The Nature of Social Man

“While a shrimp may jump off the river, yet it willnever leave the water.” A Japanese Maxim

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1. The Nature of Man as an Object and a Subject

A. Man as an Object

. Man as an object when we view him as an objectof knowledge and an object of study

Example

> In psychology, in medicine, and physiology

Explain why?. In psychology, man becomes an object of studyand observation – in order to know about him:> how he behaves,> how he feels,> how he thinks,> and how he reactsFor this, we look at him. > He becomes the object

of my look, my observation and analysis. In medicine, man becomes an object of medicaltest, examination, experimentation and analysis.> Check/examine his body (to know his physicalfunctioning)

Doctor may inject medicine into his body – tocure ‘it’.

> Sometimes, doctor may use human body to testhis knowledge of medicines to see when it worksor notIf the body gets better, he will continues to give

the same medicines until it get recovered. So, when we study man as an object, we can callhim (referring to his body) as ‘it’ or ‘he’ (as anobject)universal concept / definition of ‘man’ as

‘rational animal’ or even as an ‘embodiedconsciousness’

. In physiology, in study of anatomy, humanbody becomes an object of anatomical analysis

> We can push human body in different parts tosee its structures

. Also, we look at man as an object in sociology, inpolitical science, and in philosophy>in sociology – studies about human socialactions, inter-actions, and how man relates(communicates) with one another…

> in political science – studies about politicalhuman behaviors, decision-making and solutionsto their social problems…

and in philosophy – studies about how man thinkabout the meaning of his lives, the world in whichthey live…

Man as a subjectMan as an intelligible subject – as an ‘I’, not as an

‘it’ or the ‘he’Phenomenologists and Existentialists – are the

defendants of ‘man’ as a ‘subject’They do not agree with the definition of man as ‘a

rational animal’They criticize that the definition of man as ‘a

rational animal’ has generic defect.. Because, to define ‘man’ as a ‘rational animal’ seemsto divide man into two split-level:

Man as ‘a composite of body and soul’ – as‘plain unity of body and soul’Man as made up of two parts (dualistic):

Body & soulCorporeal – spiritualAnimality – rationality

Matter – spirit(material – spirituality)

Phenomenologists and Existentialists criticizethis idea as short-coming – and suffer from thedilemma of two different entities

They question: how do you know that thereare two different entities / components in a‘man’?

> a part from the body, do we know how much(how many kilograms) soul do we have?

. For the Phenomenologists and Existentialists,man is a ‘subject’ – as a foremost ‘subjectivity’

They define ‘man’ as an ‘embodied ‘subjectivity’– as an incarnate spirit, a spirit in matter.

> Man (he) is a unique core, center, source, depth,wellspring of initiative and meaning.

Human subjectivity refers to both rationality (thehead) and the emotion (affective) – the heart

For the Phenomenologists and Existentialists, thehuman body is a subject-body – as a meaning-giving existence.

Education for man

. So, what is education?

. what is the role of education?

. what is the subject of education?

the subject of education is man.

Education is the process of developing man, as theembodied subject

Education then must be the total development (ofman)

What total development means?

. Education as total development for both the headand the heart

Education of/for the head

Education of/for the heart

II. The Nature of Man as a being-in-the-worldand not just a being-of-the-world

the word ‘world’ refers to a place where we live in orlocate in– a society, a family, a country , a classroom,a school, or the whole world

Man as a being-in-the-world

Man as a subject that gives meaning to theworld around him.

Things around man are not simply objects lyingthere; but they form a network of meanings inand around which man organizes his life.

