Material Self

Lesson 2

To Buy or Not to Buy? That is the Question!

William James Father of American Psychology

 a psychologist and philosopher who had a major influence on the development of psychology in the United States. Among his many accomplishments, he was the first to teach a psychology course in the U.S.

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Three Components of the Empirical Self William James used the term “the empirical self” to refer to all of the various ways people answer the question “Who am I?”

Constituents 3

Self-feelings

Self-seeking & Self Preservation

The feelings and emotions they aroused

The actions to which they prompt

The Constituents of the Self

Material Self

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Spiritual Self

Social Self

Pure Ego

The material self, according to James primarily is about our bodies, clothes, immediate family, and home. We are deeply affected by these things because we have put much investment of our self to them. 5

Material Self Investment Diagram

The Self Body Clothes Immediate family Home

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Body • Innermost part of our material self • We are directly attached to this commodity that we cannot live without. • We strive hard to make sure that this body functions well and good.

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David Backham

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$70 million

Mariah Carey

$1 Billion

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Clothes • “any time we bring an object into the surface of our body, we invest that object into the consciousness of our personal existence taking in its contours to be our own and making it part of the self” - Herman Lotze • The fabric and the style of the clothes we wear bring sensations to the body to which directly affect our attitudes and behavior 9

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Immediate family • This includes our parents, siblings and other family members. We view them as part of ourselves.

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Home • Home is where our heart is. • It is the earliest nest of our selfhood. • The home is and extension of self, because in it, we can directly connect our self

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“a man’s self is the sum total of all what he can call his.” -William James 13

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We are what we have

“… we regard our possessions as part of ourselves. We are what we have and what we possess.” -Russel Belk

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As we grow older, putting importance to material possession decreases. However, material possession gains higher value in our lifetime if we use material possession to find happiness, associate these things with significant events, accomplishments, and people in our lives. 16

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There are even times, when material possession of a person that is closely identified to the person, gains acknowledgement with high regard even if the person already passed away.

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The possessions that we dearly have tell something about who we are, our selfconcept, our past, and even our future.

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Thank you!