CHAPTER 7 state of war.

There were no ultimate power of choosing

THE HUMAN PERSON IN THE enforceable criteria of right and the legislature rests with the
SOCIETY wrong. people.
Lesson 4: Human life was “solitary, poor, Rousseau’s Social Contract
The concept of society nasty, brutish and short.” Theory
For Hobbes the authority of the ( JEAN JACQUES ROUSSEAU)
PLATO’S CONCEPT OF sovereign is absolute, in the humans were solitary but also
SOCIETY sense that no authority is above healthy, happy, good, and free
 Individual human beings are not the sovereign, whose will is law. Man has not yet discovered
self-sufficient; no one working reason, knowing no rights and
alone can acquire all of the Social Contract acting upon his instincts.
genuine necessities of life.  agreed to give their liberty When man enters society,
 In order to resolve this difficulty, into the hands of a inequality was created.
human beings gather together sovereign, on the sole Man has moved from the original
into communities for the mutual condition that their lives state of nature to a ‘new state of
achievement of their common were safeguarded by nature’ characterized by
goals. sovereign power. oppression
SOVEREIGN Man is only free by obedience;
Plato envisions that a society should  a supreme ruler; a person he must become dependent (on
be divided into three social classes: who has supreme power or law) in order to be independent.
authority, such as a king or “Nascent societies”
a) the producing class
queen.  were formed when human began
includes the farmers,
merchants and Locke’s Social Contract to live together as families and
laborers/workers Theory neighbors.
b) the soldier class (John Locke)
comprises the warrior Locke believes natural man to Self-Determination
c) the ruling class already have certain rights, like  innate capacity of the human
philosopher-thinkers as well freedom, as well as some reason person to determine his/her
as rulers and kings who are to make moral decisions. decisions and actions and
selected to lead the entire men can be judges and ultimately his/her own life
executioners at the same time to amidst constraining conditions.
society.
those offenders or violators of Against Biological Determinism
 the material which must be
SOCIAL CONTRACT the law of nature
shaped by the free human
state of nature is that everyone
THEORY has the executive power of the spirit
What Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau Against Psychological Determinism
law of nature (Men living
are trying to argue is that society  true that there are mental
together according to reason
emerged due to the social contract states and that our past
without superior on earth.)
of humans to involve themselves in experiences, drives, hopes,
state of nature is a state in which
associations to achieve peace, desires, wishes etc., may affect
humans are free, equal, and
sustain their needs, protect and our decisions, actions and
independent.
preserve their personal interests. behavior. But, as human
People must enter into a social
STATE OF NATURE persons we have the capacity
contract to have political power.
 starting point for most social to choose what right, we have
Political power
contract theories. It is an the power to be aware, to
 right to make laws to protect
abstract idea considering process, weigh things, and to
and regulate the law of
what human life would look use them on our advantage
nature.
like without a government or than being driven by them
COMMONWEALTH
a form of organized society. Against Sociological Determinism
 social structure of equally
SOCIAL CONTRACT (CONDITIONING)
free men who gave their
 It is an agreement. It says  process of training or
consent and form an
that people live together in accustoming a person or
association under an
society in accordance with animal to behave in a certain
agreement that they will
an agreement that way or to accept certain
accept the act of the
establishes moral and circumstances
majority as the act of the
political rules of behavior  is true that a person is
whole under one
Hobbes’ Social Contract government unavoidably influenced by
Theory  there is a legislature who his/her environment, but the
environment does not
(Thomas Hobbes) made decisions and the
 completely determine always turn out to be what others; one may be called
his/her behavior. we want them to be innocent, but not naïve.
 A person determines his/her  We are free but we exercise Freedom to be oneself, not
own thoughts, and actions, this freedom in despair. We as a bundle of greedy
and the surroundings are not are in despair when we have desires
capable of taking this no control over the Happiness in the process of
capacity away from him/her realization of our plans in life ever-growing aliveness,
Freedom and Responsibility Life in Action whatever the furthest point
 What we are is not is that fate permits one to
Freedom implies dependent on the reach.
responsibility consequences of our actions Joy that comes from giving
 Because human person is free, but on the totality of our and sharing, not from
he/she is responsible not only actions itself hoarding and exploiting
for himself/herself, but also for  Manner we engage with life Developing one’s capacity for
other and ultimately for that matters love, together with one’s
humanity  Therefore, when we fail, it in capacity for critical,
our ability to create and unsentimental thought.