Thus, we can speak of the world of a student, ofa teacher, a farmer, a politician… who can givemeaning to his world in which he lives

Example: farmer on the field is different fromthe cow on the field. > Cow just eats and drinks.

only the farmer knows to give meaning to the field& use the field, the cow, the plough to producethings for more values & meanings (for better life)

Example: students (& teachers) in class aredifferent from chairs in class.

students make use of class, relate to classmates, andteachers for understanding, meanings teachers and students can exchange ideas, learn

together for their personal good & the good for theirsociety

. Man as a-being-in-the-world will have:

. Feeling of belonging (to his/her society/community)

. Feeling of responsibility (for his/her society----)

Man as a-being-of-the-world will see himselfonly as a part of the world – but not muchfeeling of involvement in & responsibility for it

the Phenomenologists and Existentialistsemphasize man as a subject and man’ssituatedness – the place in which he was born,he situates, locates / lives

Because man’s situatedness is the place that hasgreat influence (unconsciously) on man’s mind/ consciousness – from the beginning, from hischildhood

Social change / improvement>society has influenced / shaped man’s mindin process, man will also influence his society in

return.. How, then, can a social change be possible?It has been said that:No real social change is actualized without aninternal change in meaning and of the heart, and nointernal meaning can last without an externalstructure to reinforce it..> This means, ‘social change can not be achieved ifthere is no change in thought about meaning- insidethe mind & the heart of the individual persons >

.>and the thought about meaning (about life &

society) inside the mind of the individuals cannotlast long without social (external) structure likeschools, families… to help to reinforce (to train, toencourage) itHe has to be aware of, and educated (by schools

and society) to know about social issues ofinjustice, of unjust structures in the world inwhich he livesThis is what educators should address

themselves with students (i.e. to solve the issueswith students)

So, what meaning that the society, the schools

want their children, their students to comprehend?

What kind of education and curriculum to be

applied?

And what kind of people that the society wants to

have?

The Nature of man as being-thrown-into- the-

world-with-others

. The Phenomenologists speak of 2 dimensions of

human relationship: the interpersonal (the

neighbor) and the social (the socius)

As subjects, human relationships take place in aninter-human as I-thou relationship between personsThis is the relationship present (take place) in a

dialogue – in contrast (opposite) to monologueA genuine dialogue begins when one person passes

(goes) beyond the world of seeming and enters intocommunication with the other by becoming aware ofhis totality – that he is a unique, independentsubjectIn monologue, as ‘I-it’ relationship, which happens

when one person stays in the world of seeming, ofimpressions, and treats other as an object – assomething that fills his need at/of the moment.

In dialogue, the influence that one person exerts

(has) on other is to unfold / open up (ideas)

> while in monologue, the influence is an

imposition, a domestication (of ideas / thoughts)

an imposition, a domestication (of ideas /

thoughts) means to put ideas / thoughts into the

head of other – without allowing him/her to

analyze right or wrong, true or false, but just to

memorize what he/she is told to do.

Liberal education is needed for growth of the

mind:

Genuine and authentic education must do itscritical role by participating in such opening upideas > otherwise it will be simply a form ofpropaganda, indoctrination, or brainwashing

Etymologically, the word education is derived fromLatin: ‘educo’ or ‘educare’ means ‘to bring up’,which is related to educere ‘bring out’, ‘bring forthwhat is within’, ‘bring out potential’, ‘to lead out’,and ducere means ‘to lead’.Education, then, tends to bring out in other (the

student) a certain disposition (characteristics) inorder to make himself aware of / see what is true,what is good and what is beautiful by him/herself

These are the attributes of being.

. Paulo Freire (a well-known Brazilian scholar)has provided two distinct methods of teaching:

1. the banking method

2. the dialogical method

. in the banking method, the teacher depositsideas and information in/to the head of students,and during exam, withdraw them. (nothing new)

. in the dialogical method, the teachers andstudents exchange ideas, thought, reflections andanalysis with each other.

As the teacher teaches, he also gets somelearning from his / her students (>they arelearning from each other)

. Socrates has been regarded as the first person,who applied liberal method in education – thedialogical method

his method is called maieutic method(dialogical method) – known as a Socraticmethod

This is a method to produce ideas – to get andgive ideas in dialogue

Following this method, the teacher / educatorbehaves as a gadfly in the hope to bring out thetrue, the good, and the beautiful (in others), asthey exist independently, individually, collectivelyand uniquely in each case / instance. Education in this way liberates whereas

imposition / domestication tries to regiment (togive only a certain idea as regime – with not extraanalysis).Education, therefore, must not fossilize – but

must introduce new ideas / thoughts withanalysis to make students learn something new.

