TEXT OF REPORT

Subject: Introduction to Philosophy

Lesson: Human Persons as Oriented Towards their Impending Death

I. Learning Objectives

At the end of this lesson, you should be able to:

 Explain the significance of death in the existence of the person;
 Recognize the meaning of their own lives; and,
 Enumerate the objectives they want to do in life.

II. Summary

DEATH
 one of the classical definition of death is the separation of body and soul.
 is an event that represents the permanent cessation (the process of being brought to an end)
of all biological functions that sustain life. It is considered as a part of life. Death is a
concept of fate. It is believed that all human lives will come to an end which is death.

Cessation means “to cease” or “to come to an end.”

When a person dies, all of the vital functions in his/her body that sustains life is gone and
cannot be brought back. After death, the body will undergo a state of decomposition; it will be
broken down into simple organic substances which is carried out by microorganisms such
bacteria and fungi. It is significant to note, however, that in the lenses of religion and philosophy,
there’s more to death than the cessation of life and decomposition.

MARTIN HEIDEGGER (1889-1997)

 A German philosopher who is best known for contributions to phenology , hermeneutics, and
existentialism.
 He is among the most important and influential philosophers of 20th century.
 He believes that a “MAN IS BEING FOR DEATH”
Understanding the person as being oriented towards death bring as back to the word “freedom.”

The essence of freedom is self- determination which is the capacity to choose over options
and act for oneself. However, there is one thing we can’t choose, it is “the time of our death”.A
person can exercise freedom in choosing how to choose the reality of death in their lives. For
example, we cannot stop ourselves from getting older but we can choose to embrace aging
gracefully. Accepting the reality that we have limited time in this world allows us to determine
what kind of life we want to live. To paint a picture of how our life progress and how we envision
it to end.

The term “end” can be understood in two ways:

Terminus
 the full stop or end of the line

Telos
 goal, purpose or fulfillment

What objectives do you feel you need to achieved before you can say that you have lived a
meaningful life?

We can look at experiences in two ways, which make us reflect to the meaning of our life:

- Happiness
- Suffering

THE HUMAN PERSON AND HAPPINESS

Ancient Greek Philosophy considers happiness as an achievement and it must be gained by

living a productive and moral life. Religious philosophers consider happiness as “whole life
satisfaction” based on our evaluation of our overall life experiences.

For Socrates, a great teacher in Athens around 469 BC believed that for a person to be happy, he
has to live a virtuous life.
Virtue is not something to be taught or acquired through education, but rather, it is merely an
awakening of the seeds of good deeds.

Three(3) Kinds of Happiness

a. A noble good is one which is pursued for its own sake; it is good in itself.

b. A useful good is considered good so as long as it serves a means to an end: its good is found
only from what it can provide.

c. A pleasurable good is good so as it provides some form of pleasure, though it does not have to
be physical.

“REAL HAPPINESS CAN BE FOUND IN MORE PERMAMANENT AND MEANINGFUL

THINGS.”

THE HUMAN PERSON AND SUFFERING

Suffering takes place when we patiently endure unpleasantness, discomfort and pain. It can
take different forms. Suffering is viewed as an undesirable condition, and that we naturally seek
pleasure and avoid pain. Those who adopt this perspective often focus on the various means to
avoid suffering or eliminate it entirely from life. Ironically, suffering makes life more
meaningful. Without it, we are unable to grow and improve, and our positive experiences lose
meaning and experience.

Forms of Suffering

a. Physical Suffering - It may comes from experiencing physical sensation such as discomfort,
hunger, distress, and pain. These are often caused by injury, disease and the lack of basic
needs.

b. Mental Suffering - It involves emotional and mental states such as depression, anxiety, fear,
loneliness, and grief. These may be caused by unexpected situations in life such as sudden
 changes in lifestyle, loss of employment,stressful situations, and grief caused by the death of
loved one.

c. Spiritual Dryness - It involves difficulty and disinterest in relating to God due to some
personal experiences which leads the person to question the existence and belief in God. The
more that one suffers in his/her spiritual life, s/he must devote time in connecting to God.

