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Q1 SHS Intro To The Philosophy of The Human Person Module 4
Q1 SHS Intro To The Philosophy of The Human Person Module 4
the Philosophy of
the Human Person
Quarter 1 – Module 4:
The Human Person and the
Environment
Introduction to the Philosophy of the Human Person – Grade 12
Alternative Delivery Mode
Quarter 1 – Module 4: The Human Person and The Environment
First Edition, 2020
Republic Act 8293, section 176 states that: No copyright shall subsist in any work
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office wherein the work is created shall be necessary for exploitation of such work for profit.
Such agency or office may, among other things, impose as a condition the payment of
royalties.
Borrowed materials (i.e., songs, stories, poems, pictures, photos, brand names,
trademarks, etc.) included in this module are owned by their respective copyright holders.
Every effort has been exerted to locate and seek permission to use these materials from
their respective copyright owners. The publisher and authors do not represent nor claim
ownership over them.
This learning resource hopes to engage the learners into guided and
independent learning activities at their own pace and time. Furthermore, this also
aims to help learners acquire the needed 21st century skills while taking into
consideration their needs and circumstances.
In addition to the material in the main text, you will also see this box in the
body of the module:
As a facilitator you are expected to orient the learners on how to use this
module. You also need to keep track of the learners' progress while allowing them
to manage their own learning. Furthermore, you are expected to encourage and
assist the learners as they do the tasks included in the module.
The hand is one of the most symbolized part of the human body. It is often
used to depict skill, action and purpose. Through our hands we may learn, create
and accomplish. Hence, the hand in this learning resource signifies that you as a
learner is capable and empowered to successfully achieve the relevant
competencies and skills at your own pace and time. Your academic success lies in
your own hands!
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This module was designed to provide you with fun and meaningful
opportunities for guided and independent learning at your own pace and time. You
will be enabled to process the contents of the learning resource while being an
active learner.
What I Need to Know This will give you an idea of the skills or
competencies you are expected to learn in
the module.
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Answer Key This contains answers to all activities in the
module.
At the end of this module you will also find:
1. Use the module with care. Do not put unnecessary mark/s on any part of
the module. Use a separate sheet of paper in answering the exercises.
2. Don’t forget to answer What I Know before moving on to the other activities
included in the module.
3. Read the instruction carefully before doing each task.
4. Observe honesty and integrity in doing the tasks and checking your
answers.
5. Finish the task at hand before proceeding to the next.
6. Return this module to your teacher/facilitator once you are through with it.
If you encounter any difficulty in answering the tasks in this module, do not
hesitate to consult your teacher or facilitator. Always bear in mind that you are not
alone.
We hope that through this material, you will experience meaningful learning
and gain deep understanding of the relevant competencies. You can do it!
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What I Need to Know
Leaners, since the start of your quest in this subject you have been
grappling the fundamental question “what is to be human?” This question has long
been speculated by the great thinkers of the two great traditions – the west and
east. It only means that there are many things that we need to know and
understand about our existence, essence, our relationship with one another, and
the world. However, our task in philosophy is not just to acquaint ourselves with all
the ideas presented and to be presented onwards but also to participate and engage
in discussion with depth utilizing various vantage points to understand the matter
based on various lenses. In this way, we may unravel some mysteries and arcane
concepts to demystify man’s essence.
Along the lines of the many arguments regarding the understanding of what
is to be human is recognizing the world we live in. Man is dependent on the world,
the environment. The world is not just an ordinary habitat for all living beings, but
it is also the wellspring of resources. Advocates of environmentalist groups protests
man’s abuses and exploitation done to the earth. This implies that nature is in
perils. If so, how could we help nature maintain its grandeur and abundance?
What is man’s role? What has happened to our nature? Then, it is the thrust of this
module to heighten man’s consciousness of the condition of our world and man’s
place in the world.
This module focuses on the Human Person and the Environment, which will be
discussed for the whole week.
