Christine Joy Molina

BSN 1B

MAN AS A BEING

I. Man as a Biological Being

A. Man as a living organism

Man is a living organism who from birth is destined to die. While alive he has to struggle continually
with the forces in his environment; some of them friendly, others hostile e.g. music,
illness, pollution. In the micro and macro forms of life, man responds to environmental stimuli as a
particular unit-be it a solitary cell, a component organism or a member of conglomerate individuals.

SUBORDINATE SYSTEM –refers to the cell, organs and organ system found within the individual.
This system of man is necessary in carrying out daily activities which are vital to survival. Man’s
feeling of well-being each day depends on the condition of the various organs of the systems in his
body.

SUPERDIATE SYSTEM –refers to the family, community and society which consist of the bigger
unit of man. Provides man with the necessary framework of relationships which links him to the
family, community and society. Together with others in the family and community, he copes with
elements in his environment; his behavior which is greatly influenced by his relationships,
therefore as are just as important as the form and function of the different organ systems which
comprise the biologic nature of man.

ORGANISMIC BEHAVIOR –based on the two beliefs:

1. Man normally responds as a unified whole, not as a series of integrated parts. His mind and body
structures conform to the purpose for each part which was made. Since the mind operates in
conjunction with the body, what affects one stands alone. e.g the body changes when terrified.

2. Man as a whole is different from and more than the sum of his component parts. Man as a human
organism composed of various system is something more than the addition of his part. Given any
set of stimuli, he responds as predicted or becomes unpredictable because of other extraneous
variables.

Example: water composed of hydrogen and oxygen.

Therefore, organismic behavior refers to those observable features and actions that reflect man’s
functioning as a unified whole within the environment in which he exists.

B. Man is a system

Buckey’s definition of a system: a whole which function as a whole by virtue of the interdependence
of its parts. A system may be composed of subsystems. Each is designed to carry out an activity
which in turn is necessary for achieving the general purpose of the system.

C. Man has biologic needs.

A need is that which is necessary, useful or desirable to maintain well- being and life.

A need is something that is essential to the emotional and physiologic health and survival
of humans.

A need can be met, partially met or unmet.

Characteristics of Basic Human Needs (Kozier, p 274)

2. Although basic needs must be met, some needs can be deferred.

3. Failure to meet needs results in one or more homeostatic imbalances, which can eventually result
in illness.

4. A need can make itself felt by either external or internal stimuli.

5. A person who perceives a need can respond in several ways to meet it.

6. Needs are interrelated

II. Man as a Psychological Being

Through the help of the different senses, the human brain processes information from which it
perceives from its environment. An individual is greatly influenced by his experiences, leading to
subjective views on existence and the passage of time. Humans are said to possess consciousness,
self-awareness, and a mind which corresponds to the mental processes of thought.

Philosophers

1. Psychologist B.F. Skinner

 The human mind is an explanatory fiction that diverts attention from environmental causes
of behavior,
 Mental processes that are commonly seen may be better conceived as a form of covert
verbal behavior.

2. Daniel Dennett

 There is no such thing as a narrative center called the "mind", but that instead there is
simply a collection of sensory inputs and outputs: different kinds of "software" running in
parallel.

III. Man as a Social Being

Like most primates, humans are social by nature; however, humans are particularly adept at
utilizing systems of communication for self-expression, the exchange of ideas, and organization.
Humans create complex social structures composed of cooperating and competing groups, ranging
in scale from small families and partnerships to species-wide political, scientific and economic
unions

Social interactions between humans have also established an extremely wide variety of traditions,
rituals, ethics, values, social norms, and laws which form the basis of human society. Humans also
have a marked appreciation for beauty and aesthetics which, combined with the human desire for
self-expression, has led to cultural innovations such as art, literature and music.

The social dimensions of man are founded on nature:

•Man needs society in order to live life comfortably and safely.

•Against natural and other dangers, he needs protection from the society.

•Alone, he cannot arrive at the height of art, music, literature, history, philosophy and religion, etc.

