whole topic and shall validate the
learning outcomes.

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

 (Pre-Assessment)
Duration: 45 minutes to 1 hour (open book)

Topic 01: PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVE OF SELF

NAME: ___________________________________________________ DATE: _______________

SCHEDUL E: ______________________________________________ SECTION: ____________

I. Identify what is being described by the following. Choose the letter of the cor r ect
answer that stated inside the box.

(A.) Eudaimonism, (B). Empiricism, (C) Innate Idea, (D) Rationalism, (E). Human Act, (F).
Body, (G). Self, (H) Good, (I) Consciousness, (J). Hegemony

_____1.A belief that the knowledge is derived from reason

_____2. Supremacy or dominance---just like the mind over matter.
_____3.Happiness is the be-all and the end all of life.
_____4.The state of being awake and aware of one's surroundings.
_____5.the theory that all knowledge is derived from sense-experience.
_____6.Inborn idea or the knowledge w e have since birth
_____7.Source of one’s dignity
_____8. A person's essential being that distinguishes them from others, especially considered
as the object of introspection or reflexive action.
_____9.The whole physical structure that forms a person.
_____10.Befitting to one’s nature

II. Count the true statements. Write ‘All’ if all statements are true, ‘Some’ if not all
statements are true,and ‘None’ if no statements are true.

_______1. Socrates was a legitimate teacher of his time. He is one of the members of the so-
called Sophists.
_______2. His teaching could also be described as an intellectual prostitution for it is for sale.
During the time of Socrates if parents wanted their children to have formal schooling then they
will hire the sophists.
________3.Knowledge for Plato is derived from sense perception.For him Man is a pure mind.
________4.Plato is the teacher of Socrates and the writing ofSocrates are very much influential
to Him. He is the founder of Academy.
________5. For Augustine, God is love. For him life is a dialectic movement towards love.
Therefore, love will never be the goal of life for it is God.
________6.For Rene Descartes,man is a rational being.Man is capable of thinking for he doubts
and to doubt is to think.
________7. John Locke just like Descartes is a rationalist. For him, man is one and the same
person because of his memory.

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

________8.David Hume is an empiricist.Empiricism is a belief that knowledge is derived from
reason and thinking.
________9.For Immanuel Kant, man has dignity. To do good is man’s duty and obligation.
________10.For Freud, man behavior is being influenced by the sub-conscious.Man behaved
when his superego won over the id and he misbehaved when id won.
________11.For Gilbert Ryle mind and body are things.Mind is not distinct from the body,the
only way by which w e can know how the mind is working is thr ough the behavior.
________12. According to Paul Churchland, “We do have an organ for understanding and
recognizing moral facts. It is called the brain.”
________13. The two basic entities of man are body and soul. For Merleau-Ponty, Self is an
embodied subjectivity.
________14. ‘Embodiment’ literally means the representation or expression of something in a tangible or
visible form. While subjectivity means the quality of being based on or influenced
by personal feelings, tastes,or opinions.
________15.Students can reflect those various perspectives of self in relation to their concrete
and real experiences. This is only true only if he has memories of his experiences.

Lesson Proper – duration 4 hours

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

Lesson 01: Philosophical Perspective of Self

Topic Outline:

W HAT IS PHILOSOPHY? “love of wisdom”

Philosophy is etymologically defined as ‘love of wisdom’. It is derived from the two Greek
words Philo which means love and Sophia which means wisdom.It is also a science ofall things
that exist in their ultimate nature or cause through the aid of human intellect alone.
W HAT IS ITS ORIGIN? “the sense of wonder (pagka-mangha)”
This discipline started centuries before Christ (as stated in the history of Philosophy) w hen
earliest thinkers began to wonder things and questioned the ‘basic stuff’, primary substratum
or ‘arche’that explains the ultimate nature of all thing around them.Prior to Socrates were the
Ionian Philosophers—Thales, Anaximenes and Anaximander. For Thales the basic stuff is
water.For Anaximenes it is air and for Anaximander the primary substratum is indeterminate
for nobody can determine what particular thing is the basic stuff.

