THE SELF FROM THE PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVE

Lecture Notes for GSELF Class

Marietta M. Lingvall

1. Ancient and Medieval

2. Modern
3. Contemporary

ANCIENT AND MEDIEVAL

SELF = perfection of the soul via self-examination and self-control
Ancient Greeks: “the soul is the essence of man”
“KNOW THYSELF”
*imperative – one must know the limits of the self
*requirement – self-moderation; prudence; good judgment

Socrates:
“The unexamined life is not worth living.”
An examined life:
* self-knowledge
* self dignified with values and integrity
* wisdom
* recognize ignorance

Socrates’s Central Concern: The Soul

Psyche - The true self or “soul,” which is immortal and imperishable and after
death should continue to exist in another world.”
What is the soul?
* It is your core identity
* Your unique spirit that makes you distinctively you
* This is your authentic personality, your distinctive character.
* Your soul is the source of your deepest thoughts and highest aspirations,
the unique life force that shapes and defines itself through choices made
on a daily basis.
Socrates believes, there is a clearly defined path to achieving happiness,
though many don’t choose to take it
The only people who are truly happy are those who are virtuous and wise, who
live reflective, “examined” lives and strive to behave rightly and justly in every
area of their lives
These people create souls that are good, wise, and courageous and as a
result they achieve genuine and lasting happiness

"TO KNOW, IS TO KNOW THAT YOU KNOW NOTHING. THAT IS THE MEANING OF
TRUE KNOWLEDGE" Socrates

1
Plato:
The examination of the self is a unique experience

Elements of the Psyche (Self)

1. APPETITIVE/PHYSICAL – Our basic biological needs such as hunger, thirst, and

sexual desire, pleasures, physical satisfactions, comforts
2. SPIRITED/PASSION – Our basic emotions such as love, anger, ambition,
aggressiveness, empathy, motivations, fights back
3. MIND/REASON – Our divine essence that enables us to think deeply, make
wise choices, and achieve a true understanding of eternal truths, most
superior, controls the appetitive and spirited elements

“nous” – conscious awareness

These three elements of our selves are in a dynamic relationship with one
another, sometimes working in concert, sometimes in bitter conflict.
For example, we may develop a romantic relationship with someone who is an
intellectual companion (Reason), with whom we are passionately in love
(Spirit), and whom we find sexually attractive, igniting our lustful desires
(Appetite).
When conflict occurs, Plato believes it is the responsibility of our Reason to sort
things out and exert control, reestablishing a harmonious relationship among
the three elements of our selves.

Chariot analogy:

• Plato says, “We will liken the soul to the composite nature of a pair of winged
horses and a charioteer.”
• One horse represents Passion (noble horse), the other Appetite (wild horse),
and the charioteer who tries to control them is Reason.

"HUMAN BEHAVIOR FLOWS FROM THREE SOURCES: desire, emotion and

knowledge" Plato

St. Augustine:
The development of the self is achieved through self-presentation and self-
realization
centered on religious convictions and beliefs
Man’s end goal = HAPPINESS = attained in and through GOD

" THIS IS THE VERY PERFECTION OF A MAN, TO FIND OUT HIS OWN IMPERFECTIONS"
Saint Augustine

2
MODERN

SELF = dialectic synthesis between Rationalism (a theory that reason is in itself a

source of knowledge) and Empiricism (a theory that all knowledge originates
in experience)

Rene Descartes:- “I think therefore I am”

Rational Method
“Methodic Doubt” = everything must be subjected to doubt
Who is doubting? Me! = SELF

HUMAN RATIONALITY
• primary condition of the existence of the self
• a way of searching for certainty by systematically tentatively doubting
everything/ constant doubting regarding one’s existence is a proof that a
person actually exist
• We need to reason to:
* evaluate our thoughts
* evaluate our actions
* establish firm foundations
* exist
* protect ourselves
* build
Descartes declares that the essential self—the self as thinking entity—is
radically different than the self as physical body.
The thinking self—or soul—is a nonmaterial, immortal, conscious being,
independent of the physical laws of the universe.
The physical body is a material, mortal, nonthinking entity, fully governed by
the physical laws of nature.
If you reflect thoughtfully, you can see that you have clear ideas of both your
self as a thinking entity and your self as a physical body - these two dimensions
of your self are quite distinct

"IT IS NOT ENOUGH TO HAVE A GOOD MIND; THE MAIN THING IS TO USE IT WELL" -
Rene Descartes

Analysing Descartes on the Mind-Body Problem

A. Describe one way your mind significantly affects your body: for example,
when you are anxious, elated, depressed, in love (or lust), and so on
B. Describe some of the ways your body significantly affects your mind: for
example, when you are feeling sick, deprived of sleep, taking medications,
or finding yourself in a physically dangerous or threatening situation

