PHILOSOPHY consequences.

Taking responsibility can either mean

a person voluntarily taking responsibility for his or
Freedom of the Human Person her own actions, or being held responsible by other
people. Whenever you know you committed a bad
action, you can either voluntarily confess to it or
other people will point it out and hold you
Freedom, intrinsic and essential property of the responsible. Responsibility can also have a positive
person. This means that the human person by nature or negative meaning, and it goes hand-in-hand with
is free being and that it is in his or her nature to seek voluntariness in determining the morality of an
freedom. An important indication of human freedom action.
is the ability to make choices and perform actions.
Our freedom to act sets us apart from other beings. Another reality we have to face as we exercise our
freedom is the fact that:
- rooted in the human person’s self-
determination and the exercise of intellect Freedom is experienced through the act of making
and free will. choices. Although human freedom gives us the
ability to think of countless decisions and possible
Kinds of Freedom actions, we only get to choose to enact one of these
1. Physical Freedom possible actions or decisions. Having the ability to
choose and enact a course of action does not
The absence of any physical restraint. The automatically mean that we should take action every
person has the freedom of mobility to go where he time. It is also possible that the choice not to take
or she wants to go. He or she is not impeded in his or action may be an acceptable and moral choice in a
her actions by any physical force. Granted that the given situation.
person has natural limitations, physical freedom
Human freedom should be exercised with control
allows him or her to act and move in a determined
and a recognition of reasonable limits. We set limits
manner.
to our own freedom and learn to moderate or
2. Psychological Freedom control our thoughts, emotions, and actions
depending on the situation.
Called freedom of choice, The person is free
to perform actions that he or she considers right and Freedom should also be exercised with regard for
wise. A person is also free to act or not to act. knowledge and truth. As rational beings, it is natural
Psychological freedom is innate and cannot be for us to think before we act. We use our freedom to
denied a person. No outside force or influence can act and acquire more knowledge, and we use this
compel a person to take action against his or her knowledge in order to come up with decisions and
will. courses of actions when confronted with difficult
situations.
3. Moral Freedom

Using freedom in a manner that upholds

human dignity and goodness. Freedom is not an INTERSUBJECTIVITY
object that a person may use in whatever way he or
she pleases. A person must use his or her freedom to HOW DO WE AS HUMAN PERSONS RELATE WITH
grow as a person. A person becomes more free OTHERS?
when he or she uses freedom well, but becomes less Our ability to engage in meaningful interactions with
free when he or she uses it in a bad way. Humans other people, our surroundings, and everything
have a natural inclination for what is true and good, around us is rooted in our capacity for self-
and when a person uses his or her freedom to do awareness and transcendence.
acts that violate human dignity and goodness, he or
she dehumanizes himself or herself and effectively What drives human persons to interact with their
negates human freedom. fellow humans in a more meaningful way?