Freedom is doing what is Shedding one’s narcissism
recreate ourselves.
good as matter of duty According to Sarte and accepting that
 Freedom is not an act of doing limitations are inherent in
 We are what our actions are.
anything one wants. It is not human existence.
Our actions define who we
freedom, it is slavery to one’s Dimensions of a
are.
appetite or emotion
 Freedom is also not doing
Nonrelational Self
things because they are
Existence Precedes Essence The Self in Isolation
beneficial: it is doing things Existence  Human beings lives in
because they ought to be done Totality of how a person has isolation when she/he does
A human person has 2 obligations lived his/her life not recognize the existence
To obey the dictates of Essence of others.
his/her reason Nature of human person that  Human beings consciously
To obey the decrees of makes him/her distinct from leaves the communicative
moral law other beings situation.
According to Immanuel Kant  He/she does not establish
 As an autonomous rational Prudence relational communication
being Ability to govern/discipline that leads to open
 A person acts freely only if oneself communication with others.
he/she acts for the sake of Frugality Consequences:
duty, in accordance with Careful and saving use of Human beings cannot unveil
moral laws resources and discover himself/herself.
Erich Fromm There is a rupture of the
HUMAN PERSON AS Proposed a new society that possibility of life of
CONDEMNED TO BE should encourage the communion.
emergence of a new Karl Jaspers
FREE human being that will foster  communication that human
Abandoned to be free prudence and frugality beings can experience self-
Abandonment toward environment. realization
 Existential condition of being
thrown into one’s existence
Functions of Fromm’s
Envisioned Society: The Self in the Realm of Pretentions
with nothing to cling to as a  Human being pretends to be
guide The willingness to give up
all forms of having, in order another person to be
Freedom in despair accepted by others.
to fully be.
According to Sarte  Deception is a hindrance
Trying to reduce greed,
 Life is nothing in the toward the establishment of
hate, and illusions as much
beginning, what is becomes communicative situation
as one is capable.
depends on how we live it. between human beings
Making the full growth of
We are the creators of our Consequences:
oneself and of one’s fellow
lives Deception hinders the true
beings as the supreme goal
 However, even thought we being from unveiling itself
of living.
are free to create our own When a human being relates
Not deceiving others, but
individual lives, it do not with another person in
also not being deceived by
deception, the content of the
 communication is not the worlds, meanings, values, and/or words of another.
true but the seeming and and self-beings. The Beauty of Nature
imagined self.  Kinds of experiences can be
truly moments of grace.
Everything around us
The Self in the Realm of FREEDOM touches us deeply and the
Manipulation THE VERY BEING OF THE human heart is
 Manipulation between or HUMAN PERSON (AS BEING- spontaneously lifted.
among persons occurs when FOR-ITSELF), AND "TO BE Vulnerability
one says to the other “I FREE" DOES NOT MEAN "TO  To be vulnerable is to be
create your world and you OBTAIN WHAT ONE HAS human. To live without
must only think, feel, and act WISHED" BUT RATHER "BY acknowledging the help of
within its boundary ONESELF TO DETERMINE others is to live without
 “Your world view and your ONESELF TO WISH" (SARTRE, meaning and direction.
understanding about the 1965). Failure
world are according to world PAN-DETERMINISM  force us to confront our
that I have created for you.”  VIEW THAT REJECTS THE weakness and limitations.
 “You act according to the CLAIM THAT A HUMAN Acceptance of our failures
image that I set. As you do it, makes us hope and trust that
PERSON IS FREE.
I find satisfaction and all can be brought into good.
 view states that a human
security.” Loneliness
person is not free because
 Human being sees the other  rooted from our sense
his/her conditions, actions,
person as a mere “thing”. of vulnerability and fear of
and behavior are determined
 The other person does not death.
by his/her
recognize the very being of  our choice to live where
BIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM
the other we are always “happy” or to
Our actions, behaviors, and
 The other person relates accept a life where solitude
how we make decisions are
with the other for personal and companionship have a
greatly controlled by our
gain and development. part.
biological make-up (genes).