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What I Know
Analyze and Speculate. Analyze the concepts indicated in every item. Speculate
on the idea what these concepts are referring to by selecting three (3) among the
four (4) choices found in the box. Write the answers on a separate sheet.
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Lesson
The Human Person
1 and the Environment
What’s In?
“God created man in his own image, in the image of God He created
him; male and female he created them. God blessed them, and God
said to them, ‘Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth and subdue
it; and rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and
over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
Genesis provides a picture of how the world is put together, which implies
that God has ordered everything in this world including man’s stewardship.
However, this verse has been maligned with some arguments based on the
ecological crises that we are experiencing in our time. The verse seems to promote
hierarchy, an anthropocentric (man-centered) view of the natural world. It means
that man has been given control of all things found within nature. What is negative
about this idea is that it implicitly, if not explicitly, gives humanity a justification to
exploit and abuse nature, which is the effect of superiority in the hierarchy.
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Furthermore, it is interesting to note that some early Greek philosophers,
specifically the Milesians (from Miletus), thought of nature as without boundaries,
i.e., infinite. “Boundless,” as called by Anaximander, the first philosopher to
develop a cosmology or systematic philosophical view of the world, supports the
idea of the indeterminate expanse of nature. In the philosophy of Creation and
Destruction, according to Anaximander, the latter held that everything emanated
from the apeiron. Apeiron means indefinite or infinite. He believed in eternal motion
along with the apeiron, which caused the world to exist. Yet, he postulated that the
world is not eternal and will be destroyed back into the apeiron of which new
worlds will be born.
Thinkers like Herbert Marcuse thought that nature is under the dominance
of humanity. As such, we must be conscious of our attitude and the way we think
of the cosmos. It only means that the change of attitude towards the environment
also changes the way we deal with the latter. Thus, the way we see the world
impacts how we act and react on the things around us.
What do you think of our world? Is our domination over nature a right? Let
us think deeply, then, of what ties us with the cosmos.
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Notes to the Teacher
The article above is just a suggestion. You may use it
or find another article to jumpstart your lesson. Thank you!
What’s New
The previous chapter has brought you to the hallmark of understanding the
human person as an embodied spirit. It is interesting to think that the human
person and the world are inseparable. It is in the world that man has become who
s/he is. It is in the world that man realizes and elucidates his being. In the world,
man concretizes his will as the person acts making known his human capacity. It
is in the world that man realizes his freedom, his possibilities, and his capacities.
Hence, the world with all its inhabitants and living conditions is essential to
understand what is to be human.
Beyond, furthermore, the benefits that man could gain while in the world,
the latter is not only a place that is subject to study nor just a beacon of thoughts,
ideas, and wisdom. The world is also the fount of all the necessary resources to live
like the basic needs – water, food, and shelter. Realizing, however, that all of
nature’s gifts are, to some extent limited, man has this primordial task of keeping
the pace of utilization too controlled to avoid scarcity. Man has duty to develop and
search for ways for environment to keep on growing to sustain all living beings
therein.
With all these, there are implications that we can draw. On the one hand,
nature as limited is in danger of being exploited and abused. Environmentalists are
crying for justice as the environment could affect humanity when changes are
happening. An explicit example of this is climate change. Second, nature’s growth
and development take time. The degraded environment needs enough time to reach
the peak of its grandeur. Its rejuvenation cannot just happen for a week or two.
However, on the other hand, humanity has an important role to play. Man is called
to take good care of the environment and always give justice to nature’s need. That
is why humanity is called to be stewards. It implies that man should have to be
conscious and be aware of its actions in the world. What can you do, then, to help
preserve the environment?
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What is It
Environmental Philosophy:
Defining Humanity’s Relationship with the Environment
Beyond philosophy’s task of inquiring about the relationship between
humanity and the environment, we have been grappling on the idea of our
responsibilities towards nature and establish our relationship with the latter.
Dominance, though, maybe an accepted thought as man is the only rationally
capable of governing the cosmos, yet, limitations have to be made clear. To have a
profound understanding of man’s relationship with the environment,
environmental philosophy or environmental ethics is an important discipline for
us to study and understand.
