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Plato's View of Body and Soul
Socrates soul theory
Contribution of Socrates as teacher
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Socrates was certainly one of the most influential philosophers of ancient Greece, and his impact can be seen in the development of western philosophy. His beliefs on the soul are particularly important because he was one of the first philosophers that made the distinction between the body and the soul. In fact, Socrates took the stance that body and soul are separate entities, but he also thought the soul gives life to the body. In this way, the body and the soul are closely associated and, in spite of the distinction, the body and the soul are very much connected. In this essay I will first look into what it is that Socrates thought the soul to be, making reference to its duality with the body. Then I will look into what caring for the soul meant to Socrates and how this can affect us in life.
Socrates held the idea of the soul that breathes life into the body, an idea that became
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To state, "I am a mortal, and constrained, and in this way I can't know the absolutes of truth behind our life" is a must. In the event that you trust that you know things, when in reality you don't, that will just twist your contemplations and disappoint your scan for the significance behind life, and how to carry on with your life. This represents Wisdom.
The third step is questioning. You can't know the genuine significance of life in its quintessence. However, Socrates trusts that you can know things about it, despite the fact that you can't know its entirety. So you should address life to improve as a man. This epitomizes Courage (to move forward notwithstanding the learning that you may not find a solution, and regardless of whether you do find a solution, you dislike it).
The last stage is to have Hope that there exists an answer, and that the celestial isn't unconcerned with the souls of humankind. To treat everything with measure up to examination under addressing, energized by this desire for an answer, represents
Another philosophical ideology reflected by Socrates was the importance of the universal truth which helps one be closer to their souls, many principles of ethics and philosophical ideologies that are still used today originate from this concept. He believed the closer to the truth a person gets, the healthier their soul is, the kinder they are and the happier they would be in life. In the words of Socrates, “The soul holds the key to happiness and a good life”. He believed that perfecting the soul would decrease the urge to commit crimes, since they would already have all they need. Socrates called this ‘The care of the soul.’ Most of his philosophies are driven by this belief. For example during Socrates
In the book Plato 's Phaedo, Socrates argues that the soul will continue to exist, and that it will go on to a better place. The argument begins on the day of Socrates execution with the question of whether it is good or bad to die. In other words, he is arguing that the soul is immortal and indestructible. This argument is contrary to Cebes and Simmias beliefs who argue that even the soul is long lasting, it is not immortal and it is destroyed when the body dies. This paper is going to focus on Socrates four arguments for the soul 's immortality. The four arguments are the Opposite argument, the theory of recollection, the affinity argument, and the argument from form of life. As the body is mortal and is subject to physical death, the soul
Socrates is easily one of the most well known names in the history of philosophy. He is even portrayed via the magic of Hollywood time travel in the popular movie “Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure” and was more recently quoted inaccurately on a t-shirt as saying, “I drank what?” Despite his fame, Socrates was not the first philosopher by far, and certainly not the earliest to make meaningful contributions to the field of philosophy. Some of the great “Pre-Socratics” include Anaximenes, Parmenides, Xenophane, and Democritus. The philosophical issues of their days were significantly different from the popular discussions today, though no less relevant, and provide ample fodder for the cannon of philosophical consideration. The issues in consideration here that may benefit from discussion are the problem of the one and the many, the distinction between phusis and nomos as regards the nature of god(s), and distinction between appearance and reality. Appropriate and thorough discussion of these topics in the pre-Socratic context is certain to yield insight into the connection between these three issues.
Whether Socrates is portrayed correctly or not, he certainly was a great man. His contribution to western thought cannot be denied. For even if his teachings were different from what they are known to be at present, his influence on Plato is immense. And so, it is no small matter to describe the tragic passing of such a man as Socrates was and remains for philosophy today. Yet in all the indignation which is expected to arise at the death of Socrates, the panache with which he departs is captured excellently in Plato's “Apology.” Specifically, at the end of the "Apology," Socrates makes a very important statement that has had great impact on philosophy ever since its original proclamation. The Stoics in particular have taken this to be the cornerstone of their ideology. The statement made is that "you must regard one thing at least as certain—that no harm can come to a good man either in his life or after his death,” (Plato 100). The following examination focuses therefore on a brief explanation of the circumstances which lead to this statement being made by Socrates, as well as a closer look at why he thinks this to be the case. It is assumed that this statement is true, and validation for that assumption is to be sought as well.
In the last days of Socrates’ life while he awaits his death sentence, he examines and evaluates the facets of life and the morals that come as a part of human nature. He analyzes the concept of being, and what it means to be either living or deceased and through this analysis, Socrates particularly goes in depth with his examination of the human soul. In Phaedo, Plato meets with a follower who had been with Socrates on his last day, on which he talked much about the innermost qualities of being; life and death and how the soul constitutes those two entities. According to Socrates, there are four arguments that prove the existence of the soul: the Argument from Opposites, the Theory of Recollection, the Affinity Argument, and the Theory of Forms.
