UNDERSTANDING THE SELF

NAME: BAJEN, MICHAEL JAN A.

BLOCK: 1-M
SUBJECT CODE: GE-535

ACTIVITY 1:
DO YOU TRULY KNOW YOURSELF?

1. HOW WOULD YOU CHARACTERIZE YOURSELF?

- I would characterize myself as just another human being who is fortunate enough to
be endowed with a good brain, a strong heart, a healthy and coordinated body, and
good parents. I am a revenue-focused type of guy. And when I say revenue-focused,
it means that I am confident in my ability to produce results. Of course, situations
happen when the results aren’t ideal, and when that does happen, I do my best to tip
the hat in a positive direction. I am hardworking and I set reasonable goals for
myself. Once those goals are in place, I can then back out from them and create
smaller goals or benchmarks to accomplish so I can continuously evaluate my
performance.

2. WHAT MAKES YOU STAND OUT FROM THE REST? WHAT MAKES YOU SPECIAL?
- The belief that myself is special is the only thing that makes it special – nothing else.
What I mean by that is, what makes gold a gold? It’s golden quality. What makes self
a self? It’s selfish quality. The belief in it being special is that very quality that makes
me stand out from the rest. And when belief is forgotten, the idea of self is forgotten.

3. HOW HAS YOU TRANSFORMED ITSELF?

- Life has stages. METAMORPHOSIS OF THE SOUL. You are always transforming.
Depending on what you experience in life you will never be the same person you
were before your new experiences. Some things change you forever. I didn’t know
an innocent flirtation and curious experience would lead to mistakenly falling in
love and getting my heart shattered. I had no idea it would change my life as to
where it is now. I cannot undo what I have experienced. I cannot erase what I know
about life in my present timeline because of it.

4. HOW IS YOU CONNECTED TO YOUR BODY?

- I am certainly connected to my body through a mind, heart, spirit, emotions, and
other connecting ligaments. These body components are connected with each other
in order to function well. Every feeling that I have inside, translates and reflects in
my actions. If I am feeling depressed, my physical body is also affected. I lose my
appetite, and my overall health is adversely affected. I lose weight and my actions
 become sluggish. It is the same the other way around. If my body gets bruised or I
cut myself, the physical pain is also shown in my expression and reaction.
5. HOW IS YOU RELATED TO OTHER SELVES?
- No matter how unique we are with each other, we are still related to each other. Our
selves somehow affect and relate with others depending in our core-values and we
live by it. Consequently, we attract what we are. It is somehow a default setting that
whatever we do, we could rapidly affect others as well, even though we might not
know it specifically. Furthermore, we tend to influence others through the way we
live and how we handle life. In relating ourselves with other selves, we tend to make
a connection would be victorious if both sides are open. If the other would not be
open, he/she would try to resist the effect of others to his/her system that would
cause misunderstanding.

6. WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO YOURSELF AFTER YOU DIE?

- What happens to yourself after you die is a matter of belief. There is a good deal of
evidence that the self, the point of consciousness, goes on to exist in another realm.
There is no actual proof because there is an alternate explanation for every
phenomenon that is evidence of life after death. So it all comes down to faith. A great
philosopher called it “The Great Perhaps”. I think that wen I have enough spiritual
experience and seen enough, I’ll be able to call it “The Great Probably”. I think our
consciousness continues to exit even after death.
APPLICATIONS AND ASSESSMENT

1. SOCRATES
- And contrary to the opinion of the masses, one's true self, according to Socrates, is
not to be identified with what we own, with our social status, our reputation, or
even with our body. Instead, Socrates famously maintained that our true self is our
soul.

2. PLATO
- Basically. He says that the self contains the mind, the spirit and the appetite. The
appetite is likened to desires, booth good and bad. This needs to be in moderation.
The spirit is what drives us to do things (“courage") and the mind is what rational
(“wisdom”) is. He says that the mind should rule over the spirit and the appetite.
And the each part need to do their respective jobs.

3. AUGUSTINE
- 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.

4. DESCARTES
- With its properties that seem to escape all natural laws, Descartes believed this
rather ethereal mind holds the seat of consciousness. It’s where we find our
sentiments, our drive, our understanding, and our passions. In short, all that we
really are, or our identity, comes from the mind. As Descartes so aptly put it, “I think,
therefore I am!”

