THE HUMAN

PERSON AS AN
EMBODIED SPIRIT
 WHAT IS IN OUR HUMAN
NATURE THAT ENABLES US TO
BECOME PERSONS?
• PERSONHOOD WHICH REFERS TO THE STATE
OF BEING A PERSON.
• PHILOSOPHERS BELIEVE THAT A PERSON
CANNOT BE SIMPLY REDUCED TO THEIR
PHYSICAL BODY.
 SPIRIT
• INTANGIBLE ELEMENT WHICH ENABLES US TO EXERCISE
THOUGHT, POSSESS AWARENESS, INTERIORITY, AND THE
CAPACITY O REACH OUT TO THE OUTSIDE WORLD AND
OTHER PERSONS.
 HUMAN PERSON AS AN
EMBODIED SPIRIT
• PHILOSOPHERS CONSIDER THE HUMAN PERSON AS
DEFINED BY THE UNION OF THE SPIRIT.
• BODY (PURELY PHYSICAL BEING) + SPIRIT (MIND,
WILL AND EMOTIONS) = EMBODIED SPIRIT
METAPHYSICAL APPROACH
• ANSWERS THE “WHAT” OF A PERSON, WHAT IS
MADE UP OF A PERSON OR THE CHARACTERISTICS
OR CAPABILITIES OF A PERSON.
• UNSPIRITED BODY VIEW
• DISEMBODIED SPIRIT
• EMBODIED SPIRIT
 UNSPIRITED BODY VIEW
• A HUMAN PERSON IS JUST HIS/HER BODY
AND NOTHING MORE; THE WAY WE THINK,
OR FEEL ARE BASED ON BIOLOGICAL
PROCESS; WE ACT ACCORDING TO THE
PATTERNS OF BEHAVIOUR.
 DISEMBODIED SPIRIT
• VIEWS MAN AS COMPOSED OF BODY AND
SOUL; THE BODY AND SOUL ARE SEPARATE
FROM EACH OTHER.
• THE BODY DEPENDS ON SOUL WHILE THE
SOUL IS IMMORTAL (SUBSTANCE DUALISM)
 PLATO
• THE NATURE OF THE HUMAN PERSON IS
SEEN AS THE METAPHYSICAL DICHOTOMY
BETWEEN THE BODY AND THE SOUL.
• DICHOTOMY MEANS THERE IS A
CONTRADICTION BETWEEN THE BODY AND
THE SOUL.
• BODY – MATERIAL – DESTRUCTIBLE
• SOUL – IMMATERIAL – INDESTRUCTIBLE
• THE BODY’S EXISTENCE IS DEPENDENT ON
THE SOUL WHILE THE SOUL’S EXISTENCE IS
INDEPENDENT OF THE BODY.
• HE ARGUES THAT THE SOUL EXISTED PRIOR
TO THE BODY.
THREE PARTS OF THE SOUL
1.RATIONAL SOUL – LOCATED IN
THE LEAD
2.SPIRITUAL SOUL – CHEST
3.APPETITIVE SOUL - ABDOMEN
THREE PARTS OF THE SOUL
• APPETITIVE/DESIRE SOUL – DESIRES BODILY PLEASURE DRIVES
THE PERSON TO EXPERIENCE THIRST, HUNGER AND OTHER
PHYSICAL WANTS.
• SPIRITUAL SOUL – IN CHARGE OF MOTIVATION OF THE HUMAN
PERSON TO ACTION; DRIVES THE HUMAN PERSON TO EMOTIONS.
• RATIONAL SOUL – THE SEAT OF THE MIND AND INTELLECT, IT
ENABLES ON TO THINK, REFLECT, COMPREHEND AND THE LIKE
• (MORALITY) EXAMPLE: THE THIRSTY MAN
• A VERY THIRSTY MAN IS WANDERING THROUGH THE
DESERT AND SEES A POOL OF WATER.
• AS HE COMES CLOSER, HE SEES A SIGN THAT STATES THAT
THE WATER IS POISONOUS.
• UPON VIEWING THE SIGN, THE MAN ENTERS A STATE OF
CONFLICT WITHIN SOUL.
• DESIRE SAYS TO DRINK, BUT REASON SAYS NOT TO.
• REASON SAYS THAT PARTAKING OF THE WATER WILL
WORSEN HIS SITUATION AND SO HE EMPLOYS SPIRIT TO
OVERCOME HIS DESIRE.
• THE HUMAN SPIRIT IS JUST A SOUL USING A
BODY. HE BELIEVED THAT THE SOUL IS
IMPRISONED IN THE BODY AND THAT THE
SOUL LIVES EVEN WHEN THE BODY
DIES/DECOMPOSES BECAUSE IT IS
INDESTRUCTIBLE. ON THE OTHER HAND, THE
SOUL LEAVES THE BODY AND GOES BACK TO
THE WORLD OF FORMS.
EMBODIED SPIRIT
• INPERABLE UNION OF BODY AND
SOUL
 ARISTOTLE
• DISAGREES WITH PLATO’S DUALISM. HE
BELIEVES THAT THERE IS NO
DICHOTOMY BETWEEN THE PERSON’S
BODY SOUL.
• BODY AND SOUL IS IN A STATE OF UNITY,
THEY ARE INSPERABLE.
• SOUL – GREEK WORD FOR PSYCHE OR THE
CONCEPT/PRINCIPLE OF LIFE.