HOW WAS THE PROBLEM OF SELF CAME OUT TO INQUIRE?

Moreover, after the series of thinkers from all across the ancient Greeks inquiring the nature of
change and the unity of the world amidst its diversity,a man came out to question something
else. This man is Socrates.Unlike his predecessors, he was more concerned with the pr ob lem
of the self. He was the first philosopher who ever engaged in the systematic knowing or
questioning of oneself. Furthermore, some philosophers who came after him elaborate more
the philosophical search of one’s definition of self.

WHO ARE YOU? The perspective of the following philosophers about man, his nature and
essence, and about himself (Yourself, myself, my identity)
1. SOCRATES (469-399 BCE)
“The unexamined life is not worth living”
- Socrates was born in Athens in approximately 469 BC. His father was a sculptor, his
mother was a midwife. His wife Xantippe bore him three children.
- He is known nowadays as the great teacher of mankind though during his time his
teaching is not legitimate for the authorized teachers those days were the Sophists. His teaching
was not formally held inside the four walls other classroom but on the street corners. Yet unlike
the Sophists, his teaching is for free. His teaching made knowledge is not for sale. Furthermore,
sometimes he is also being described as a market philosopher because of his proclivity for
engaging youths to discuss things, using the answer and question method in Agora (market
place).
- An examination of ‘Our Existence in the Universe’ is the focus of his philosophy. The
answer to the question ‘who am I’ is being exemplified by his maxim: “an unexamined life is
not worth living” (Plato’s Apology) leading to the optimistic and pro-active perspective of life
for the life worthy to live is a life full of examinations such as challenges trials difficulties,
doubts/questions, uncertainties, and the like. And so, there is an urgent call to examine one’s
life, for it is in the examination that w e can know ourselves.
- Man is a pure mind. Man’s existence was first in the realm of ideas and exists as a soul.
There was soul first before man’s body. This soul has knowledge by direct intuition and all
these are stored in his mind. He already has knowledge of everything (omniscient). However,
once he came to the material world or the world of senses, he forgot most of what he knew.

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

This resulted in lack of knowledge or ignorance which causes problems to man.
- However, knowledge can once again be restored through the process of dialectic
method, a sort of maieutic process, an intellectual midwifery of trying to draw truth out of the
pupil’s mind through question and answer (Q&A) or conversation method. The ultimately aim
of an exchange of question and answer is to make the person remember all the knowledge that
he has forgotten, including his former omniscient self.
- Socrates was arrested and condemned to die because of two charges: (a) Impiety,
because of not worshipping the gods of the state and introducing new and unfamiliar ways of
worshipping, and (b) Corruption of the minds of the young who would flock around him.

2. Plato. (427-347 BCE)

“Perfection consists in constant recollection and imitation of his former perfect self.”
- Plato is an ancient Greek philosopher, student of Socrates, teacher of Aristotle, and founder of
the Academy, now considered as the prototype of the modern university. He was
born into an aristocratic Athenian family. His father is Ariston, and his mother is Perictione, a
descendant of Solon--the Athenian lawgiver.
- The dichotomy of the Ideal world/ the world of Forms and the Material world is the
important fragment of his philosophy. The world of Forms is the permanent and unchanging
reality. The Material world is what w e see around us and just a replica of the real world found
in the world of Forms. He believed that human beings are composed of two things; a body and
a soul. Soul is the true self -the permanent, unchanging Self. The changing body, however: or
what w e see in the material world is not the real self but only a replica of our true Self.
- Plato’s Theory of Form asserted that the physical world is not really the real world
because the ultimate reality exists beyond physical world. Human soul as being the most divine
aspect of human being is not being looked at as something spiritual but rather one that has an
intellectual connotation. The three parts of the soul according to Plato are: the appetitive soul,
the rational soul, and the spirited soul.
- As a student of Socrates, Plato also believed that man’s soul pre-existed his body. And
in consonance with his theory of Idealism, Plato propounded the view that man, in his present
earthly existence, is only an imperfect copy of his real original self. The perfect man, a soul or
pure mind in the realm of ideas, knew all things by direct intuition, and had all this knowledge
stored in his mind. However, because of his banishment into this world of sense, he blurred,
or forgot all or most of what he knew.
- The solution to his present problems caused mostly by ignorance of lack of knowledge,
can be found by knowing and constantly recalling his former self and his perfections, and by
constant imitation of his ideal exemplar by the practice of virtue. And so once again man can
regain his perfection which he lost during his long earthly exile and his imprisonment in the
body as punishment for sin through constant recollection (inward contemplation) and
imitation (practice of virtue) of his former perfect self.

