Chapter 1: Different Perspectives of Self

For the audio-visual material of this topic, Philosophy & Science, on Youtube channel, click.

Overview of the Chapter:

This chapter presents the different perspectives of the self, namely: philosophical, psychological, sociological, and anthropological perspectives.  It primarily aims to achieve the first course outcome: articulate a holistic and comprehensive view of the self.  It is said that adolescence is the most turbulent stage of life for every individual.  It is when each one meets a major crisis about his/her identity --known as an identity crisis.  With this outcome, the students may be well disposed to manage and care for themselves in their adolescent life and their life in the future.

Lesson Contents:

1. Lesson 1: Philosophical Perspective [click]
2. Lesson 2: Psychological Perspective [click]
3. Lesson 3: Sociological Perspective [click]
4. Lesson 4: Anthropological Perspective 

Pre-test:[click] Before you proceed, check your prior knowledge on this topic.

Motivational Activity: For students to achieve the first course outcome, To articulate a holistic, comprehensive view of the self, students are required to do the following activities: Activity 1: Who am I?; Activity 2: Who do others say I am?; and Activity 3: Enriched Answer to the Question, Who am I?  In Activity 1 [click], students are going to answer the question, Who am I? using a metaphor.  They need to have an initial answer to the question as they journey to understand their individual selves deeper for the whole semester/summer.  Their answers will serve as a guide in every step on their way to life's journey and may serve as a basis for developing an informed answer by making use of the different perspectives after discussing Chapter 1.  In Activity 2 [click], the students are requested to ask their friends (at least 3) who they are to them.  In Activity 3 [click], students are asked to revisit their initial answers and enrich them using one or two theories/philosophies of self.  This can only be done after the discussion of Chapter 1.

Introduction:

Philosophy is known as the "mother of all sciences."  Before sciences became an independent discipline, philosophy was the first discipline taught in the West --ancient Greece in particular.  The different branches of science sprouted from this philosophical discipline. 

The branches of philosophy are divided into two approaches: systematic and historical.  Under systematic philosophy, the following subjects are included: (1) Philosophy of Man, (2) Epistemology, (3) Metaphysics, (4) Philosophy of Religion or Theodicy, (5) Social Philosophy, and (6) Philosophy of Science.  Under historical philosophy, the following subjects are included: (1) Ancient or Greek Philosophy, (2) Medieval Philosophy, (3) Modern Philosophy, and (4) Contemporary Philosophy.  Like philosophy, the branches of science are divided into two: natural and social.  Natural sciences include the following: Biology, Chemistry, Geology, Astronomy, and so on.  Social sciences include the following: Psychology, Sociology, Anthropology, History, Political Science, and so on.

For more discussion about philosophy, read What is Philosophy? [click].

Understanding The Self

For the audio-visual material of the Orientation of the course, Understanding the Self, on Youtube channel, click.

Starting Academic Year 2018-2019, college students are taking eight courses of the General Education Curriculum, namely: Understanding the Self, Contemporary World, Purposive Communication, Art Appreciation, Ethics, Readings in Philippine History, Mathematics in the Modern World, and Science & Technology and Society.  Understanding the Self (UTS) “introduces major theories of personalities (or the self) –its nature, development and dynamics” from different perspectives such as philosophical, psychological, sociological, and anthropological perspectives, “as well as those forces and factors that lead to the formation of the self and identity”.  It also “provides an experiential learning so as to ground these theories and perspectives in students’ concerns and issues relating to their personal self and identity” [CMO20, 2013].  Based on this course description, the following course contents are crafted:

1. Different Perspectives of the Self [click]
2. Unpacking the Self [click]
3. Managing and Caring for the Self [click]

These are the three major topics to discuss the whole semester/summer.  Hopefully, these topics will give you a glimmer of hope in your journey to understand your individual selves deeper.  The main objective in studying this course is “knowing thyself,” as Socrates would say.  Self-knowledge will give you a sense of direction.  If you live life with a sense of direction, you will find some sense of fulfillment in life.  If there is fulfillment, you have lived your life with meaning.  You haven't ended up hanging yourself because of desperation, of failures, of stress, etc.  At most, you are happy in life.

Since our journey is to understand the self, it is helpful for us to ask the question, Who am I?  This question is more personal than asking, What is the Self?  But, why we need to ask such question?

In modern times, the self is a fleeting reality.  By fleeting, I mean that the reality of the self is unstable like a feather drifting in the wind.  As the wind blows in that direction, the feather also goes.  If that is the reality of the self, there is nothing definite about it.  There is no exact definition of it.  There is no exact word for it.  There's no sense of talking who I am.  If that is so, we will encounter a lot of problems in living our lives.  For example, because of social media, we are in trouble in asking, “Who am I in FB, or What kind of self I am going to show in FB against Who am I offline?  An instructor may find himself in trouble with this question, Who am I in front of my students as a professional against Who am I in front of my students as a lover?  A student may find herself in dilemma in front of her handsome professor, Who am I as a student against Who am I as an admirer?  A nurse may find himself in trouble working in other countries, Who am I in a place where majority are tall and dark?  These are only some of the instances where one realizes that self is a fleeting reality.  The problem is, I can be this self in this particular situation and be another self in another situation.  With this dilemma, we ask once more, Who am I?

So, you have the whole semester or summer to answer the question.  I hope you make your study fruitful and meaningful.

Thank you.

Sir Roel


Before you proceed, consider the following important notes:

1. You can begin to view the contents of each chapter by pressing [click] above.  All contents, activities, quizzes of each chapter are linked to the different pages of this platform.  Just press [click] above to view them.  If you get lost in the middle of your search, please go back to this page, which is found in MS teams chatbox.  And, begin again by pressing the [click] above of the chapter you're currently reading.
2. In response to the need of having blended learning amidst this COVID 19 pandemic, this online workbook, or whatever we can call this, is of great help.  You can make use of this workbook "inside or outside" the classroom, or make use of this "online or offline."  Enjoy using this online workbook.
3. Classroom discussion is not encouraged at frequent times.  In lieu of it, we will be using MS Teams for our online discussion.