Introduction

The concept of self has interested the Western mind from the beginning of recorded history. How we approach our understanding of ourselves has varied, both in method and study. Historically, we have been concerned with our relationship with God, and that of ourselves to others, as well as with the idea of identity. In this chapter I have chosen to focus on the general problem of the self. Three questions are addressed:

1. What is a self?

2. How do we measure a self?

3. What does a self do?

In the first, I try to distinguish between many of the current ideas about the self, bringing to bear the idea of levels of self. Of importance here is a particular aspect of the self, perhaps the most restrictive: that of the self as aware of itself. In the second question, I suggest that the measurement of self is highly dependent upon what is meant by self. Here I suggest that the self, aware of its self, can best be measured, especially in nonverbal creatures, through self-recognition. Finally, in addressing the third question, I consider the issue of the social and the feeling self. These three questions address what for me are some of the critical issues in the study of self, and in particular, in the study of its development.