With the many ideas presented to you above, how would you describe the
relationship between humanity and the environment? In this section, you will be
acquainted with views embracing this relationship. However, it would be best to
take hold of your personal views and experiences relating to the topic being
discussed. With your views and experiences, you can speculate well with the
realities happening with how humanity governs nature and how nature copes with
the humanity’s demand. In this way, engaging in the various concepts mentioned
will never be foreign, as you may think that it is.
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Three major views are embracing the relationship between humanity and the
environment. Our task is not just to understand the philosophical arguments as
laid herein onwards but also to evaluate them.
Biocentrism is another view that asserts that all living things found in the
cosmos are equally important. It means that human life is equally important with
all life forms in the ecosystem. That is why many laws are being passed nowadays,
protecting animal welfare and laws protecting our forests for biodiversity to thrive.
What value do you give to other life forms? Are we all equal? How?
While biocentrism focuses only on the value of living this in the cosmos,
ecocentrism is opposed to this idea. This “ism” asserts the importance of
ecosystem as a whole. It includes the abiotic environment. Meaning, ecocentrists
include in their study the non-living elements. Biocentrism would consider the
study of climate change as it impacts the living things by causing migration and
alterations in the wildlife habitat. However, ecocentrism may use similar argument
considering its impact on the abiotic environment framing their arguments based
on the phenomenon like the alteration of sea levels, weather cycles and
precipitation acidity levels. Going deeper into the quest of their stance and claims,
would you agree that all things found in the planet, both living and non-living, are
equal of value?
The order of nature is like looking at the order of your classroom or the
house. While there is no standard order of a house or classroom, we shall look into
the harmony of all the things found inside the two places, including the
inhabitants. With the mess and disorder that you experience in your house or
classroom, what will you do to declutter things? As a responsible dweller of these
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places, how would you respond to the given condition? What benefits do we gain
having an ordered and harmonious environment?
Critical in these times, then, is how are we going to address the gradual
disintegration of the nature’s order. Can we really refurbish the damage that we
have inflicted in our environment?
All are called not just to be aware of the conditions of our environment. The
response of the call takes a critical stance to participate. In the late twentieth
century, a movement known as environmentalism started to address the
perennial problems or issues in our environment. With their commitment to
heighten awareness among individuals, several ideas and perspectives are framed
to alleviate, if not eradicate, the problems experienced. Indeed, philosophy has
many things that it can offer to understand the complexities of the crises.
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environmental benefits, and the burden of meeting environmental
challenges. Advocates of environmental justice emphasize equity and
meaningful involvement of communities and governments in
addressing, through planning and implementing environmental
policies, problems arising from the environment like the inadequate
access to healthy food, air and water pollution, unsafe homes, etc.
The problems in our environment needs an urgency for response. This call
does not exclude anyone as often thought to be the concern only of the government
and advocates of the various environmental movements. In this way, nature can be
sustained as it provides humanity’s needs not only today but also for the future
generations. Hence, environmental sustainability is an important concept to
grasp.
There are three principles of sustainability that needs emphasis. One is the
environmental integrity which calls to maintain the environment’s state without
being destroyed by human activities. Second is economic efficiency. This concept
underlies the value of prudence in making decisions in the use of natural
resources. Simply, it calls us to avoid wastes. The third is the principle of equity.
This principle underlies the efficient use of the natural resources conserving the
latter for the future.
These three principles anchor us to the most important values that we need
to integrate. Perhaps, it best to ask ourselves that with all the issues arising from
our environment, what are the values essential for the care of the environment?
There may many values that we need to revisit, and to cite two are Prudence and
Frugality. These two could help us be guided with the way we interact and engage
with nature.
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to be dissolved in one’s desire for money and the greediness that pushes us to get
more out of what we need.
What’s More
3. A local official led a campaign to set aside several hectares of forested land
in their city as a watershed area. This area was declared off-limits to
loggers and miners.
