5.2: The “Me” And “I” Self Flashcards
American Philosopher and Psychologist who first offered psychology courses in the US 1875 Harvard University, Harvard University Department of Psychology
William James
Father of American Psychology
William James
One of the popular proponents of the school of functionalism in psychology and pragmatism in philosophy.
William James
He proposed the concept of “Me” and “I” to explore and further understand the self
William James
It is an empirical reality
Self
You can experience and know as an object of thought; and assign qualities, and make judgements
Self
The Self is Comprised of Two Parts:
“Me” and “I”
The self that distinguishes who you are and what you have done in life
“I”
It can be thought of a separate object a person refers to when describing personal experiences
“Me”
William James’ theory of the self can be summarized in terms of:
“One Duality” and “Two Trichotomies”
“One Duality” is comprised of:
The duality of “I” and “Me”
“Two Trichotomies” is comprised of:
The trichotomies of the “history of me” and the “constituents of me”
William James’s Original Formulation:
“Self is that which I can call mine”
Human beings have the capacity for being a ___________ and the _____________ at the same time.
thinking subject, object of their thinking
William James believes that personality involves the constant presence of two elements:
o An objective person or “Me”
o Passing subjective thought or “I”
Duality of the Self: The self as the ______ or “________” also known as ________.
knower, transcendental I, pure ego
Duality of Self: The “I” as the _________.
thinking subject
Processor of information and the thinker
The self as the knower or the “I”
Duality of the Self: Illustrated as the part of the self that represents the constant sequence of consciousness in your mind, enabling you to become aware of your environment and existence.
The self as the knower or the “I”
Duality of the Self: The continuous “stream of consciousness” inside an individual that constitutes the “I”
The self as the knower or the “I”
The “__” does the thinking and makes awareness and self-awareness possible.
I; (the self as the knower or the “I”)
Duality of the Self: “The self as ____ or the “ME”
known
Duality of the Self: The self as the _____ or the “I”
knower
Duality of the Self: Individuals turn themselves into a “ME” when they make themselves the __________.
object of their own thinking
Duality of the Self: The “ME” self is divided into three temporal segments according to the “history” of its evolvement:
- constituents of me
- self-feelings
- self-seeking
The Self As Known or _______ “Me”
Empirical
The Three Empirical Selves:
o Material Self
o Social Self
o Spiritual Self
consists of one’s body, clothes, family, home, and other possessions that one values and regards as one’s own.
Material Self
Material Self: among all those things, one’s body is the ______ of one’s material self which one calls “____” (______), and the rest of it one calls “____” (______)
Me, our body; mine, what we own
Material Self: Body is simply the ________ part of the material self
innermost
The main point is more on emotional feelings.
Material Self
Individuals tend to feel the material dimensions of their selves.
Material Self
“_______” as consisting of one’s images in the minds of others, which then makes up one’s reputation in society.
Social Self
refers to how you are regarded and recognized by others.
Social Self
The essence of the “______” according to James, is the recognition we tend to get from our friends, family, workmates, relatives, and others. Hence it is our innate tendency to get ourselves noticed favorably by others.
Social Self
“________” that includes one’s psychological abilities and dispositions and one’s thoughts, beliefs, and feelings.
Spiritual Self
your subjective and most intimate self i.e. personality, core values, and conscience.
Spiritual Self
“The most enduring part of yourself”’
Spiritual Self
What is the bottom, middle, and top of the “Empirical Self” pyramid
Material Self, Social Self, Spiritual Self
James explained that the empirical self has “______”
History
When a person reflects on one’s self at any given moment, the person encounters not only the “present self” but also the “past selves” as well as the “possible selves” in the future. This chronological dimension of the “empirical me” leads to the ________.
trichotomy of the self’s history
Refers to an individual’s empirical existence in the world.
Constituents of the “Me” / Empirical Self
refers to the feelings and emotions that are aroused in the individual by one’s knowledge and appraisal of one’s empirical existence in the world;
Self feelings
An individual‘s effort to preserve and better one’s self-knowledge and resulting self-feelings.
Self-seeking
“A man’s SELF is the sum total of all that he CAN call his, not only his body and his psychic powers, but his clothes and his house, his wife and children, his ancestors and friends, his reputation and works, his lands and horses, and yacht and bank account. All these things give him the same emotion.” By
William James
