1.3.1
Plato & Aristotle's Views of the Soul
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Plato's View of the Soul
From the analogy of the cave and the theory of Forms, we can see that Plato thinks the soul is a non-material essence.
Charioteer analogy
- The Charioteer analogy helps to understand the tripartite (threefold) nature of the soul:
- Two horses (will and appetite) are controlled by the charioteer (reason). Plato believed that unless the charioteer kept control on the reins, will (the weaker horse) would be dragged in the direction that appetite (the stronger horse) wanted to go.
Plato's beliefs about the soul
- Plato was a dualist and believed that the soul is deformed through its association with the body.
- The soul is separable from the body and as it is non-material, it is, in a sense, indestructible.
Plato’s arguments for the soul
- The cyclical nature of existence.
- As sleep follows waking, waking follows sleep. As death follows life, life follows death.
- The argument from knowledge.
- Plato claims we have innate knowledge that helps us make comparisons, which can only come from the world of the Forms. So our souls pre-existed our physical bodies in this world.
- As the soul (not the body) grasps the Forms, then the soul must belong to that world too. So it is unchangeable and indivisible, just as the Forms are.
Aristotle's View of the Soul
Aristotle had an entirely different view of the soul. The soul is the form of the body.
Relationship of form and cause
- For Aristotle, the form of something is related to the cause, specifically the formal cause, which is the ‘blueprint’ or map of something.
- The form of something is found in its functioning.
- E.g. The form of a car is found through the combustion of the petrol, the pistons, the action of the engine and the movement of the wheels. In other words, the working together of all the processes of the car.
BMW and human examples
- In that sense, you cannot say that you have a BMW if all you have is a pile of BMW parts – they have to be connected together and functioning in the manner intended.
- Equally, even if you have a collection of human parts, you cannot say that there is a soul or form of human there unless they all function together.
Body and soul are inseparable
- So in contrast to Plato’s dualist position, Aristotle does not hold that the soul is separable from the body – that when the body dies, you cannot meaningfully speak of a form or soul of the body because decomposition begins.
- An analogy to this is that of the eye.
- Aristotle says the soul of the eye is the sight. If the eye is not functioning, there is no sight. Equally, if the body is not functioning, there is no soul.
Wax and seal analogy
- Another analogy Aristotle gives is the wax and the seal.
- When heated wax is imprinted with someone’s seal or stamp (to seal an official letter for instance) it is impossible to separate the imprint of the seal from the wax. So the form of the body, the soul, is imprinted on it but is also inseparable from the working of the body itself.
1Philosophy of Religion
1.1Ancient Philosophical Influences: Plato
1.2Ancient Philosophical Influences: Aristotle
1.3Ancient Philosophical Influences: Soul, Mind, Body
1.4The Existence of God - Arguments from Observation
1.5The Existence of God - Arguments from Reason
1.6Religious Experience
1.7The Problem of Evil
1.8The Nature & Attributes of God
1.9Religious Language: Negative, Analogical, Symbolic
2Religion & Ethics
2.1Natural Law
2.2Situation Ethics
2.3Kantian Ethics
2.4Utilitarianism
2.5Euthanasia
2.6Business Ethics
2.7Meta-Ethical Theories
2.8Conscience
3Developments in Christian Thought
3.1Saint Augustine's Teachings
3.2Death & the Afterlife
3.3Knowledge of God's Existence
3.4The Person of Jesus Christ
3.5Christian Moral Principles
3.6Christian Moral Action
3.7Development - Pluralism & Theology
3.8Development - Pluralism & Society
3.9Gender & Society
3.10Gender & Theology
Jump to other topics
1Philosophy of Religion
1.1Ancient Philosophical Influences: Plato
1.2Ancient Philosophical Influences: Aristotle
1.3Ancient Philosophical Influences: Soul, Mind, Body
1.4The Existence of God - Arguments from Observation
1.5The Existence of God - Arguments from Reason
1.6Religious Experience
1.7The Problem of Evil
1.8The Nature & Attributes of God
1.9Religious Language: Negative, Analogical, Symbolic
2Religion & Ethics
2.1Natural Law
2.2Situation Ethics
2.3Kantian Ethics
2.4Utilitarianism
2.5Euthanasia
2.6Business Ethics
2.7Meta-Ethical Theories
2.8Conscience
3Developments in Christian Thought
3.1Saint Augustine's Teachings
3.2Death & the Afterlife
3.3Knowledge of God's Existence
3.4The Person of Jesus Christ
3.5Christian Moral Principles
3.6Christian Moral Action
3.7Development - Pluralism & Theology
3.8Development - Pluralism & Society
3.9Gender & Society
3.10Gender & Theology
Practice questions on Plato & Aristotle's Views of the Soul
Can you answer these? Test yourself with free interactive practice on Seneca — used by over 10 million students.
- 1What did Plato believe about the soul and the body? True / false
- 2What does the Charioteer analogy help to explain? Multiple choice
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