Rubric: Essay
Criteria Rating
Content and ideas are organized in a clear, logical manner. 1 2 3 4 5
The essay directly addresses the topic or issue and provides
1 2 3 4 5
adequate discussion supporting the main idea.
The essay employs standard grammar conventions, proper
1 2 3 4 5
punctuation, and proper word choice.
The paper is original and does not contain plagiarized
1 2 3 4 5
content.
TOTAL (20 pts)
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What I Have Learned
Essay. Written below are phrases. Supply ideas and thoughts based on what
you have learned from the discussion to complete the thought.
5. Development disturbs and even, in the worst case, destroys the state of
nature. Yet, development provides jobs and other means of survival for
men. I see this scenario as problematic/reconcilable because
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
_________________________________________________________________________
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Rubric: Essay
Criteria Rating
Content and ideas are organized in a clear, logical
1 2 3 4 5
manner.
The essay directly addresses the topic or issue and
1 2 3 4 5
provides adequate discussion supporting the main idea.
The essay employs standard grammar conventions,
1 2 3 4 5
proper punctuation, and proper word choice.
The paper is original and does not contain plagiarized
1 2 3 4 5
content.
TOTAL (20 pts)
What I Can Do
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Assessment
Multiple Choice. Read the questions or statements carefully and look for the
best answer by writing your answer on a separate sheet of paper.
2. This view considers man as the most important species on the planet.
a. biocentrism
b. ecocentrism
c. anthropocentrism
d. environmentalism
3. This view believes that all organisms have inherent worth and should be
valued and protected.
a. anthropocentrism
b. environmentalism
c. biocentrism
d. ecocentrism
4. This view places great value on the ecosystem and biological communities.
a. ecocentrism
b. biocentrism
c. environmentalism
d. anthropocentrism
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6. This perspective advocates action to address environmental problems.
a. biocentrism
b. environmentalism
c. ecocentrism
d. anthropocentrism
9. This concept refers to the fair distribution of environmental benefits and the
burden of addressing environmental challenges.
a. environmental aesthetics
b. environmental justice
c. environmental ethics
d. environmental philosophy
12. Michael cuts trees to build a house. Not knowing how many trees are
needed for his planned abode, he thought of taking more trees because,
according to him, “it is better to have more than less.” What value does Michael
have to practice?
a. Prudence
b. Frugality
c. Prudence and Frugality
d. Justice
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13. The teleological argument implies _____.
a. nature as a consumable enterprise.
b. man has the right to exploit nature.
c. nature encompasses living and non-living things.
d. God is the grand designer of the world.
Additional Activity
Personal Commitment
Criteria Rating
The poster clearly conveys the information and message. 1 2 3 4 5
The poster shows effective use of technique and good
1 2 3 4 5
choice of material.
The poster is creative and artistic. 1 2 3 4 5
The student shows effective time and work management
1 2 3 4 5
skills in making the poster.
TOTAL (20 pts)
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Assessment What’s More
1. B 1. The case does not show the right or moral choice for the
2. C environment. Fact to consider: the absence of an effective
3. C facility for mining waste resulting to river pollution and the
4. A sickness of people living nearby
1. A
2. B 2. The case does not show the right or moral choice. Facts to
3. D consider: the number of uprooted trees and the cemented
4. B streams
5. B
6. D 3. The case shows the right or moral choice. Fact to consider:
7. C the environmental care shown in the case
8. B
9. D 4. The case shows the right or moral choice. Fact to consider:
10. C the animal care facility built by the local government
11. A
What I Know
1. Natural Environment 4. Ecocentrism
a. living organism a. climate change
b. abiotic elements b. living organisms
c. physical world c. abiotic elements
2. Environmental Problems 5. Prudence and Frugality in
Environment
a. climate change
b. greenhouse effect a. water conservation
c. pollution b. minimizing pollution
c. garbage segregation
3. Environmental Justice Issue
a. air pollution
b. inadequate access to healthy food
c. water pollution
Answer Key
References
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