3. Augustine (354-430 CE)

“Man is a great mystery”
- St. Augustine was born in November 13, 354 CE at Tagaste, Numidia (now Souk-
Ahras, Algeria). His father was Patricius who was a government official, once a pagan but
converted to Christianity. His mother was Monica who was a devout Christian and wascanonized
by the Roman Catholic as a saint. He lived with a woman who bore him a son named
Adeodatus which is in Latin means “the gift of God”. Just like his father he was converted and
baptized into the catholic church. Later on he became a priest and bishop of Hippo (northern
Africa) and was awarded as Doctor of the Church, the title given to the defenders of the Church.
He was canonized and he is known as the “great formulator of Christian Doctrine”.
- Augustine calls man as great mystery. He asks the Psalmists, “What is man that thou

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

art mindful of him?” He wonders that there is in man which cannot be understood as a part of
the world as a thing among things. The certainty in human knowledge (the existence of God as
love) on which w e may absolutely rely and disclose one’s immediate awareness of oneself.
- According to him, our world (world of materials) is not our final home but just a
temporary home where w e are just passing through. Our real world is found in the world
where there is permanence and infinity that World is where God is. Only God is fully real -as
the unchanging, permanent being and he sees God as the ultimate expression of love. (City of
God, Books XIXXII). For him, out of love, God created man. Man is in fact, created in the image
of God. He has an immortal soul whose main pursuit is to have an everlasting life with God.
- St Augustine’s philosophy reconciles and brings together to an admirable synthesis
and harmony the wisdom of Greek philosophy and the divine truths contained in the
scriptures. The Greeks’ pursuit of happiness (Eudaimonism) and with what he told us with the
Bible that this happiness can be found in God alone. What was imperfectly perceived as God
in Plato’s and Aristotle’s concept of the absolute and immutable good, the “Summum Bonum”,
is now seen by Augustine with the aid of the light of divine revelation as the living personal
God, the creator of all things, the supreme ruler of the universe. So, the idea of the Good of
Plato is revealed, to Augustine as the living reality, God.
- What then is God? Augustine answers the question with the words of the Scriptures
that God is love; and since according to Plato, Morality consist in the constant imitation of the
divine model, Augustine following his great predecessor and educator, teaches that morality
consists in love since it is love that makes us like unto Love (God).
- Life to Augustine is a dialectic movement towards love. Virtue, which is the art of
living rightly and well, has been defined by Augustine as ‘the order of love’. A virtuous life is
a dynamism of the will which is towards love, while a wicked life is a constant turning away
from love.
- To love God means necessarily to love one’s fellowmen and to love one’s fellowmen
means never to do harm to another or as the golden principle of justice requires, to do unto others as
you would others do unto you. Love and justice, the two foundation stones of
individual as well as social ethics.

