2.
1 WHY DOES YOUR VIEW OF
HUMAN MATTER? (pp. 51-56)
When we talk about Human Nature we
often ask these questions
What is Human Being?
How do you see yourself?
How do others see you?
How do you live?
According to psychologists:
Human Nature is motivated solely by
self-interest or unselfish considerations.
According to Freud; Men are powerful
measure of desire for aggressiveness.
Thomas Hobbes defined Human Nature as
a Psychological Egoism.
This theory says that human beings are made
so that they act only out of self-interest.
Hobbes; Human are material bodies, and
we can explain their activities much like those
of a biological machine. Whenever
human beings do somethings, they are seeking
satisfaction of their own mechanistic
desires.
Hobbes claimed the Antisocial desire for
power over others is what mainly motivates
human beings.
According to Mark Mercer,
When people act intentionally, they always
expect a self-regarding benefit/reward.
Behind any action whatever that an agents
performs intentionally, ultimately their lies an
agents expectation of realizing one or more of
her self-regarding ends, an expectation without
which the agent would not have performed the
action.
Self-regarding End is something that
rewards or benefits ones own self such as
getting:
Pleasure
Happiness
Avoiding pain
Gaining power/ Possessions
Self-respect
Being loved
Feeling good about oneself
Have other think well about oneself
Mercer argues that we look on our intentional
actions (Introspection)
Introspection is the way which one examine
or observe ones own mental and emotional
processes.
We couldnt fully understand others action
unless we attribute to such motive.
The only kind of motivation we can
understand is self-interest or in his words,
the expectation of realizing some self-
regarding end.
Actions are performed in expectation of a
Reward.
DEFINE DEDUCTIVE AND
INDUCTIVE
Deductive argument- is meat to show its
conclusion is necessarily true if its premises
are true.
Inductive/Probable argument- is meant to
show its conclusion is probably but not
necessarily true if its premises are true.
We can evaluate whether an argument is valid
by trying to imagine situations in which
premises are true but its conclusion is false.
THE IMPORTANCE OF
UNDERSTANDING HUMAN
NATURE
Beliefs about our nature influence our
relationship, our view of our place in the
universe.
VIEWS OF HUMAN NATURE:
Mercers View: Human act out of self-
interest
We think all humans are selfish
We start to mistrust others
 We become suspicious of kindness
and continually wonder what benefit
does other people get
OPPOSITE VIEW:
Human do not act out of self-interest
We gain trust and openness
We accept kind gestures of strangers as
natural
Human have a spiritual aspect as well as
material aspect.
Humans are open to religious
experience
Humans are willing to see his life in
this material universe
Human Being is purely a physical
creature.
Highly developed brain
Uses Reasoning
S 2.2 WHAT HUMAN NATURE?
(pp. 57-81)
*Read the story about near death experience.*
Life after death assumes that the self is
conscious, has a purpose and is distinct from
its material body.
Life after death assumptions about Human
Nature:
All humans beings have a self Ego or I that
exist in the physical body and that is conscious
and rational.
This Self can think, reason and perceive.
SELF:
Have a purpose
Different from, but related to, the
body. The body is describes a
physical/material entity, while the
self is described as a
spiritual/immaterial entity (soul) that
can survive death from its body.
Endures through time
Independent Individual; it exists
separate from other things and people,
with an independent identity.
*All thigs mention above for 2.2 are the
Traditional Western View of Human Nature*
THE RATIONALISTIC VERSION OF
THE TRADITIONAL WESTERN
VIEW OF HUMAN NATURE
REASONING is the highest power
According to Plato, the highly influential
version of the Traditional theory of human
nature views that humans primarily are self-
capable of reasoning.
Plato: What is Self?
According to Plato..
Soul=Psyche or Inner self
Plato illustrated is view using a
Poisoned water and for example he suppose
that you are very thirsty, one part of yourself
invites you to drink he called as APETITE.
By APETITE, he meant thirst and hunger
(sexual and other desires)
Yet a second part of yourself, reason, forbids
you to drink.
Plato meant that; through reasoning Human
capacity for thinking reflectively for drawing
conclusion--- the ability to follow relationships
from one thought to another in orderly and
rational way.
Rational part of Human Self: BRAIN
But Conflict arises
Appetite vs. Aggression/Self-assertiveness
In my own view.(hehe)
I considered Platos view as similar as Freuds
idea about human psyche.
Freud distinguish through 3 personality,
namely:
The ID- operates our desires and wishful Although, the ability of human to control
impulse should be satisfied immediately, appetite and aggression varies on the humans
regardless of the consequence likewise it is past life choices. (Domino effect)
similar to the definition of APPETITE.
Aristotle agrees to Plato that: REASON is the
ID is chaotic and unreasonable. highest power but ARISTOTLE viewed that
HUMAN NATURE requires only knowledge
The EGO or I- works by Reason, it works of our own world, thus PLATO viewed that
out realistic ways of satisfying the ids HUMAN NATURE involves knowledge of
demands, often compromising or another world of reality and the ability of
postponing satisfaction to avoid negative human to reason sets human self apart from
consequences. other creatures.
The EGO seeks pleasure and avoids pain but
devising a realistic strategy to obtain pleasure.
If the EGO fails in its attempt to use the ARISTOTLE:
reality principle, and anxiety is experienced,
unconscious defense mechanism are employed
which is similar with AGGRESSION.
The SUPEREGO or I Above- incorporates
the values and morals of society.
Uses our Conscience to determine
GOOD/RIGHT vs. BAD/WRONG
Its function is to control ids impulse which
society forbids and also, it persuade the ego
to turn to moralistic goals rather than
simply realistic ones and to strive for
perfection.

Plato use the word: FORMS

FORMS- external and perfect ideals that
exist in an unchanging perfect heaven.
Purpose of a soul= Free of its body ascend
to heaven and be united with perfect forms
The soul can do this if it can control its bodily
desires and trains its aggressive impulse
Plato concluded that: Reason, Appetite and
Aggression are 3 main parts of Human
Nature.
Reason can know how we ought to live, for
that it should rule appetite and aggression.
PLATOS RATIONALISTIC VIEW:
Human control their appetite and aggressive
impulse through the use of reasoning.