I.
WHAT IS THE SELF: DEFINITION AND resilience and adaptability as part of their
CONCEPT identity.
The Self refers to the totality of who a Exam tip: The body is not separate from the
person is — including one’s body, mind, self; it is one way the self is expressed.
emotions, consciousness, identity, values,
and relationships with others. It answers
the question “Who am I?” B. The Self as Mind
The concept of the self varies across The mind refers to thinking, reasoning,
disciplines such as philosophy, psychology, memory, imagination, emotions, and
sociology, and religion. Some view the self consciousness.
as fixed, while others see it as dynamic and
Key points:
continuously developing.
The mind enables self-awareness
Key idea for exams: The self is multi-
dimensional and not limited to one aspect Thoughts and emotions shape
only. behavior
Mental processes influence decision-
makin\g
II. DIMENSIONS OF THE SELF
Example: A student who believes “I am
A. The Self as Body
capable” performs better academically due
The body is the most visible and tangible to a positive mindset.
aspect of the self. It includes physical
appearance, biological traits, health, and
bodily experiences. C. The Self as Soul
Key points: The soul is the spiritual dimension of the
self. It is often associated with morality,
The body allows interaction with the
purpose, and the eternal aspect of human
physical world
beings.
Physical traits influence self-esteem
Key points:
and identity
Central in religious and spiritual
The body is shaped by culture,
traditions
gender norms, and society
Source of conscience and moral
Example: A person who is athletic may see
judgment
themselves as strong and disciplined, while
someone with a disability may develop Often considered immortal
Example: A person who refuses to cheat
despite pressure believes it is wrong at a
1. Socrates – “Know Thyself”
soul or moral level.
View of the Self: The self is the soul, and
knowing oneself leads to virtue and
D. The Self as Social Identity wisdom.
The self is shaped by social roles and Key ideas:
relationships.
Self-knowledge is essential to a good
Key points: life
Identity is influenced by family, Ignorance leads to wrongdoing
culture, religion, gender, profession,
Example: A person reflects on their actions
and nationality
and corrects immoral behavior through self-
The self changes depending on examination.
social context
Example: A person may be a student in
2. Plato
school, a child at home, and a leader in the
community — each role shapes the self. View of the Self: The self is an immortal
soul temporarily united with the body.
Three parts of the soul:
E. The Self as Evolving
1. Rational (reason)
The self is not fixed; it develops over time
through experiences. 2. Spirited (emotion)
Key points: 3. Appetitive (desire)
Growth occurs through learning, Example: Choosing to study instead of
failure, and reflection partying shows reason controlling desire.
Life stages influence identity
Example: A shy teenager may grow into a 3. Augustine of Hippo
confident adult after gaining experience and
View of the Self: The self is a spiritual being
self-knowledge.
created by God.
Key ideas:
III. THE SELF FROM VARIOUS
Self-knowledge leads to knowledge
PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES
of God
Inner reflection reveals truth Personal identity depends on
memory continuity
Example: Prayer and introspection help a
person understand their true self. Same person if same memories
Example: A person remembers childhood
experiences and identifies as the same self.
4. Thomas Aquinas
View of the Self: The self is a unity of body
and soul. 7. David Hume
Key ideas: View of the Self: There is no permanent
self, only a bundle of perceptions.
Body and soul are inseparable
Key ideas:
Reason and faith work together
Self is a collection of sensations and
Example: Helping others is both a rational
experiences
and moral action.
No fixed identity
Example: Mood, thoughts, and feelings
5. René Descartes
constantly change, forming the illusion of a
View of the Self: The self is the thinking stable self.
mind.
Famous line: “I think, therefore I am.”
8. Immanuel Kant
Key ideas:
View of the Self: The self is the rational
Mind and body are separate moral agent.
(dualism)
Key ideas:
Thinking proves existence
We cannot know the self fully
Example: Even when doubting everything,
Moral responsibility defines the self
one cannot doubt that they are thinking.
Example: A person chooses honesty
because it is morally right.
6. John Locke
View of the Self: The self is based on
9. Gilbert Ryle
memory and consciousness.
View of the Self: The self is not a separate
Key ideas:
mind, but behavior.
Key ideas: Key ideas:
Rejected mind-body dualism Identity is shaped by social roles
Mind is shown through actions Emphasis on harmony and virtue
Example: Intelligence is seen in how one Example: Being a good child, student, or
solves problems, not in an inner “mind.” leader fulfills the self.
10. Maurice Merleau-Ponty 13. Lao Tzu
View of the Self: The self is embodied View of the Self: The self is part of the Tao
consciousness. (the Way).
Key ideas: Key ideas:
Body and mind are inseparable Let go of ego
We experience the world through Live naturally and simply
the body
Example: A person lives peacefully by
Example: Fear is felt physically (heartbeat, accepting life’s flow instead of forcing
sweating), not just mentally. control.
COURSE BACKGROUND: UNDERSTANDING
THE SELF
11. Jean-Paul Sartre
The course Understanding the Self deals
View of the Self: The self is free and self-
with the nature of identity and the different
created.
factors that affect the development and
Key ideas: maintenance of personal identity. It
examines how the self is understood from
Existence precedes essence
various philosophical and psychological
We define ourselves through choices perspectives and how individuals manage
and care for themselves.
Example: A person becomes responsible by
choosing responsible actions.
OVERVIEW: PHILOSOPHERS DISCUSSED
12. Confucius Socrates, Plato, St. Augustine, René
Descartes, John Locke, David Hume,
View of the Self: The self is relational and
Immanuel Kant, Sigmund Freud, Gilbert
moral.