4. Rene Descartes (1596-1650 CE)

“I think therefore I am.”
- Rene Descartes, a French Philosopher, is considered to be a Father of Modern
Philosophy and a brilliant scientist and mathematician. His Metaphysical Dualism is the
philosophy of one who believes that ultimate reality is composed exclusively of two entities.
These two basic substances are mind and matter.
- His maxim ‘Cogito ergo sum’ (I think therefore I am) emphasizes the consciousness of
his mind leads to an evidence of one’s existence despite the belief that everything is to be
doubted. That the essence of man’s existence lay in being a purely thinking being because even
if he can doubt whether he has real body or it’s just a trick of his senses, one thing he cannot
doubt is that he is thinking.
- Man being a thinking substance reiterates Plato’s Dualism. The mind and the body are
very distinct from one another nonetheless he also believes that the mind is conjoined with the
body in such an intimate way that they causally act upon each other. When I talk about myself,
I talk about my body. The way I act and how I should perform something necessarily includes
the use of my body. Therefore, these two are separated but inseparable. Man has an ability to
think and act but he cannot do it without a body. Likewise, body is not just like a tool in a
mechanical principle like chair for example for it is also me for I cannot separate myself from
it. When you encounter my mind, it is already me that you are encountering, so I am my body
and my mind, but these two are still distinct from each other.
- The hegemony of the mind over the body tells us that the essence of the Self is in its
being a ‘thinking being’ (Mind more than the Body) that is why then the human soul requires

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

a science of its own, very much unlike that of mathematical science. When the body is gone,
the mind may continue to exist and function.

5. John Locke (1632-1704 CE)

He included memory in the definition of self. Human mind at birth is tabula rasa.
- John Locke is a great British Empiricist Philosophers and widely credited for laying the foundation
of human rights. He is commitment to the idea that the sovereign should be the
people and not the monarch.
- Distinct to the influence of his predecessors (like Descartes) that described self as a
thinking thing, he further included in his work the concept of a person’s memory in the
definition of the self—the memories of the thinking thing.
- The memory theory holds that w e are the same person as w e were in the past for as
long as w e can remember something from that past. The memory renders us self-conscious that
w e are one and the same person.
- His theory of personal identity justifies the defense of accountability that to him since
the person is the same in the passing of the time then he is held accountable for his past
behavior. The person could only be held accountable for the behavior he can remember. Locke
believed that punishing someone for the behaviors he has no recollection is tantamount to
punishing him for the action he never performed.

6. David Hume (1711-1776)

There is no self. A person is a bundle of perceptions. No impression corresponding to a self
that endures through time.
- Born in Scotland, he was a lawyer, philosopher, economist, and a historian for he w rote
History of England. He opposed rationalism (a belief that reason is a foundation of knowledge)
and just like Locke he is an empiricist (regarded the senses as our key source of knowledge).
- 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 w e perceive through our senses as
w e experience them; on the other hand, ideas are those things that w e create in our minds even
though w e are no longer experiencing them.
- Whenever w e think of simple ideas, it must have as a basis --a simple impression.
Complex ideas happen when w e combine simple ideas by arranging and rearranging them.
Because of this, I can make an entirely new creation like a unicorn.
- His idea of the self follows this philosophical pattern. In his Treatise on Human Nature.
Hume (1738), argues that when he looks into his mind, he finds a stream of impressions and
ideas, but no impression corresponding to a self that endures through time.
- The self keeps on changing, like how one looks, one feels. one thinks they constantly change. He
concludes that the self is nothing over and above the stream of perceptions w e
enjoy. An enduring self is just a fiction produced by our imagination. (Law , 2007)
- His bundle theory states that since a person is a bundle of perception then there is no
permanent and unchanging self (always in a continuous ‘perpetual flux) because it
continuously undergoes change. People will be constantly changing because of the different
experiences he has. That constant change will affect and reshape his personhood. Thus, w e
therefore, conclude that there is no self.

