soul, mind and body Flashcards
dualism
the belief in two separate elements
substance dualism
we are made from two substances (body and soul)
materialism
we are purely physical beings
property dualism
we are one substance but two aspects
behaviourism
all mental states are simply learned behaviours
5 things plato believes the soul is
perfect, unchanging, necessary, immortal, has true knowledge
platos dualism
the soul must be separate from the body because of the world of forms - physical things change and are imperfect where as true reality is unchanging and perfect
what things do plato think have souls
humans and animals have souls, plants and inanimate objects do not
plato on the escape of the soul
the soul wants to escape - philosophy is the escape, through reason, remembering the forms, enlightenment by the sun in the allegory of the cave
the tripartite soul consists of
the logos, the thymos, the eros
the logos
the logical soul - highest attribute of the soul, guides the soul to the truth through reason
the thymos
the spirited soul - concerned with emotions or feelings, part of our morality, these feelings direct to the body
eg if you feel angry, it will direct the body to respond in an angry way
the eros
the desires - lowest aspect of the soul, passions and instincts, love of a sexual nature, desire for food, alcohol, being lazy
how does the eros show the soul is slave to the body
outside the body, the eros has little influence, inside the body the eros is free to pursue its desires
how the three aspects work together
the eros keeps us alive but must be kept in check
the thymos can help us lead a moral life, but must be kept in check
the logos is therfore the most important aspect of the soul because it keeps our spirit and passions in check
the charioteer analogy
the charioteer represents the logos - ‘reason’
the white horse represents the thymos - ‘spirit’
the black horse represents the eros - ‘passions’
why is the logos the most important aspect
the logos is the most important because of its ability to reason - this ability sets us apart from animals
plato on the souls knowledge
the soul has all knowledge from the world of forms
when the soul enters the body, the knowledge of forms is forgotten
learning is therefore remembering the world of forms
platos evidence - 2
the cycle of opposites
the slave boy
the cycle of opposites
platos concept that all things have opposites, as humans we too have an opposite
the physical body is one substance and its opposite is the mind which is the second substance
our souls are immortal, unchanging, has perfect knowledge and perfect reasoning
whereas the body is unchanging, influenced by senses not reason, so does not have true knowledge
the slave boy
plato did an experiment where an uneducated servant boy was able to solve geometrical puzzles even though he had no understanding of the subject
plato argues this is because the soul knows all things but is forgotten when it is trapped in the body
learning is therefore the process of remembering
we are born with an understanding of language and reasoning, although both develop later
what is descartes method of doubt
before establishing what he can know, descartes seeks to doubt everything he thinks he knows
descartes three waves of doubt
illusion, dreaming, deception
illusion
i can doubt the reliability of my sense experience as it has deceived me in the past
eg a pencil in water may look crooked even though it isnt
dreaming
i might think im awake when im actually dreaming. i might believe im looking at a computer screen but if im dreaming then my belief is mistaken
the evil demon
even if im dreaming there are still basic ideas that are common to both dreams and reality. eg 1+1 = 2
descartes says that this can be doubted as an evil demon may be deceiving me and controlling my entire experience
so basically anything i think i know can be doubted - the possibility of the evil demon scenario casts doubt on everything i know
descartes quote and translation
dubito, ergo cogito, ergo sum
i doubt therefore i think therefore i am
cogito ergo sum explained
descartes cannot doubt that he exists
the fact descartes can doubt that he exists proves that there is something for the demon to deceive in the first place
descartes indivisibility argument
physical things can be divided in two infinitely - the body
non physical things cannot be divided - the mind
therefore physical and non physical things are different substances - my mind and body are separate things
2 responses to the indivisibility argument
- physical things cannot be divided infinitely
when we reach subatomic level, energy cannot be divided
physical things eventually becomes indivisible - mind is divisible
in some cases mental illness seems divided - multiple personality disorder can be said to have a divided mind
descartes conceivability argument
i have a clear and distinct idea of my mind as a thinking thing which is not extended in space
i have a clear and distinct idea of my body as a non-thinking thing which is extended in space
anything i can conceive of clearly and distinctly is something God could create
so god could create my mind as a thinking thing not extended in space and my body as a non thinking thing extended in space
so it is possible for mind and body to exist separately of each other, so mind and body are two separate substances
behaviourist response to conceivability argument
mind without body is inconceivable behaviourism says that to have mental states is to have behavioural dispositions - to be disposed to move your body in certain ways - this is inconceivable if you dont have a body
so mind without body is inconceivable
second response to conceivability argument
we cannot conceive of being non-physical as being physical is all we know
we can only conceive of a physical being pretending to be non physical
if we try to conceive ourselves as non physical we just end up imagining ourselves as invisible
masked man fallacy
descartes claims mind without body is conceivable
but just because we can imagine a mind without a body does not mean that it can actually exist that way in reality
conceivability does not mean real world possibility
the masked man fallacy:
- i conceive of batman as a superhero
- i conceive of bruce wayne as a billionaire
- therefore bruce wayne is not batman
however, we know this is incorrect. just because it is conceivable that they are two separate people, does not mean that they are two separate people in reality.
descartes conceivability argument makes the same mistake as the masked man fallacy, just because i have the idea that mind and body are two separate things, does not mean they are separate things
the problem of interaction
how can physical things interact with non physical things and how can non physical things move something physical
princess elisabeth of bohemia’s addition to the problem of interaction. the interaction is only possible if… and
the soul has extension- takes up time and space (is physical)
and there must be some union between the soul and body for them to interact
aristotle on platos view of the soul
aristotle rejects the dualism of plato
for aristotle, the body and soul
cannot exist separately, they are each necessary for the other