• PRINCIPLE OF LIFE: THE SOUL CAUSES THE BODY TO
LIVE; HE BELIEVES THAT THE SOUL IS IN THE FORM OF
THE BODY, WHILE THE BODY IS THE MATTER TO THE
SOUL.
 THREE LEVELS OF SOUL
1. VEGETATIVE SOUL – GROW, REPRODUCE AND
FEED ITSELF
2. SENSITIVE SOUL – GROW, REPRODUCE, FEED
THEMSELVES AND CAPABLE OF SENSATION
3. RATIONAL SOUL – GROW, REPRODUCE, FEED
THEMSELVES, CAPABLE OF SENSATION AND
CAPABLE OF THINKING
 ST. THOMAS AQUINAS
• ST. THOMAS AQUINAS (SUMMA
THEOLOGIAE). FOR ST. THOMAS, THE
VISION OF MAN WOULD BE THE
EMBODIED SPIRIT.
• MAN IS ONE SUBSTANCE BODY AND SOUL.
• MAN IS A SUBSTANTIAL UNITY OF BODY AND SOUL.
• MAN IS AN EMBODIED SOUL/SPIRIT, NOT A SOUL USING A
BODY AS PLATO ASSERTED.
• THE SOUL IN MAN IS NOT ONLY AN EMBODIED
SUBSTANCE IN ITSELF BECAUSE IT IS IMMATERIAL OR
SPIRITUAL BUT IT IS ALSO AT THE SAME TIME, THE FORM
OF THE BODY.
 GABRIEL MARCEL
• MAN IS NOT SIMPLY A DATUM ALONGSIDE
OTHER DATA BUT THE PRIMARY DATUM
THAT IS THE STARTING POINT OF ANY
PHILOSOPHICAL REFLECTION. HE SAID, “I
NOT ONLY HAVE A BODY; I AM THIS BODY”.
 THE EXPERIENCE OF
EMBODIMENT
• OUR EXPERIENCE IS A PRODUCT OF
EMBODIMENT.
• THE EXPERIENCE OF EMBODIMENT CAN BE
DESCRIBED FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF
PRIMARY AND SECONDARY REFLECTION.
 PRIMARY REFLECTION
• IN THE LIGHT OF PRIMARY REFLECTION,
OUR BODY CAN BE JUDGED
EMPIRICALLY IN TERMS OF OUR
OBSERVABLE PHYSICAL ATTRIBUTES.
 SECONDARY REFLECTION
• THIS IS NOT JUST “A BODY”. THIS IS MY BODY. I AM MY BODY AND I
CANNOT SPEAK OF MY BODY AND MYSELF AS TWO SEPARATE REALITIES.
• GABRIEL MARCEL’S PHILOSOPHY OF THE BODY IS AN INQUIRY ON THE
MEANING OF THE EXPERIENCE OF “MY BODY” NOT ABOUT “A BODY”. HE
SAID, “I NOT ONLY HAVE A BODY, I AM MY BODY”. IT SIMPLY EXPLAINS THAT
THERE IS NO GAP BETWEEN ME AND MY BODY, BECAUSE I CANNOT
SEPARATE MYSELF FROM MY BODY. “I” AND “MY BODY” IS ONE.
 WHAT THEN IS MY EXPERIENCE OF
“MY BODY?”
• “MY BODY”: POSSESSION; I CAN DO WHAT I WANT
TO DO; IT IS MY BODY SO I HAVE THE FREEDOM TO
USE IT ACCORDING TO MY WILL; IT IS AS IF MY
BODY IS A FORM OF TRANSPORTATION FOR MY
SELF.
• BY USING SECONDARY REFLECTION, WE CAN SEE
THAT IT DOES NOT MAKE SENSE TO SEPARATE THE
“I” AND THE BODY TO ASK, “WHAT IS THE
RELATION TO THE “I” TO THE BODY? IS THE LOGIC
“I HAVE A BODY” THE SAME WITH “I HAVE A DOG?”
IN ORDER TO POSSESS A DOG, WE MUST HAVE AN
INTERRELATIONSHIP WITH EACH OTHER. I MUST
HAVE RESPONSIBILITY AND CONTROL OVER WITH
WHAT I POSSESS.
 EMBODIED SPIRIT
• IT DOES NOT MAKE SENSE TO CONSIDER “MY
BODY” AS ONLY AN INSTRUMENT. IF I SAY I OWN
“MY BODY”, I TREAT IT LIKE AN INSTRUMENT
THAT I POSSESS AND USE OTHER THINGS IN THE
WORLD. EXAMPLE, BY MEANS OF “MY BODY” I
CAN POSSESS A CELLPHONE, TABLET OR A
BICYCLE. IS MY BODY THEN AN INSTRUMENT.
• AN INSTRUMENT IS AN EXTENSION OR REINFORCING
A POWER OR PART OF MY BODY. EXAMPLE, EYEGLASS
REINFORCE MY SIGHT, BICYCLE CAN REINFORCE THE
ABILITY OF MY FEET TO TRAVEL. IF MY BODY WAS AN
INSTRUMENT IT WOULD NEED SOME OTHER BODY TO
REINFORCE, AND WE WOULD HAVE ARRIVE AT AN
UNENDING SERIES OF BODIES AND INFINITUM. “MY
BODY” CANNOT BE FRAMED IN AN INSTRUMENTALIST
IDEA. I DO NOT THINK OF MY BODY, I FEEL IT.