•But the overwhelming proof of man’s natural tendency towards social life is his capacity of speech.
The Social Obligation, however, is a general not an individual command. The species of mankind has
the obligation to socialize or to form social units, but the individual as individual is exempted from
this general obligation. Under normal conditions, however, man needs society and not as a mere
convention.

Philosophers

1. Thomas Hobbes

 In the Leviathan claims that man’s need for society is physical. However, because of the
lurking dangers that such a social convention can cause, Hobbes proposes that the monster
that will exact obedience and inspire fear among citizens be created, somewhat similar to
the biblical monster, Leviathan.

2. Aristotle

 Wrote in the politics is still true: that man needs for society, and if he does not, because he is
sufficient unto himself, that man is either beast or a god.
 •Theoreticians, however, have pushed the idea of man as a social being to an extreme, thus,
the concept of socialism and communism

IV. Man as a Spiritual Being

Man is not only body, but he is something infinitely higher. Of all the animal creations of God, man is
the only animal who has been created in order that he may know his maker. Man’s aim in life is not
to add from day to day to his material prospects and to his material possessions but his
predominant calling is from day to day to come nearer to his maker [Mohandas Gandhi, 1948].

 To recognize our own limitations and possibilities it is right to know where we are, what
our world is.
 According to Plato reality is made up of two worlds namely, the world of Forms and the
world of Sense where human beings participate in both of these different worlds.
 The world of Sense which is proposed and believed by Heraclitus, is the world we see,
experience, the world of objects; a world of change, it is made up of matter and is bound to
decomposition.
 Heraclitus proves this through the statements “Cold things grow hot, the hot cools, the wet
dries, the parched moistens.” and “We both step and do not step into the same revers. We
are and we are not.”
 The world of Forms which is proposed by Parmenides who influenced Plato in this type of
world is a world that is eternal, perfect and unchanging.
 Parmenides proved the world of Forms by his statement “We can speak and think only of
what exists. And what exists is uncreated and imperishable for it is whole and unchanging
and complete. It was not or nor shall be different since it is now, all at once, one and
continuous.
 For Plato, reality is eternal and unchanging, it is the real world, the world of forms.
Everything in the world of senses is but an imitation or a mere shadow of the ideal.
 Human beings participate in both the senses and the ideal world because they have a
material body and immaterial soul, synthesis of change and permanence.
 Human beings are made of a body and soul, according to Plato, body is evil for it is inclined
to temporal things; objected to temporal satisfaction and happiness.
 As stated by Origen, a Christian theologian and philosopher that is also a Platonian “all
rational beings were once pure intellects in the presence of God, and would remain so
forever had they not fallen away through Koros (satiety).”
 Because of koros (sin) or our transgression and disobedience to God we are punished by
being given a body.
  The freedom of the soul from the body, its imprisonment is transcendence.
 Transcendence is the existence that is present beyond normal or physical level.
 Transcendence means that: “I am my body but at the same time I am more than my body.
The things that I do, all those physical activities and attributes which are made real through
my body, reveal the person that I am”.

Three Major Spiritual Philosophies

1. Hinduism is the belief in karma and reincarnation.

Brahman is Self-Hood Hinduism lies the idea of human being's quest for absolute
truth, so that one's soul and the Brahman or Atman (Absolute Soul) might become one.
For the Indians, God first created sound and the universe arose from it.

The Aum (Om) is the root of the universe and everything that exists and it
continues to hold everything together, the most sacred sound in which the universe arose
from and was the first thing God created

2. Buddhism is the life experience and teaching of Prince Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha -he
who achieves his aim), a tradition that focuses on personal spiritual development, solutions
is lay in his own mind and is famous for its belief in Nirvana; a place of perfect peace and
happiness.
3. Christianity is the religion based upon the teachings and miracles of Jesus where there is
only one God. Suffering leads to the Cross, the symbol of reality of God's saving love for the
human being and Evil is being disobedient, contradicting the nature of God and distancing
to God.