Consequences: Love
PSYCHOLOGICAL DETERMINISM
The freedom to express and  experience richness,
Our actions, behaviors, and
unveil one’s uniqueness and positivity, and transcendence
how we make decisions are
the truth of oneself are not  In Buddhist view, the more
influenced by the mental
manifested and shared. we love, the more risks
states particularly the
In this kind of relationship, and fears there are in life
unconscious level of the
growth or true personal Ethics
mind.
development is impossible to  Branch of philosophy that deals
SOCIOLOGICAL DETERMINISM
attain. with the systematic questioning
Our actions, behaviors, and
In this situation, one is and critical examination of the
how we make decisions are
corrupted by his/her own underlying principles of morality.
influenced by the external
selfishness, and the other is TWO GENERAL
conditions (surrounding
yielded to live in a
manipulative and distorted
environment). APPROACHES
TRANSCENDENCE NORMATIVE ETHICS
world.
 act of surpassing our  Give an answer to the question
The Self in the Realm of Selfishness
limitations. ‘WHAT IS GOOD’. It pertains to
 The “I” sees only itself as the
 Through transcendence, a certain norms or standards for
basis of truth and of social
person is able to goodness and badness, rightness
existence.
acknowledge his/her or wrongness of an act
Consequences:
limitations, identify METAETHICS
Self-centeredness hinders
possibilities for  Tries to go beyond the concepts
the establishment of
development, and change and parameters set by normative
dialogue between or among
him/herself for the better. ethics by trying to questions the
human beings.
Selfishness hinders a person LIMITATIONS AND basis of the assumptions
proposed in such a framework of
from sharing his/her being. POSSIBILITIES FOR norms and standards by
Selfishness hinders the
person from opening
TRANSCENDENCE normative ethics.
Forgiveness
himself/herself and be
 When we forgive, we are
transparent to the other for
freed from our anger and
the true communion of
bitterness of the actions
 specify one’s duties to god alone, but is achieved through
and fellow human beings COOPERATION with GOD.
TEOLOGICAL THEORY OF ETHICS LOVE is the guiding principle of
 Greek(Telos) means end humanity toward his self-perception
 Theory looks at the and happiness – his ultimate destiny
Freedom consequences
 Assumes that one is a free moral The results of an action, to
agent. decide whether it’s right or
 Assumes when one is making his wrong St. Thomas Aquinas
choices and is the agent that is  Teleological thinker, the end  establishes the existence of
taking full responsibility in justifies the means, and thus God as a FIRST CAUSE.
planning his life and in the a thinker from this school of Of all God’s creations,
process planning and budgeting thought would judge the HUMAN BEINGS
his actions for some future rightness of an action by the  have the unique power to
outlook /goals end it produce change themselves and
According to John things around them for the
Mothershead better
 There are two necessary
conditions for morality to The human person is the desire to be
occur: God: the desire to exist as a being
 “Making moral judgments is which has its sufficient ground (en
budgeting actions” sui causa).
Furthermore, for him” a
moral decision is the most
important class of moral
judgments” because it “has VOLITION  the human person who tries
reference to the judger’s  The faculty/power of using to escape obligations and
own future action”. Our one’s will strives to be en-soi (i.e.,
moral decisions reflect our excuses, such as “I was born
choices as to what should be The will of humanity is an this way” or “I grew up in a
included in our life. instrument of free choice. It is bad environment”) is acting
INTELLECTUAL within the power of everyone to be on bad faith (mauvais foi).
GOOD or BAD, WORTHY or  Sartre emphasizes the
CHOICE VS. WORTHLESS. importance of free individual
PRACTICAL CHOICE This is borne out by: choice, regardless of the
Practical Choice power of other people to
 Borne out of psychological  our inner awareness of an influence and coerce our
and emotional aptitude to do right or desires, beliefs, and
considerations wrong; decisions.
 Made when confronted with  the common testimony of all
the actual situation human beings;
Intellectual Choice  the rewards and punishment
 Deliberately selected based of rulers; and
on a moral standpoint  the general employment of
 They are normative answers praise and blame.
about what we ought to do Moral acts
from a moral system that we  are in power and we are
uphold and its moral responsible for them.
principles Character or Habit
 would take into  is no excuse for immoral
consideration the behavior conduct.
which the society will accept Love is Freedom
DEONTOLOGY  Through our spirituality, we
 GREEK (deontos) means duty have conscience. Whether
 This moral tradition is we choose to be “good”/
centeres around always “evil” becomes our
doing one’s duty. responsibility
 Ultimately rooted in Hebraic The power of change, however,
morality the ten cannot be done by human beings
commandments which