Body, Mind, Soul: For & Against

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  • Created by: nelliott
  • Created on: 24-06-21 10:06

Body, Mind, Soul: For & Against

Advantages

  • Stephen Evans: 'Plato offers a rational argument for the existence off another reality'
  • Magee: 'The theory that there is another world than this...gives value and meaning to our present world'
  • People can hide their feelings and mimic the behaviour of another emotion. Are these not conscious decisions of the person?
  • Dawkins' theory does not explain things like emotions. According to his theory, emotions would be a mistake since they are usually inefficient.

Disadvantages

  • Brian Davis: Says the Linguistic Argument only shows that I am a thing distinct from my body. He challenges Plato's conception of the self as an un extended thing that does not pass out of existence because it cannot be split or broken.
  • Bernard Williams: Identity comes from body/physical characteristics too and without our bodies we could not be identified.
  • Richard Dawkins: He is a materialists who believed there is no soul or consciousness as we are the sum total of our genes. Our genes work together based on the desire for survival.

Evaluation

There are both valid arguments for and against Plato's ideas about the mind, body and soul. Plato's theory has valid points, however, the criticisms appear to take a more scientific approach, which cannot be ignored.

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