5. HUME
- Hume in his theory has put forward the premise of understanding the ‘impression’
and ‘identity’ we have of ourselves before we dwell into the questions of ‘the self’.
According to Hume, as human beings we tend to think of ourselves as selves—who
are stable entities that exist over time but no matter how closely we examine our
own experiences, we never observe anything beyond a series of transient feelings,
sensations, and impressions.
6. KANT
- According to him, we all have an inner and an outer self which together form our
consciousness. The inner self is comprised of our psychological state and our
rational intellect. The outer self includes our sense and the physical world. When
speaking of the inner self, there is apperception.

7. RYLE
- Arguing that the mind does not exist and therefore can't be the seat of self, Ryle
believed that self comes from behavior. We're all just a bundle of behaviors caused
by the physical workings of the body.

8. MARLEAU-PONTY
- Maurice Merleau-Ponty believed the physical body to be an important part of what
makes up the subjective self. This concept stands in contradiction to rationalism and
empiricism. Rationalism asserts that reason and mental perception, rather than
physical senses and experience, are the basis of knowledge and self.
ACTIVITY 2:
MY SELF THROUGH THE YEARS
APPLICATIONS AND ASSESSMENT

1. HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF?

- I am ambitious and driven. I thrive on challenges and constantly set goals for myself,
so I have something to strive forward. I’m not comfortable with settling, and I’m
always looking for an opportunity to do better and achieve greatness.

2. WHAT ARE THE INFLUENCES OF FAMILY IN YOUR DEVELOPMENT AS AN

INDIVIDUAL?
- The influence of the family in the development of one's self depends on what kind of
family they have, either their family is good or bad. If the family is good and has a
close bond where each member has a good relationship with each other, this
influences you to be good too, to have a good interaction with other people having
patience and knowing how to understand other people depending on the morals
that your family had teach you and had shown you. But if the kind of family you have
is opposite to that, they are not understanding and each member doesn't have a
good connection with each other, very distant, then this will influence you to reflect
the kind of actions they are showing, you might be very distant to the people around
you. You also might not understand people around you because and you might be
very dependent to yourself only too. And for me, I may not have the perfect family
but I can say that they have raised me well as an individual.

3. THINK OF A TIME WHEN YOU FELT YOU WERE YOUR TRUE SELF. WHAT MADE
YOU THINK YOU WERE TRULY WHO YOU ARE DURING THIS TIME OF YOUR LIFE?
- There were many times when I felt that I am not living my true self in certain spaces.
It can be certain groups that you are associated with for quite a time. But honestly, it
never really bothered me because, I never gave it that much priority in my life, even
though I used to overthink a little about my behavior.

But this is not the story. Since I passed out of my school things between me and my
family started to change. They began to criticize my passions and as I started
exploring more stuff apart from my academics, they could have not understand from
my point of view, even though I tried to explain them.

That’s where it started when I had to pretend myself as someone else in front of my
parents. But there were times when I could not resist myself and still used to behave
like a small boy (who can make stupid jokes, can talk about fantasies and
 hypothetical situations) in front of them. Well, I faced their ignorance and it really
did hurt me. Gradually they stopped giving a shit about me, what I am doing, what
are my future plans, what are my present achievements, etc. I began to felt like a
stranger (in my own family) and sometimes I used to get too overwhelmed and
started feeling too much alone because I hardly open up in front of my friends.
When you have to live as someone else and not your 'true self' with the people you
are closest to, it hurts badly.
Slowly I learned to deal with it, made myself kind of loner for some time, and started
to just focus on my growth instead of craving family love and appreciation.

At last, I just want to say start to embrace your true self and live your ‘true self’ in
your actions.

4. WHAT SOCIAL PRESSURES HELP YOU SHAPE YOURSELF? WOULD YOU HAVE
WANTED IT OTHERWISE?
- The social pressure of conformity most shaped my personality. I wanted to be an
individual and unique. So I decided to dance to the beat of my own drum. I pushed
myself not to be defined by the labels of others. A lot of social pressure is placed on
success, so that also had an effect on me pushing myself to be the best I could be.
And if you ask me if I would have wanted it anyway? My answer would be no,
because I believe that no one deserves to live in a systematic way just because
society puts pressure on you to become like this and like that, or become like
him/her.

5. WHAT ASPECTS OF YOURSELF DO YOU THINK MAY BE CHANGED OR YOU WOULD

LIKE TO CHANGE?
Life is all about having changes and making improvements to get better and better.
But isn't it ironical that the things that we need them to be changed eventually
comes out to be the most challenging one.