As ‘social and political animals’ (Aristotle and Plato’sdefinition) > living society, humans have to be guided/ directed by reta ratio (right reasoning)Humans have to be aware of a certain types of values:

relative value and objective valueRelative value. the value that depends on the opinion of one person,or a group of persons, a culture, or a society.Right (good) or wrong (bad) is a matter of an

individual’s opinion: whatever one person believes astrue & good is true & good for that person there is no such a thing as a universal (absolute) truth

(about value) that applies to every person, (culture,and society)

ExampleSuppose that (both in Asia and Europe)Ms. Bobby believes that kissing in public is acceptable, andMs. Alice believes that kissing in public is not alwaysacceptable.So, kissing in public good is for Ms. Bobby, but not

always good for Ms. Alice.

Objective values. The values - that are valuable in themselvesIt exists independently of what anyone believesThe claim that there is a certain truth about value that is

applicable to, or valid in, all people, societies & culturesThere is a universal / absolute truth about value (that is

always applicable to all people, societies & cultures

Examples

. Suppose that killing, cheating, lying, abortion > areclaimed to be wrong for all people – in all culturesand societies

. respect for human dignity, respect of law areclaimed to be valuable to all people and societies

For Phenomenologists

. Man (human) in his uniqueness sees irreducibilityas an objective value

Man as a subject – whose value of life (dignity)cannot be reduced to be means for others’ use

Their body (dignity, value) cannot be reduced to bea commodity for sale

Christian paradox (conflicting idea): ‘a man gains himself by giving himself to others’ One man can become a person (human person) only by

committing himself to (help) other personsThe contemporary thinkers call this the ‘fundamental

option of love’. This means, we will gain more love by loving othersmoreHowever, this idea has been regarded as a conflicting

idea. Why?How can we help others if do not have not helped

ourselves yet this leads to the count on a classical Chinese

philosophy

a classical Chinese philosophy states that:‘a person has to become a sage within and a king without’. this means, we have to learn, to earn knowledge tobecome a sage (nak-prach) first: ‘sage within’ beforehelping others: ‘a king without’. this means, as a human person, we need to helpourselves first so that we become strong enough to helpothers: the more knowledge we have, the more we canshare it with / to (help) others. compare this to a tree :. When a tree takes deep roots, it becomes strong &wider branches reach out – over a large area whichprovide confortable shades for many people, and largeshelters for many animals to take refuges

Wider branches require deep roots

To be able to help many (others) people, we need to have

deep knowledge

Love and justice in social philosophy

It is said that ‘the ultimate value of love always

presupposes justice’

this means, a need of justice as previous condition is

required for the value of love to be good – otherwise, it

often leads to bias

. Because love, in its nature, enhances the other’s person

It is enhancement / promotion of value in others &

It requires giving to other more than what is his/her due

(more than what he/she deserves to achieve)

This, in fact, is his/her basic dignity as a humanperson

It is often stated that:‘love is the maximum of justice and justice is theminimum of love’

1. 'love is the maximum of justice means that lovepromotes other persons & maximizes justice

Because when in love, a person often gives toothers more than what they deserve to achieve

Example

A boss may give more salary/tips to some staffbecause he/she loves them

2. ‘justice is the minimum of love’ means that in orderto have justice, a person needs to minimize loveTo have justice, he/she has to keep love in a minimum

level

. Because, it is often said that “love is blind” ‘lovemakes people blind’with no thinking of ‘justice’, love often makes things

become complicatedLove in human life. However, as human beings, we cannot separate ourlives from othersWe need ‘love’ – such as love with friends, villagers,

siblings, relatives, families, lovers and/or lovers …

Thus, the demand of justice cannot be separated fromthe existential (live) relationship of man and hisfellowman (others)

For this reason, ‘truth’ as a value is important. ‘truth’ as a value = the true value of thing as true or false,right or wrong, good or badTo do justice is to live in the light of truthWhen injustice occurs, many people will die to defend

and fight for justicein this context, justice means ‘to stand witness to it’ – to

see true or false, right or wrong…It is stated that -‘No true social order can stand if it established itself in totaldeception and manipulation of people’s mind and unjustsocial order’

