The human as subject and object of philosophy
Anthropology means the study of humans. Biology and social sciences study humans with experiments and data. Philosophical anthropology asks a deeper question: what is a human being at all, and what makes a life human?
Here the human is both subject (the one who thinks and asks) and object (the thing being thought about). We cannot step outside ourselves to look, which makes the question special.
Key terms: human nature (what all humans share), essence (what something must have to be what it is), person (a being with a self, who can be responsible).
Are humans different from other animals?
Gap of kind: some philosophers say humans are a different kind of being. Many animals live in a fixed surrounding and act mainly by instinct. A human is born "unfinished", with few fixed instincts, so we must learn. Our world is open: we can step back, ask why, plan and invent.
Gap of degree: others, following Darwin's theory of evolution, say we are animals too. Chimpanzees use tools, crows solve puzzles, elephants mourn. Differences are bigger or smaller, not total.
This matters for ethics: how we treat animals and nature depends on where we draw the line.
The human as a rational being
Aristotle called the human a rational animal: an animal that can use reason (logos), which also means speech. With reason we give arguments, form concepts, judge good and bad and live in a community with laws.
Later, Kant said reason lets us set our own moral rules (autonomy), so each person has dignity.
Criticism: psychology shows that emotions, habits and the unconscious (Freud) often drive us. Babies and people with severe illness reason little, yet they are fully human. So reason may be a key power, but not the whole story.
Body and mind: one thing or two?
Dualism (Descartes): the human is made of two different things, a material body and a non-material thinking mind. Problem: how can something non-material move an arm?
Monism / materialism: there is only one thing. The mind is what the living brain and body do. Brain research supports a close link: damage to the brain changes memory or personality.
Today this links to science and technology: if the mind is what a brain does, could a computer or robot also have a mind? Could implants and AI change what a human is?
Social, cultural and free: the unfinished human
- Social being: we become ourselves among others. Language, family and friendships shape our thoughts. Aristotle also called us a political (community) animal.
- Cultural being: since we have few fixed instincts, culture (tools, customs, language, art) fills the gap. Culture is our "second nature".
- Free and unfinished: existentialists like Sartre said existence comes before essence: there is no fixed human recipe; we exist first and then make ourselves by our choices, and we are responsible for them.
Many thinkers combine these views. A human may be a natural, rational, social, cultural and free being at once.
Key formulas and definitions
- Philosophical anthropology = the study of what a human being is
- Subject = the one who asks; object = what is studied
- Instinct = fixed, inborn way of acting
- Rational animal = an animal with reason and speech (Aristotle)
- Dualism = mind and body are two things; monism = one thing
- Existence precedes essence = we make ourselves by choices (Sartre)
- Culture = learned way of life passed on by a group
Worked examples
1. A bird builds the same kind of nest every year without lessons. A student designs a new house. Which view of the human does this illustrate?
The bird acts by instinct in a fixed world. The human learns and invents in an open world. This supports the view that humans differ in kind, with an open world and culture.
2. Someone says: "My mind is my soul and it will live on without my body." Which view is this?
Dualism: mind and body are two different things that can be separated.
3. A scientist says: "Memory is stored in brain connections; damage the brain and memory goes." Which view does this support?
Monism (materialism): the mind is what the brain does.
4. Explain "existence precedes essence" with an example.
A knife is designed for cutting before it is made: its essence comes first. A person is born with no fixed purpose and becomes a doctor, artist or farmer by their choices. Existence first, then essence.
Common mistakes
- Thinking philosophical anthropology is the same as cultural anthropology (field studies of peoples). It asks what a human is, not only how groups live.
- Saying "humans have no instincts at all". We have some (sucking, fear); the claim is that we have fewer fixed ones.
- Treating dualism as "believing in ghosts". It is a serious view about mind and matter, with arguments for and against.
- Thinking one view must be right and the others wrong. Many philosophers combine several views.