3
C. Create your own metaphysical framework for the self by describing
1. your self as thinking subject
2. your self as physical body
3. your analysis of how these two aspects of your self relate to one another

John Locke:
‘tabula rasa’
SELF = empty space - filled by everyday experience.- necessary for sense data
sense perception
Man is capable of learning from experience, and skillful enough to process
different perceptions to form a more complex idea
For Locke, all knowledge originates in our direct sense experience, which acts
as the final court of judgment in evaluating the accuracy and value of ideas.
keys to understanding the self are: conscious awareness and memory of
previous experiences
In other words, you have a coherent concept of your self as a personal identity
because you are aware of your self when you are thinking, feeling, and willing
(sensation) and;you have memories of times when you were aware of your self
in the past or in other situations (perception)

"NO MAN'S KNOWLEDGE HERE CAN GO BEYOND HIS EXPERIENCE" John Locke

David Hume: - “There is no self”

The idea of the self is derived from impressions
subjective, temporary, prejudicial, cannot be persisting
Knowledge of the self = bundles of temporary impressions/perceptions
Q: Who am I?
A: David, Psychology student, 65kg, good singer
Humans so desperately want to believe that they have a unified and
continuous self or soul that they use their imaginations to construct a fictional
self.
But this fictional self is not real; what we call the self is an imaginary creature,
derived from a succession of impermanent states and events.

"BEAUTY IN THINGS EXISTS IN THE MIND WHICH CONTEMPLATES THEM" - David

Hume

Immanuel Kant:
RATIONALITY
* unifies and makes sense the perceptions we have in our experiences
* makes sensible ideas about ourselves and the world
The self is always transcendental.
The self or being is outside the body.

4
 Ideas are perceived by the self and connect the self and the world.
Your self isn’t an object located in your consciousness with other objects—your
self is a subject, an organizing principle that makes a unified and intelligible
experience possible.
The self is the product of reason, a regulative principle because the self
“regulates” experience by making unified experience possible.

"IF MAN MAKES HIMSELF A WORM HE MUST NOT COMPLAIN WHEN HE IS TRODDEN
ON" - Immanuel Kant

CONTEMPORARY

SELF = explained by a wide variety of theories

Sigmund Freud:
The self is the “I” that constitutes both mental and physical actions.
The “I” is a product of multiple interacting processes.
Topographical Model = we know and do not know certain things at the same
time
“I” is the Conscious and Unconscious
1. Conscious Level : Thoughts and Perceptions
2. Subconscious Level: Memories and Stored Knowledge
3. Unconscious Level - Fears, Violent Motives,Unacceptable Sexual
desires,Irrational Wishes, Immoral Urges,Shameful Experiences, Selfish Need

Structural Model

SELF =Id, Ego and Superego

• Id - "I want chocolate"
• Ego - "Eat a small bar of chocolate"
• Superego - "You're on a diet"

Gilbert Ryle: “You are what you do.”

The mind is never separate from the body; physical actions or behaviors are
dispositions of the self
The self is understood based on external manifestations (behaviors, language,
expressions)
“Soul” – refers to the way one behaves
“I act therefore I am.”

"IN SEARCHING FOR THE SELF, ONE CANNOT SIMULTANEOUSLY BE THE HUNTER AND
HUNTED - Gilbert Ryle

5
Paul & Patricia Churchland:
“Eliminative Materialism” -states how the way we commonly think and talk
about the mind is so mistaken that mental concepts should be abandoned
and brain processed be focused on instead.
Neuroscience - in Understanding the Self
* To understand the present condition of the brain and how it is currently
working, one must go for MRI Scan or CT Scan.

Maurice Merleau-Ponty
Perception of the SELF = through Phenomenological Rhythm
*perception
*idealist-intellectual alternative
*synthesis of both Perception = causal process
perceptions are caused by the experiences of the self and processed
intellectually
truth is distinguished from illusion
SELF = phenomenon of the whole

SUMMARY: Who are you? Consciousness, Identity & the Self

1. Socrates, Plato & Augustine

* The Self is an immortal soul that exists over time
2. Rene Descarte
*The Self is a thinking thing, Distinct from the body
3. John Locke
*Personal identity is made possible by self-consciousness
4. David Hume
*There is No “Self”, only a bundle of constantly changing perceptions
passing through the theater of our minds
5. Immanuel Kant
*The Self is an unifying subject
*An organizing consciousness that makes intelligible
6. Sigmund Freud
*The Self is multi-layered
7. Gilbert Ryle
*The Self is the way people behave
8. Paul & Patricia Churchland
*The Self is the Brain.Mental states will be superseded by Brain states.
9. Maurice Merleau-Ponty
The Self is embodied Subjectivity