What makes us free? How does freedom shape our Interpersonal relation, the philosophers define
experiences? interpersonal relation as “The notion of recognizing
the self in the other”. The interaction between the
There are two elements that define freedom. self and the other is related to the philosophical
concept of intersubjectivity, which is the mutual
Voluntariness, refers to the ability of a person to act recognition of each other as persons. It cannot be
out of his or her own free will and self- denied that we interact with other beings in the
determination. This means that a person may decide
world, but some of these beings that we interact
to act or not to act, and these decisions are made
with are persons and must be recognized as such.
out of his or her own free will. Voluntariness also
means that a person may act even if he or she is not Intersubjectivity also carries the meaning of "a
required or called to take action. Voluntary acts are unique relationship between distinct subjects." It
free acts which can be assigned a corresponding
refers to the characteristic of the human person to
moral value.
engage in a very intimate and personal relationship
Responsibility, refers to the person being with others who are different from him or her but
accountable for his or her actions and their who are also like him or her.
“Seeming” action refers to the way a person
presents himself or herself when dealing with Nicholas James "Nick Vujicic (1982)
others. This is considered a natural and often
unconscious act. an Australian evangelist and motivational
speaker who was born with phocomelia, a
condition in which a personis born with no arms or
legs. Nick's condition meant that his early years
What characterizes a genuine human interactions? were full of challenges. Nick was born with two
small and deformed feet, and an operation enabled
Dialogue - when two individuals begin to view each
him to use his toes to grab and manipulate objects.
other, truly acknowledging each other's presence. It
is an interaction between persons through a speech, Roselle Ambubuyog (born 1980)
expressions, and body language
The first visually-impaired Filipino to
•The notion of a dialogue becomes clearer when we
graduate summa cum laude from Ateneo de Manila
reflect on the nature of our conversations with other
University in 2001. Roselle lost her eyesight at the
people.
age of six due to an illness. Despite her handicap,
she was a consistent academic honoree in her
How does intersubjectivity define our interactions school, graduating valedictorian in both elementary
with other persons? and high school. Her excellent perfomance in
school enabled her to participate in regular classes
Empathy, The human person is considered as a with sighted students.
"being with others," which means that his or her
identity and destiny are shaped by relating with The Human Person in Society
others. Empathy is the ability to share emotions. This
emotion is driven by a person's awareness that the Society an organized group of people whose
other is a person with thoughts and feelings. members interact frequently and have a
common territory and culture.
Another characteristics of meaningful and genuine
human relationships is -refers to a companionship or friendly
association with others, an alliance, a
Availability or the willingness of a person to be community, or a union. Philosophers
present and be at the disposal of another. consider society the product of deliberate
actions by individuals who come together in
Ethics of care, an ethical theory that emphasizes the
pursuit of a common goal.
moral dimension of relationships and interactions.
This moral perspective encourages individuals to THE SOCIAL CONTRACT THEORY
help other people, most especially the vulnerable.
Proponents of the ethics of care believe that people During the Enlightenment, social
have a moral obligation to respond to the needs of philosophers pondered the natural laws that
other people; and one cannot turn a blind eye on the govern human societies, and in their
problems of others. discussions, several philosophers put forth
their theories regarding the formation of
Alienation, There are those who view other people societies.
negatively and consider human actions as being
influenced by selfish interests. A person that adopts Enlightenment philosophers such as Thomas
this negative view is said to be experiencing Hobbes, John Locke, and Jean Jacques
alienation. This arises when a person ceases to view Rousseau were among the most prominent
the other as a distinct and authentic person and social theorists who tackled the origins of
merely considers the other person as a mere object human society. They imagined humans as
or a means to satisfy personal interests. living in a so-called "natural state ", removed
from modernity and civilization. Examining
How can philosophy help you evaluate your humans in the natural state afforded these
relationships with others? philosophers an opportunity to discuss the
origins of society and relate them to other
Important values related to intersubjectivity include:
concepts such a man's intrinsic nature and
“acceptance of differences and embracing
liberty.
diversity.”
We understand that each person is unique, For Thomas Hobbes, persons in their natural
therefore, differences will exist among groups of states are governed by their desires and
people.
these often lead to conflict with their
Helen Keller (1880-1968) fellowmen. Society, therefore, is the means
by which people seek to control their natural
an American author, political activist, and tendencies and impose order. Individuals
the first deaf-blind person to earn a bachelor's who establish societies enter into a "social
degree. She lost her hearing and sight when she contract" an agreement where individuals
was an infant due to an illness. Growing up, she sacrifice an amount of their freedom and
developed a system of signs to communicate with submit to a higher authority .
her family.
John Locke considered persons in their were engaged in conflict over resources, particularly
natural states as more cooperative and land.
reasonable, and that society is formed
Industrial Society - it is based on use of specialized
through the consent of the individuals that
machinery in the production of goods and services.
organized it . This concept is known as the
The advances in sciences and technology in the late
"consent of the governed".
18th century resulted in the Industrial Revolution,
Jean Jacques Rousseau's ideas on the social which in turn gave rise to new production and
contract led him to advocate the concept of industrial methods, as well as innovations in
transportation and communication.
the "general will." Rousseau believed that
even if the people are the ones who
Post-Industrial Society - it is marked by
organized society and established an
establishment of societies based on knowledge,
authority or government, in extreme cases, information, and the sale of services. Virtual society,
the government is able to impose its will on where people organized themselves through
the people . communication technology and the internet.
John Rawls redefined the social contract and
explained human beings approached social How does society influence our development as
cooperation in a rational manner in order to persons?
meet their individual self- interests .
The person and the society have a very dynamic
- He introduced a version of the natural relationship in which one cannot exist without the
state which he called the original position to other.
explain social formation . He imagined
humans as a "veil of ignorance", or no • Society influences our development as persons in
knowledge of one's own characteristics such various ways.
as gender, race, or social status. • Norms, Laws and other rules that regulate human
David Gauthier describe people's self interactions give rise to a social system, which is an
interest as a significant factor in building organized or patterned set of relationships among
and maintaining societies. People choose to individuals and groups that compose a society. Each
cooperate since it is beneficial to meet their member is assigned a social role, which are actions
self-interests. But this selfish interest and behaviors expected of a certain individual
benefits society as a whole, since the actions Individuals who share similar backgrounds or
of individuals in meeting their individual perform similar roles are grouped together into
needs also further the interest of the other social groups or social classes. Certain groups that
members of society. perform vital functions in society are recognized as
Different Forms of Societies social institutions, and these include the family,
school, government, and religion. Society also
Hunting and Gathering Society - recognized as the transforms human relations, which leads to the
earliest and simplest form of society. It is generally transformation of its members. Another way society
characterized by its small size and is composed shapes us is through social values, which are actions
mainly of families or ideals that are considered important by society.