Ryle, Paul Churchland, and Maurice states that true reality exists beyond the
Merleau-Ponty. physical world.
Plato believed that the self is an immortal
soul temporarily united with the body. The
SOCRATES – THE SELF AS SOUL
physical world is not the true reality; reality
Socrates was a Greek philosopher who exists in the world of forms.
never wrote anything. Knowledge about
He divided the soul into three parts:
him comes from the writings of his student
Plato and the historian Xenophon. He is 1. Rational – reason and intellect
known for the Socratic Method, a method
2. Spirited – emotions and courage
of inquiry that involves asking a series of
questions to uncover underlying beliefs and 3. Appetitive – desires and sensual
arrive at truth. needs
Socrates believed that the self is the soul, A balanced self exists when reason controls
which is immortal and divine. He emotions and desires. Plato believed that
emphasized that the care of the soul is the virtue is necessary for a healthy soul and
main task of philosophy. According to him, that the body is often the source of
virtue is necessary to achieve happiness, troubles.
and wrongdoing results from ignorance.
He believed that a person’s inner being
ST. AUGUSTINE OF HIPPO – THE SELF AS AN
determines the quality of life. He
INNER SOUL
distinguished two kinds of existence: the
visible (physical) and the invisible (soul). His St. Augustine was deeply influenced by
famous statement, “I know that I do not Plato and gave his ideas a Christian
know,” highlights humility and the interpretation. He believed that the self is
importance of self-knowledge. an inner, immaterial soul created by God.
Socrates was sentenced to death at the age According to Augustine, human beings are
of 70 for impiety and corrupting the youth. composed of both body and soul. The soul
Despite this, he chose death over is capable of self-awareness, self-
abandoning his principles. knowledge, and recognizing itself as a
unified whole. He emphasized that all truth
and knowledge ultimately lead to God.
PLATO – THE SELF AS AN IMMORTAL SOUL
For Augustine, understanding the self
Plato was a student of Socrates and the through inner reflection brings one closer to
writer of the Socratic Dialogues. He is best God.
known for the Theory of Forms, which
David Hume was a Scottish philosopher and
a strong critic of rationalism. He believed
RENÉ DESCARTES – THE SELF AS A
that all knowledge is derived from human
THINKING THING
senses.
René Descartes was a French philosopher,
Hume argued that the self does not exist as
mathematician, and scientist, known as the
a permanent entity. Instead, it is a bundle
father of modern Western philosophy. He
of perceptions—constantly changing
introduced methodological doubt, also
thoughts, feelings, and sensations.
called hyperbolic doubt, as a tool of inquiry.
According to Hume, the idea of a stable self
Descartes famously declared, “I think,
is merely an illusion created by the
therefore I am.” He argued that the act of
continuous flow of experiences.
thinking proves the existence of the self.
He believed that the self is a thinking,
immaterial soul that remains constant over IMMANUEL KANT – THE SELF AS A MORAL
time. Descartes proposed mind-body AGENT
dualism, claiming that the mind and body
Immanuel Kant believed that the self is
are separate substances.
transcendental, meaning it cannot be fully
known through experience. The self exists
beyond the physical body.
JOHN LOCKE – THE SELF AS
CONSCIOUSNESS AND MEMORY He argued that the human mind structures
experience and that reason is the final
John Locke expanded Descartes’ idea by
authority of morality. Moral actions are
including memory as a key component of
based on duty and rational principles, not
the self. He argued that personal identity
emotions or consequences.
depends on the continuity of consciousness.
The self consists of both inner
Locke believed that the human mind at
(psychological) and outer (physical) aspects.
birth is a tabula rasa (blank slate) and that
all knowledge is derived from experience.
A person remains the same self as long as SIGMUND FREUD – THE PSYCHOANALYTIC
they can remember their past experiences. SELF
Sigmund Freud was a philosopher,
psychologist, and physiologist. He
DAVID HUME – THE SELF AS A BUNDLE OF
introduced psychoanalysis as a method to
PERCEPTIONS
understand the human mind.
Freud proposed three levels of Paul Churchland supported eliminative
consciousness: materialism, the belief that only the
physical brain exists and that the mind or
1. Conscious – thoughts we are aware
soul does not.
of
He argued that common-sense beliefs about
2. Preconscious/Subconscious –
the mind are false and should be replaced
thoughts that can be accessed
by scientific explanations. For Churchland,
3. Unconscious – hidden desires and the physical brain gives us our sense of self.
impulses
He also introduced the three components of
MAURICE MERLEAU-PONTY – THE
personality:
EMBODIED SELF
Id – basic urges and desires
Maurice Merleau-Ponty rejected mind-body
Ego – rational self that mediates dualism and argued that the self is
embodied subjectivity.
Superego – moral conscience
He believed that the body and mind are
Freud believed that unconscious desires
intrinsically connected and that the body is
strongly influence behavior.
the primary way we experience and
understand the world.
GILBERT RYLE – THE SELF AS BEHAVIOR For Merleau-Ponty, the physical body is an
essential part of the self.
Gilbert Ryle rejected Descartes’ mind-body
dualism in his book The Concept of Mind. He
argued that the mind is not a separate
SUMMARY FOR EXAMS
entity from the body.
The self can be understood in many ways:
According to Ryle, the self is defined by
as a soul, a thinking mind, memory,
actions and behavior, not by an invisible
perception, moral agency, unconscious
mind. Mental processes are intelligent acts
processes, behavior, brain activity, or
expressed through behavior.
embodied experience. Each philosopher
His idea can be summarized as “I act, provides a unique perspective that
therefore I am.” contributes to a deeper understanding of
human identity.
PAUL CHURCHLAND – THE SELF AS THE
BRAIN