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The Soul (Richard Dawkins (He claims the purpose of human beings is simply…
The Soul
Dualism
Plato
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Soul = immortal and therefore distinct from the body and once resided in the world of Forms - we use our soul to glimpse the forms
Chariot analogy - A chariot is pulled by 2 horses (one mortal and one immortal)
The mortal horse is deformed and obstinate (desires of body)
The immortal horse is noble and game (desires of soul)
The chariot driver is tasked with reining in the horses, the soul tries to get them to work in harmony.
Plato argues that the soul is 'without parts' (cannot be divided up) but 'complex' (different aspects to it)
The important aspects of the soul are: Reason, Spirit and Desire.
Lack of harmony in the soul means the aspects aren't working together (cannot obtain world of Forms)
The Arguments
From knowledge
- Learning = remembering experiences of the soul
- 'equals' = we can see things are equal (stones). No one has ever seen the form of equals yet we know it.
- Maths/science are true before we know they are
From experience
- Physical world contains opposites -big/small
- Opposite of living is death
- For death to exist, the soul must exist so people can talk of living because things depend on their opposites to exist.
- Supports concept of reincarnation
Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths
Magee "The theory that there is another world than this... gives value and meaning to our current world"
Weaknesses
Peter Geech - questions what it means to see the world of forms because seeing is linked to the body and sesnes
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Some things don't have an opposite e.g. a middle, beginning and end are opposites but middle? And Colours, and Flowers
-When we learn we are just recalling information - Anamnesis ---The body has a negative impact (distracts soul from seeking world of forms)
-Soul existed before body and after death
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Descartes
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- The only thing he could prove was that he was a thinking being therefore we must have a soul. To be able to talk about the mind, the soul cannot be doubted
- He claimed our mind lives in the pineal gland (it is weightless but the body is a substance)
Richard Dawkins
He claims the purpose of human beings is simply to carry on their DNA strand and pass on information
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Two souls - the idea of a soul, spiritual concept and soul 2 = oxford dictionary definition "intellectual power"
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John Hick (Monism)
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Replica Theory
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- John Smith disappears from the USA and an exact replica of him appears in India
- The replica is exactly the same, his memories, hair, fingerprints. This replica believes himself to be the same John Smith who disappeared in USA.
- Then suppose instead of disappearing, Smith dies and again an exact replica appears in India. - we would have to say that he reincarnated in another place
- This time he dies and his replica appears in a different world altogether - only inhabited by resurrected persons
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Strengths and Weaknesses
Strengths - Doesn't depend on dualism and is possible for materialists to accept. It's logical. If you accept Gods omnipotent significance, this theory is plausible.
Weaknesses - Just because its logical doesn't mean that its plausible. Brian Davies says that no matter how similar the replica is, its not the same person. Inconsistent with Christian teaching, it makes Jesus death pointless.
Ryle (Monism)
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- He said that Descartes argument accounts for a "Ghost in the machine" but there is no ghost.
- The pineal gland cannot be the house of consciousness as that would make it separate
- Gave the example of a foreigner at a cricket game, he would ask 'where is the team spirit' after having all the players be described to him but this is wrong, team spirit isn't a physical thing and neither is the soul
Aristotle
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Claims the soul gives us life and soul is our purpose i.e. the soul of an axe is chopping, soul of the eye is seeing.
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He claims the soul ceases to exist when we die and that it is our intellect that continues e.g. books