L1:FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY

INTRODUCTION TO
PHILOSOPHY OF THE HUMAN
PERSON
FREEDOM AND
RESPONSIBILITY
SECOND
QUARTER
LESSON 1:

OBJECTIVES:
01.
Identify the
different concepts
related to
understanding of
human freedom;
02.
Explain the
relationship
between human
freedom and
obligation;
03.
Distinguish human
actions from acts of
man;
04.
Distinguish
intellectual choice
from practical
choice;
05.
Apply concepts to
hypothetical
situations.

HUMAN ACTION
VS.
ACTS OF MAN
WHAT IS IT?

 An act that is performed only by a human being
and thus is proper to man. Not every act that a
human being does is a distinctively human act.
 Some acts that human beings do are performed
also by animals, e.g., vegetative acts and acts of
perception and emotion. When a human being
does such acts, they are called acts of man but
not human acts.

ACTS OF MAN
 are actions shared by humans and other animals
 Naturally exhibited by man
 Natural involuntary actions
 acts of person without the proper use of reason
 Acts may become human acts when they performed with
malice or when are directed by will
 MODIFIERS: IGNORANCE

HUMAN ACTS
 Refer to appropriate actions of human beings
 Acts or action done consciously and freely by man
 Free and voluntarily, done with knowledge and consent
 Under our control
 Done will full knowledge and of his own will
(alam niya, hindi sya pinuwersa, nais nya talagang gawin)
 ELEMENTS: KNOWLEDGE

LEARNING TASK 1
List down 5 Human Acts and Acts of Man you have
done.

ARISTOTLE’S
DISTINCTION OF
VOLUNTARY
AND
INVOLUNTARY ACTIONS
WHAT IS IT?

VOLUNTARY ACTIONS
 these are acts originating from the
individual performing the act using
knowledge about the situations of the
act.

I. CLASSIFICATION OF VOLUNTARY
ACTIONS
A. VOLUNTARY- actions are performed from will and reason
B. RELATED TO COMPULSION- it is considered as mixed of
voluntary and involuntary. It is more voluntary if the desire and
choice has been performed and involuntary if it has considered
preferences or alternatives.
Example: You are asked to perform a crime and your options are;
either you do it and your family survives or you don’t do it but they
will be murdered.

INVOLUNTARY ACTIONS
are acts done under:
A. force or coercion and;
B. ignorance where the doer failed to
understand the effect and feels sorry on
the result.

II. CLASSIFICATION OF INVOLUNTARY
ACTIONS
A. Under Compulsion – circumstances which are beyond the
control of the agent and contributes none to the action.
Example: A person was kidnapped, hence impossible to
resist
B. Through Ignorance of Particular Circumstances.
Example: a man steals and ignorant of the law, arrow or
gun shot by mistake.

Find the differences and similarities, if any, between
Human Acts and Acts of Man
LEARNING TASK
2

JOHN MOTHERSHEAD
freedom and obligation are two indispensable conditions for
morality to occur.
Freedom is understood to be present when one is choosing a
course of action, and he or she is taking full responsibility for
consequence of his actions. Importantly, this is anchored to the
individual’s moral and rational capacity to discern what is right
and wrong.

When was the last time you see yourself escaping from the
consequences of your actions?
When was the last time you hide from the problems brought
about by your irresponsible actions?

It is taking full responsibility for your actions and
being obliged to do so. Hence, an action is not in the
full extent of morality if a person does something
while his or her freedom and rationality is altered or
modified. This event can happen if the person’s
environment highly affects his judgement.

LEARNING TASK 3
Determine the possible consequences
and obligations of the action listed. You
assume that intention and voluntariness
existed in every happening.
Write your answer in your notebook.

November 5, 2023
Annual Review
28
INTELLECTUAL CHOICE VS. PRACTICAL
CHOICE

A. INTELLECTUAL CHOICE
This is a choice which is deliberately selected based on a
moral standpoint.
 Basically, they are normative answers about what we ought to do from a
moral system that we uphold and its moral principles.
 These normative answers would take into consideration the behavior which
the society will accept.
 For example, when you are to decide in a moral issue, you can try to give
intellectual choice as a normative answer. Here you are simply assuming
because you are not, as it were, facing that actual moral situation described in
the dilemma. In this case, the answers that you are inclined to give are
prescriptive in this imaginary and hypothetical situation.

B. PRACTICAL CHOICE
a choice which is borne out of psychological and emotional
considerations.
 Unlike the previously discussed type of choice, practical choices are made
when confronted with the actual situation, and usually affected by
psychological aspect of the person embroiled in the moral situation or
dilemma.
 For instance, psychological and emotional stress and lack of time to
deliberate during an actual moral situation may affect a person’s moral
decision in that situation. A person may be so engulfed by emotions that he
may sometimes fail to make the right choice. Likewise, stress could make a
person’s practical choice inconsistent with his intellectual choice.

PROCESS QUESTIONS:
1. Was there freedom on your part in facing the situation?
2. What are your considerations for saying that your choice is the right
thing?
3. Following the concept of Intellectual choice, will your decision be the
same? Why or why not?
4. Following the concept of Practical choice, will your decision be the
same? Why or why not?
5. Was your decision a choice based on your understanding or based on
some reference?

November 5, 2023
Annual Review
33

1. Human actions are always conceived intellectually.
2. According to Aristotle, Acts of man are actions which are
deliberately done.
3. Freedom and obligation are two distinct philosophical
concepts.
4. A person is totally responsible for an action even if he
acted with an impaired conscience.
5. A choice is made from freedom if the person totally knows
the kind of choice he makes even though unsure with the
consequences.

6. Intellectual choice usually refers to answers for
hypothetical moral issues.
7. Practical choice usually pertains to choices for an actual
moral dilemma.
8. Freedom is present in the Acts of Man.
9. Involuntary actions are excused from moral examination.
10. Without freedom, obligation does not exist.

L1:FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY

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L1:FREEDOM AND RESPONSIBILITY