In Plato’s dialogue, the Phaedo, Socrates gives an account of the immortality of the soul. Socrates does this through a series of arguments. He argues that the soul will continue to exist, and that it will go on to a better place. The argument begins on the day of his execution with the question of whether it is good or bad to die. In other words, he is arguing that the soul is immortal and indestructible. This argument is contrary to Cebes and Simmias who argue that even the soul is long lasting, it is not immortal and it is destroyed when the body dies. This paper focuses on Socrates 's first argument for immortality of the human soul, his counter arguments to Cebes and Simmias ' arguments, and an explanation as to why Socrates first argument for the immorality of the soul does not succeed in establishing that the soul is immortal.
A person’s body can change in appearance numerous times throughout his or her life, but who they are essentially does not change along with the outward appearance. He claims ownership of his body, and he uses his body, but his body is not the self, the soul is the self—the soul is in possession of the body. Socrates seems to agree to an extent with Democritus on the morality of the soul, to the extent that a soul can be good or vicious. Living well or living badly are all matters of the soul. If one wants to have a good soul then he or she should not place too much emphasis on external goods, and should focus on having areté of the soul instead. Areté consists of what we typically associate with good people; it is virtue, excellence, and being the best one can be. Socrates asserts that when one dies there are two possibilities; either you become nothing and unaware, or your soul goes on to an afterlife somewhere else. In death, when the soul separates from the temporary body, it goes into the afterlife exactly as it was in life. Meaning, if the soul has been taken care of during life then it will continue to be a healthy, happy soul in death. However, if it were neglected because the person placed too much importance on external goods during life, which causes damage, it will enter the afterlife as the same damaged soul it was in life. He seems to be saying that the people who typically only seek out the external goods are the ones with vicious souls, and that they think that they can compensate for the state of their soul by acquiring all of these external things. However, Socrates says that there is no hope for vicious souls; if a person has a vicious soul he or she has a damaged self, and there are no external goods or benefits that can compensate for
Socrates was a philosopher who was true to his word and his death was ultimately felt by his closest friends and followers. In Phaedo, Socrates is met with his closest friends during his final hours as they await his death. At this point Socrates is prepared for death and seems to welcome it. Although death may seem like a scary inevitable fate that we all must face at one point; Socrates saw death as a privilege mainly because he believed that the soul was immortal. As a result, Socrates provides arguments as to why he believed the soul was immortal and even though all his arguments lacked unconvincing evidence, he does bring up good points. In this paper I will talk about Socrates’ most and least convincing arguments on immortality, and explain what Socrates’ problem was with Anaxagoras.
In the reading, it explains that Socrates is wealthy, educated, has a high status and honored, but Socrates believes all of it is worthless, harmful and damaging to the soul. The soul is all that matters because it is eternal. When he was on death row, he didn’t really fight to save his life. He knows his potential and is refusing to take control and live up to it. He truly doesn't care whether he dies and is willing to throw hi...
The body is not a prison for the soul, but a factory. Souls were not placed in flesh as a type of sentence but as a vehicle to help complete work. Life is not a punishment; it is more like a job. According to Socrates' views as expressed in Plato's Phaedo, Socrates believed the body is a prison for the soul. He asserts that "she is fast bound in the body, and fastened to it; she is unable to contemplate what is, by herself, or except through the bars of her prison house, the body" (82 e). The people who spend their time "forming and molding their bodies" (82 d) are not to be followed and all should stay as far away as possible from those. The five senses that bodies include are filled with deception and falseness. Although I do agree with some aspects of his argument, I believe a factory is a better analogy for the body.
Pettinger, T. (2012, September 4). Socrates Biography. Biography Online. Retrieved November 11, 2013, from http://www.biographyonline.net/spiritual/socrates.html
“…Those who are about their souls and do not devote themselves to the body disassociate themselves firmly from these others and refuse to accompany them on their haphazard journey…” (Phaedo, 82d). Socrates is talking about how others waste their time focusing on the body when the soul should be the focus. He refuses to go and do what everyone else is doing because God has commanded him on his journey of philosophy. These people do not devote themselves to the correct way of life. You need to gather knowledge and wisdom through questioning with the Socratic Method. Wisdom and knowledge is knowing you are ignorant and doing something about it by getting more in touch with the non-physical world. Asking others questions and seeking a wise person to ask questions is how you should attain wisdom. He says you should also gather knowledge from yourself and look inside yourself for answers and cultivate the soul through virtue. Philosophy is also essential to human life. Living your life through philosophy and using it as a guide to ask questions is the way to live
Aristotle felt that the soul, or the personality of a being, was not something that could be separated from the body. He believed that the soul was the result of the physical form of the body. This was a departure from the conventional teachings of his time. Aristotle’s peers taught that the soul was abstract and not concerned with the body, but Aristotle felt that anything that happens in the mind or personality (and ...
Aristotle uses his matter/form distinction to answer the question “What is soul?” and explains through his hylomorphic composition (matter, form, the compound of matter and form) to show that the body requires the soul and vice versa. He believes that compounds which are alive, are things that have souls and it is their souls that make them living things. In this essay, I will present Aristotle’s argument of the soul and whether he is successful in arguing for the mutual dependance of soul and body.
Aristotle argued and disagreed with Plato’s views of the self and soul being a separate from the body. Aristotle’s view is that all humans have a soul, yet they cannot be separate from the body in which they reside. To him, there are four sections of the soul; the desiderative and vegetative parts on the irrational side are used to help one find what they are needing and the calculative and scientific parts on the rational side are