. This means that a social order , a society, stateauthority cannot stand (exist) long if it isestablished (built) on the deception (cheating)and manipulation (exploitation) of people’s mindand unjust social order (injustice)So, what have to be educational objectives?. A need to promote education of axiological /value ethicsValues are objects of intentional feeling. intentional feeling = purposeful feeling (for sth)Values are reasons of the heart – not of the

mind. Why and how?

because, when feeling love something or somebody,

a person sees something as value in that thing, or

that person

. Education in this context has to train the person to

see what is good value, what is bad value, right or

wrong values as true or false in order to live well with

others –harmoniously, orderly & peacefully

A need also to have imparted in meetings with

persons who can be concrete models or exemplars

Man is tutored by the spirit (ex. feeling good,

excited, feeling love or hate > feeling like to learn, to

adopt, follow or deny, and so on)

Instances as examples:.> Education about value of study requires a personas a good model / exemplar to follow.> Education about value of family life requiresparents as good models / exemplars.> Education about values of social life needs leaders,educated persons as good models such as respectlaw, do good acts for the young to follow. Educational objectives has to include:1. For both personal and social development.> a true & genuine philosophy of education mustnot only for personal development (self-realization)> But it must also extend to social aims:

> because, self-realization (personal development,actualization) is not possible to achieve if it is viewed(thought about) outside of social developmentReview:. Man does not live in isolation > man does not live ina (social) vacuum

>Schools must consider social ends / goals as well

2. Education for socialization

. socialization = the process of educating people tosee social values of social life – living together

> The process of socialization is always value-laden

. No study / discipline is totally value-free

All education is values education, and all values

education is society-inclined

. society-inclined = society-oriented (toward

helping / contributing to society)

Contemporary social scientists have claimed

that ‘no science / discipline (study subject) is

completely devoid of value-orientation

>Educational policies must aim at specific

personal and social values - such as:

. the values of justice, of love, of honesty, of

truth, of freedom… and so on.

3. Educational re-engineering> the education has to be for integral and holistic(total) development> Education in this way is not just/only for the mind– the head, but it is also the heart

Why education is for the head & the heart?

> education for the head is to make a person becomestrong in thinking about what to do, and not to do,right or wrong …

> education for the heart is to make a person becomenice, sweet, emotional, sympathy…

Question: What problem if education is only for thehead or only for the heart?

.> if education only for the head, it will make a personbecome absolute – thinking only about right must beright, or wrong must be wrong> no mercy, nosympathy.> if education only for the heart, it will make aperson become soft - thinking only about pity,sympathy > no clear thinking about right or wrong,good or bad…Question: So what can be solution?> Education must be both the head & the heart:> To train / educate people how to think about rightor wrong – and also considerate, compassionatetoward others

Educators / teachers, therefore, are duty-bound to

be exemplars of what they teach

. yet, the bearer of moral values is the person himself

>The persons, in a genuine (real) sense, are the only

value-carriers

. for one level, schools, societies, families, teachers

are value-bearers & value-carriers who have duty to

teach their young children – the students,

. But, for another level, it is the students themselves

who are value-bearers & value-carriers – who have to

make decision whether to take the values or not

ExampleThe role of parents, schools and teachers is toprovide education for the students, but the studentsare the main actors who decide whether they accepton not > they are the value-carriers for their lives4. Education as liberation. education is for the practice of freedomfreedom is important in education. Why?Because learning something new and sophisticated,man needs freedom to think and analyze right orwrong – in order to make good / right decision>without freedom to think about right or wrong, menare not different from animals

To awake the youth > teachers carry out an engineering

role to make him realize the honest pursuit of truth and

to bring him knowledge

Thus, teachers are not just merely (only) referees in the

intellectual play-field (in school, classroom), but, in a

genuine sense, they are tutors of the spirit (of students)

This means that ‘teachers are not the ones who just act as

referees – to see the weakness and mistakes of students,

but as the educators of their head (their mind) and their

heart

So, teachers / educators have to act as assistants to

students – to help students understand things, to see

values of what they think about, & what they love in life.