PHILOSOPHICAL PERSPECTIVES ABOUT DEATH

A. It is Illogical to Fear our Death

Socrates was the greatest philosopher during his time when he was sentenced to death by the
government because of so-called “corrupting” the minds of young people (which is teaching the
youth how to philosophize and examine everything, even the government itself. However, he
remained calm even at the time of his execution.

How? It may come from his view about death. Socrates believed that death can be two things:

a) dreamless sleep, or b) passage to another life.

For him, neither of the two is bad so it is illogical to fear our death.

B. Death is Nothing to Us

Epicurus is best known for his quote “Death is the cessation of sensation.” Meaning, we
lose our sensation or capacity to experience anything, be it good or bad. If you die, you will not
experience any happiness or joy or sadness or suffering since you lost sensations that allow you
to feel those things. You won’t get to experience anything delightful and awesome. Likewise, you
won’t get to feel any awful and painful experiences. Hence, death is neither good or bad. Death
should not be feared.
 For Epicurus, what matters is not your death, but how you live your life. You have to start
contemplating about your life and strive to make your life better and more meaningful.

C. It makes sense to fear Death because Death can be Bad, especially if it is Premature

Thomas Nagel argues that there is a reason to mourn or be sad when a life is cut short.

It is also logical to fear the death of someone you hold dear. Aristotle points out that humans
are social beings and they greatly rely on social relationships. Some of these relationships are
built on trust, love and empathy. Some relationships provide priceless memories and invaluable
experiences. Some relationships can cross or transcend differences and borders. Some
relationships can be lifelong. Thus, it make sense to mourn the death of our love one. The death
of a love one would give us a deep sense of loss, especially, if that person had a huge positive
impact in life.

D. Accept Death since it is a Part of a Cycle

As much as we know the inevitability of death, it is hard for us to deal with the loss of a
loved one. So Zhuangzhi, a Daoist philosopher, offers an insight about grief and death. He points
out that we should see death on a larger perspective, in the lenses of nature; that death is one of
the changes constantly taking place in this world. We celebrate every other life milestone like
birthday, graduation, or marriage to mark the passage of time and the changes that have come.
Death is just one more change. Why treat it differently? Instead, we should celebrate the death of
a loved one just as we celebrated every other life changes they have experienced. We should
consider their death as a sendoff party for a grand journey. When it’s time for the people you love
to move on, we must honor and remember them.

III. Evaluation
IV. Valuing

“ Thing you wish you had done.. but did not”

Would you still fear Death?

Or maybe what we actually fear is being deprived of possibilities.
Would we feel regret if there is no death?
It can be argued that death gives meaning to life.
So, live life to the fullest.
“You only live once, But if you do it right, once is enough”

V. References

Delgado, Antonio. “HUMAN PERSONS AS ORIENTED TOWARD THEIR IMPENDING

DEATH.” HUMAN PERSONS AS ORIENTED TOWARD THEIR IMPENDING DEATH, 1 Mar.
2001, www.slideshare.net/kazekage15/human-persons-as-oriented-toward-their-impending-death.

“Unit 8 Human Person as Oriented Towards Death.” YouTube, 21 Feb. 2021,

www.youtube.com/watch?v=gGkLr0X8gqo.

“THE HUMAN PERSON AS ORIENTED TOWARDS HIS IMPENDING DEATH ||

PHILOSOPHY OF THE HUMAN PERSON.” YouTube, 24 Jan. 2021,
www.youtube.com/watch?v=vQiKKRfEydw.

“Intro to Philosophy (SHS)- Human Persons as Oriented Towards Their Impending Death.”
YouTube, 7 Oct. 2021, www.youtube.com/watch?v=KYQmy7Ro4D8.

(“Intro to Philosophy (SHS)- Human Persons as Oriented Towards Their Impending Death”)