Intro to the Course

There are no readings for this session.

Questions from First Session

What is selfhood?

• what defines the self?
• what distinguishes one self from another?
• what criteria do we use to establish a self from a non-self?
• What objects constitute self-knowledge?
• Personal descriptors (age, gender, location)
• Mental states (goals, desires, judgments, motivations)

How well do you understand yourself?

• Is your self-understanding accurate?
• What determines the accuracy of your self-concept?
• How do others’ understanding (of you) feed into (your own) self-understanding?
• Can you improve your self-understanding?

Can we guide or control the formation of self?

• How much of our self-concept is under our own control?
• How much is determines by factors outside our control?

What’s the value of self-knowledge?

• Why seek it? What’s the motivation?