Soul, mind and body

Question 1

Plato’s dualism

Answer 1

The soul and body are seperate, soul existed before body in world of forms gaining knowledge - socrates slave boy example
body is a prison for the soul
tripartite theory

Question 2

Aristotle

Answer 2

soul and body are inseperable, soul is the formal cause of something, e.g axe is to cut
soul is ceased when we die as it does not exist seperately from body

Question 3

Descartes substance dualism

Answer 3

mind and body are seperate, mind is immortal and non-physical
‘i think therefore i am ‘
physical body is bound to mechanical laws
mind and body interact through the pineal gland

Question 4

Gilbert Ryle’s criticims

Answer 4

dualism is ‘ghost in the machine’
descartes makes a category mistake with the mind being a non-physical thing when it might not be a ‘thing’ at all
our mind is a set of behavioral dispositions

Question 5

Dawkins

Answer 5

we are ‘survival machines’ programmed by DNA
immaterial soul does not exist
thoughts and emotions do exist but are just products of the physical brain

Question 6

B.F Skinner

Answer 6

all behaviors and emotions are just brain functions