Introspective Adjudication (1)

Self, Self-Consciousness, and Living in Truth

The self is at once a product and producer of actions. It is a locus becoming and being.

There is no freedom from being a self, only freedom from self-consciousness.

In self-consciousness, a self relates to himself. He thinks of himself as a being with certain constitutive attributes. Some of these attributes he feels he cannot affect (e.g., height); some of these attributes he feels he can affect (e.g., humor). He solidifies himself, crafts an identity, by formulating his attributes. He becomes something to himself in this way. He becomes more of a self, a fuller self, in this way. He can venture outwards because he has a point of departure.

Being a self is better than not being a self. Being self-aware is better than being self-ignorant. Increasing self-awareness leads to greater possibilities of personal development and fulfillment.

If a person is to live well, he must think well of himself. He must find overlap between goodness and his identity. This state of judging oneself good is pleasurable, a sort of happiness. Wellness is the greatest happiness. To live well, one must live in truth. Living in truth requires knowledge (even the knowledge of ignorance) and knowledge is a consequence of thought. This work is addressed to those who would live in truth.

Mind you, self-approbation alone is not enough to live the “good life.” There is always room for improvement and any well-adjusted person should be able to admit as much. Nevertheless, self-loathing and shame are not constituents of wellness. A healthy person reflects on the totality of who he is and is pleased, grateful, proud, content, etc. How a person can go about ascertaining the totality of who he knows himself to be, I leave you to consider.

People who are not wracked by guilt, remorse, or disappointment whenever they have a quiet moment and their minds are free to wander, either do not think of themselves or approve of themselves. Their ability to proceed in life is evidence of both. I invite the former consider: to refuse to reflect is a living choice, but it is not living in truth.

Moral relevance of Personal Identity

An origin of responsibility: if a person is alive, he must live with himself. He is complicit in who he is by continuing to allow himself to be. Complicity need not be conscious, however. A living person lives with himself—participates in life with himself—de facto, without a second thought. Responsibility is implied.

Believing is an action. Actions are morally relevant when addressed to persons. Identity, the product of self-consciousness, is a relation of person to person (i.e., self to self). Thus, believing one’s identity is morally relevant.

All people act. Not all people know why they act. Few people regularly consider whether they should act. A person can act without knowing wherefore. Ignorance of purpose is the cause of much wretchedness and error.

People pursue happiness. Whatever definition of happiness one adheres to, it is the most human goal. If happiness is living well, and living well involves thinking well of oneself, and thinking well of oneself is a moral proposition, is there any more common moral situation than the belief in one’s identity? To approve of oneself is to identify oneself with the good. But is one, in truth, good? Should one so believe?

This concerns me: we can partake of what we want (i.e., self-approbation) without justification. To do so puts us in a dismal situation from the standpoint of selfhood. Without knowing where we ground our justification, we are ignorant about the quality of our motivations. Personal development is precluded.

Whether or not believing is justified need not be considered in order to believe. Questions of justification can conveniently be dealt with after the fact (or never at all). We can think well of ourselves without thinking of why we so think. To live in truth, we must reflect. Let us aspire to such life!