7. Immanuel Kant (1724-1804 CE)

Man has dignity. A key to find essence of the self.
- A citizen of Konigsberg, East Prussia. He is also considered as one of the giants in
philosophy though he barely stands five feet tall. He was spurred into philosophical activism
when he encountered Hume’s skepticism and took it upon himself to refute it. He (1781) argued

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

that it is possible to discover universal truth about the world using our reason. He also argued
that it is possible to find the essence of the Self.
- For his idea of the self, Kant (1781) believes that man is a free agent, capable of making
a decision for himself. His philosophy centers and revolves around the inherent dignity of a
human being. As a free agent, man is gifted with reason and free will.
- The necessity of his being free is tested in his decision to be moral. An individual has
the free will to be moral or not.
- A moral person is one who is driven by duty and acts towards the fulfillment of that
of that duty Thus for us to know what is our duty. w e have to rationally deliberate on it and
not expect that a higher authority will hand it on us automatically, and certainly w e cannot let
the arbitrariness of emotion guides us.
- Only a free agent will be able to make a rational deliberation, hence he alone' is the
moral agent of himself. It is also because w e acknowledge that each individual i s capable of
thinking that w e must give them respect by treating every individual as ends in themselves
and never as a means. This means that every person should not be exploited and used. (Kant,
1781).
- Hence, it’s easy for us to see his views on slavery, prostitution, bribery, etc. which
reduces man to a thing and therefore, considered as morally wrong acts. In refuting Hume’s idea that
there is no self, he said (1781) that since man is gifted with reason and free will, man
can organize the data gathered by the senses. From these data, and the way w e organize the
data, w e can now have a good idea of a man.

8. Sigmund Freud (1856-1939)

If ego behaves, then superego won. If ego misbehave then Id won. This battle is all taking place
in the subconscious. The realm of the ego is found in the conscious.
- Born in Frieberg, Moravia, this Jewish neurologist later on moved to Vienna. This
proved good for Vienna because Freud became famous and was considered as the father of
psychoanalysis, and he was more associated in Vienna than in anywhere else.
- His works center on the mind and its development. He devised a structure that defines
man according to his biological structure and w the influence of his socio-cultural environment.
- One of his famous ideas was the tripartite division of man- the id, ego, and the
superego.
- The Id represents man’s biological nature, the impulses and the bodily desires. The
Superego represents the ethical component of the personality and provides the moral
standards by which the ego operates.
- In a man’s stages of development, the id and the superego will find themselves
clashing against each other, with the superego trying to control the impulses of Id and the Id
trying to satisfy its urges.
- The winner of this inner battle will be manifested in the Ego, which is the self. Hence
the quote above. Things are not in control of the ego, but the ego only manifests the w inner
between the two.
- If ego behaves, then superego won. If ego misbehave then Id won. This battle is all
taking place in the subconscious although the realm of the ego is found in the conscious.

9. Gilbert Ryle (1900-1976)

“Minds are things, but different sorts of things from bodies.” (The Concept of the Mind, 1949)
- He studied and taught in Oxford University. This Englishman's Philosophy centers on
language. He claims that the problems of Philosophy were brought about only because of the
confusion due to misinterpretation, misunderstanding, etc. of words.
- The goal of philosophy should be to clear this confusion through linguistic analysis.
- In the earlier discussion, one of the main debates regarding man was whether there is
Learning Module: Understanding the Self
a dualism of mind-body, or is he only mind, body, memory? According to Ryle, the problem
was the categories that w e put those concepts in.
- In his book, Concepts of Mind, he (1949) criticized Descartes’ treatment of the mind.
For Descartes, the mind is a non-physical entity found within the body, which then produces
human behavior. This to him is the error, because a talk about the mind is simply a talk about
behavior.
- The mind is not distinct from the body, but rather refers to certain aspects of our bodies.
In fact, Ryle (1949, p130) he claims of exorcising the dogma of the Ghost in the Machine,
referring to the Cartesian category, Ryle gives this example (p132).
- Suppose that your parents went to your university and ask you to tour them around.
You show them the library, the rooms, the gym. However, they look disappointed and so you
ask them what is wrong. They answer that they ask you to tour them around the university, instead you
show them the library, rooms, etc. They do not realize that the term university
refers to the whole thing and not one specific building. This is how Descartes made the ‘category a
mistake’. Like the university, the concept of the mind expresses the entire system
of thoughts, emotions, actions, and so on that make up the human self (Ryle, 1949).
- The mind is not like a specific, separate entity but is certainly a part of our body.
Ideally, the separation of mind/soul and body could be possible, but in practice this is hardly
the case. The only way by which w e can know how the mind is working is through the behavior
of the person, hence w e can only know a person through how a man behaves, their tendencies
and reactions in certain circumstances.