For me, it is overthinking.

Yeah, you are right! Of course, everyone overthinks occasionally to tackle some
general life problems, but that is not overthinking. It is nothing but creating the
problems that aren’t  even there.

Overthinking is one of the most overrated things that you will find on internet. Each
and every site writing the same rubbish things like stress, fear and all. But according
to me the effect of overthinking on a person entirely depends on his personality and
affects whatever work he is doing. Let me share my experience here. Sometimes
when I see my peer groups having some kind of fun or anything likewise, I think to
myself “Why the hell are they doing this? How can they even enjoy this?” And
sometimes I find asking myself “Why the hell am I not doing this?”
LEARNING ASSESSMENT

A.

1. THE (NAME) IS NOT THE PERSON ITSELF NO MATTER HOW INTIMATELY BOUND
IT IS WITH THE BEARER
2. (AUGUSTINE) VIEW THE PERSON REFLECTS THE ENTIRE SPIRIT OF THE
MEDIEVAL WORLD WHEN IT COMES TO MAN.
3. (IMMANUEL KANT) THINKS THAT THE THINGS THAT MEN PERCEIVE AROUND
THEM ARE NOT JUST RANDOMLY INFUSED INTO THE HUMAN PERSON WITHOUT
AN ORGANIZING PRINCIPLE THAT REGULATES THE RELATIONSHIPS OF ALL
THESE IMPRESSIONS.
4. (MARLEAU-PONTY) IS A PHENOMONOLOGIST WHO ASSERTS THAT THE MIND-
BODY BIFURCATION THAT HAS BEEN GOING ON FOR A LONG TIME IS A FUTILE
ENDEAVOR AND AN INVALID PROBLEM.
5. (MATTER), OR HYLE IN GREEK REFERS TO THE “COMMON STUFF THAT MAKES UP
EVERYTHING IN THE UNIVERSE”. MAN’S BODY IS PART OF THE MATTER.
6. IN THE PHILIPPINES, (FILIPINOS) TEND TO CONSIDER THEIR TERRITORY AS A
PART OF WHO THEY ARE.
7. (MOI) REFERS TO A PERSON’S SENSE OF WHO HE IS, HIS BODY AND HIS BASIC
IDENTITY, HIS BIOLOGICAL GIVENESS.
8. A (YOUNG CHILD) INTERNALIZES VALUES, NORMS, PRACTICES, AND SOCIAL
BELIEFS AND MORE THROUGH EXPOSURE TO THIS DIALOGS THAT WILL
EVENTUALLY BECOME PART OF HIS INDIVIDUAL WORLD
9. (GENDER) IS ONE OF THE LOCI OF THE SELF THAT IS SUBJECT TO ALTERATION,
CHANGE, AND DEVELOPMENT.
10. (HUMAN PERSONS) LEARN THE WAYS OF LIVING AND THEREFORE THEIR
SELFHOOD BY BEING IN A FAMILY.

B.
1. B. NANCY CHODOROW
2. C. SOPHIA TOLSTOY
3. A. MEAD & VYGOTSKY
4. B. SELF AND CULTURE
5. C. SELF AND NATURE

C.
COLUMN A COLUMN B

1. HISTORY OF PHILOSOPHY – (E.) A. View of the human person reflects

the entire spirit of medieval world
when it comes to man.
2. THOMAS AQUINAS – (G.) B. Scottish philosopher has a very
unique way of looking a man.
C. Father of Modern Philosophy,
3. KANT – (D.) conceived of the human persons as
having a body and mind.
D. Thinking of the “self” is a mere
4. MEAD – (I.)
consideration of impressions was
problematic for him.
5. AUGUSTINE – (A.) E. Replete with men and women who
inquired into the fundamental
nature of the self.
6. PLATO – (F.) F. Claimed in his dialogue that
Socrates affirmed that the
unexamined life is not worth
7. GILBERT RYLE – (H.) living.
G. The most imminent 13th century
scholar and Stewart of the
8. RENE DESCARTES – (C.) Medieval Philosophy, appended
something to the Christian View.
H. The mind-body dichotomy that has
9. MASCULINITY – (J.) been running for a long time in the
history of thought by blatantly
denying the concept of an interval,
10. DAVID HUME – (B.) non-physical self.
I. Takes place as a child, assumes the
“other” through language and role-
play
J. Learned by integrating a young
boy into society.