Pastoral Society - it is characterized by

domestication of animals for food for a more stable
and predictable food supply. It has a large Human person as oriented towards their
populations than hunting and gathering societies impending death
and remained longer in one place
Have you ever thought what it means to die?
Horticultural Society, primarily engages in the small-
Only in reflecting on the reality of death can we
scale cultivation of plants, fruits, and vegetables and
begin to explore and understand the meaning of our
the domestication of animals. They are semi-
existence.
nomadic, which means that they travel another
place when they have already depleted the
resources in one area How does the reality of death define our lives?
Agrarian or Agricultural Society - a further
evolution of the pastoral and horticultural societies.
Death is commonly understood as the end of bodily
Agriculture involves the large- scale and long-term
functions which signals the end of a person's life. It
cultivation of crops and domestication of animals. It
also refers to the separation of the body and the
is characterized by improved technology and the use
spirit.
of tools to aid in farming.
The body, being material is bound by the laws of
FEUDAL SOCIETY- it is based on the ownership of
time and space and is subject to growth, death, and
land. It arouse out of developments in Western
decay. The spirit, being immaterial, will continue to
Europe during Medieval times, when rival kingdoms
exist even after the body has passed.
It can be said that we are also beings who are A pleasurable good is good so long as it provides
moving towards our impending death. This makes a some form of pleasure, though it does not have to
person’s life limited in time. The focus on this limit be physical. It must be understood that a specific
has led to several attitudes towards death. good cannot be categorized strictly under one kind.
These attitudes are not necessarily bad but they may
prevent us from reflecting on the reality of death.
Suffering takes place when we patiently endure
Understanding the person as a being-towards-death unpleasantness, discomfort, and pain. It can come in
brings us back to a very important topic: freedom. It the form of physical suffering and mental suffering.
has been discussed previously that the essence of Physical suffering when we experience physical
freedom is self-determination. sensations such as discomfort, hunger, distress, and
pain.
Self-determination is the capacity to choose and act
for oneself. While there is no freedom in the Mental suffering which involves emotional and
inevitability of death a person can still exercise mental states such as depression, anxiety, fear,
freedom in choosing how to face the reality of death loneliness, and grief.
in their lives.
What causes suffering?
How should I live my life before it finally ends? We normally experience difficulties in life, and how
The temporal existence of a person means that his we deal with them is often determined by our
or her life is temporary: he or she is not a being who mindset regarding suffering Generally, suffering is
exists permanently and for eternity. Accepting the viewed as an undesirable condition, and that we
fact that we have a limited time in this world allows naturally seek pleasure and avoid pain. Those who
us to determine the course of our life to paint a adopt this perspective often focus on the various
picture of how our life will progress and how we means to avoid suffering or eliminate it entirely from
envision it to end. life. Another view considers suffering as necessary
Temporality challenges us to make choices that will because it helps existence.
be good for us and the people around us. It must
also be noted that since we have a body, we are
How do happiness, suffering, and death give
always in the moment we exist in the here and now.
meaning to your life?
Given all these considerations, we may ask: what is
As we approach our death we experience both
the end of this life?
happiness and suffering. Although these are distinct
The term END can be understood in two ways. Some experiences, the two are not really meant to be
philosophers view end as a TERMINUS which means complete opposites, for there may be instances
“the full stop or end of a line”. For them, life ends when they enrich one another. The pursuit of
and nothing follows. Others. However, consider end happiness requires that we go through the effort to
as TELOS which means “goal purpose, or fulfillment”. achieve it. Our efforts are often marked by
difficulties and discouragement.
If we are willing to suffer through adversities and
Ancient Greek philosophy considers happiness as an maybe even suffer cheerfully, it makes the pursuit of
achievement and it must be gained by living a happiness even more worthwhile. As a result, we not
productive and moral life. only attain the happiness that we want, but we also
become better persons in the process.

Religious philosophers consider happiness as a

union with God. Other contemporary views define
happiness as whole-life satisfaction, based on our
evaluation of our overall life experiences.

As an embodied spirit, we must also consider the

goods or sources of happiness which are proper to a
person.

A noble good is one which is pursued for its own

sake: it is good in itself.

A useful good is considered good so long as it serves

as a means to an end, its goodness is found only
from what it can provide.