10. Paul Churchland (b. 1942)

“We do have an organ for understanding and recognizing moral facts. It is called the brain.”
(A Neurocomputational Perspective,1989)
- Known for his Eliminative Materialism, this American professor from the University
of California, in partnership with his wife, believes that the self is the brain.

- With the advent of science and learning more about the nuances of the brain, it
becomes clear to Churchland that the term “mind”, our moods, emotions, actions,
consciousness are deeply affected by the state of our brain.
- That by manipulating certain parts of our brain, our feelings, actions and physical state are
successfully altered. It is only a matter of time before w e can fully comprehend how the brain works for
us to understand how it creates the Self.
- He proposes that a new conceptual framework should be made which is based on
neuroscience (Churchland, 2003)

11. Maurice Merleau-Ponty (1908-1961)

“We know not through our intellect but through our experience.”
- This French philosopher is known more for his existentialist philosophy. This naturally
reflects on his idea of the self. For him (1962), a person is defined by virtue of movement and
expression.
- To be a self is to be more than one’s body. It includes all the things that I will do w with
my body, how I will act on it and how I will make it act in consonance with other human beings.
- I am the sum of all that I make my body do. This includes the interpretation of the past
and how I actually make decisions in the present.
- The self is grounded on the experiences from the past, the possibilities for the future,
and the present cognition.
- He approaches the idea of self as a continuous flow of movement and expression from
infancy to adulthood. Our perception of who w e are is strictly tied to our own bodily
development. For example, an infant can have awareness of itself only when it learns to control
its eye movement and learns to interpret the data provided by the external (as opposed to its

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

internal self) world.
- The 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.

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

 Assessment
Name: ____________________________________________ Date: _______________

I. Matching Type
COLUMN A COLUMN B
_____ 1 Socrates A Thinking Entity
_____ 2 Anaximenes B Tabula rasa _____
_____ 3 St Augustine C To be with God
_____ 4 Self for Rene Descartes D Innate idea
_____ 5 Self for Augustine E Embodied subjectivity
_____ 6 Goal of man for St. Augustine F Inner immaterial “I”
_____ 7 Thales G Water is the basic Stuff
_____ 8 Plato H Self-knowledge
_____ 9 Maurice Ponty I Air is the ultimate nature
_____ 10 John Locke J Son of St. Monica
_____ 11 Cogito ergo Sum K Man has dignity
_____ 12 Sigmund Freud L I act therefore I am
_____ 13 Paul Churchland M I think therefore I exist
_____ 14 Gilbert Ryle N Nothing but matter exists
_____ 15 Immanuel Kant O The existence of the unconscious

II. Describe the following using two to three sentences only.

1. Body
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
2. Dualism
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
3. Theory of Form
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
4. Form and Matter
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
5. Category Mistake
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
6. Embodied Subjectivity
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
7. Empiricism
_____________________________________________________________________ ______
___________________________________________________________________________
8. Rationalism
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
9. Idealism
___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________
10. Eudaimonism

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

 ___________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________

III. Essay

What is your own philosophy of life? What do you think id the best life’s principle that is fitted
to your own experiences and convictions

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

 Assignment

Who am I?

Name: ___________________________ Date: __________________

Schedule: ________________________ Section: ________________

How do you think the following philosopher would answer the question “who you are” given their own
perspective of self?

1. Socrates and Plato

2. Augustine

3. Rene Descartes

4. John Locke

Learning Module: Understanding the Self

5. David Hume

6. Immanuel Kant

7. Sigmund Freud

8. Gilbert Ryle

9. Paul Churchland

10. Maurice Merleau-Ponty

Learning Module: Understanding the Self