Plato’s Tripartite Theory

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Question one

To understand the logic behind Plato’s Tripartite theory it is important to recognize that his theory is just drawing comparisons from how societies operate and how human beings operate. What Plato is discussing with this theory is how a just society would operate as compared to how a just person would operate. He explains that just like society is split up into different institutions, such as the ruling class and the working class, the human being is also split up into different institutions. Plato describes this tripartite separation by using an allegory of a charioteer driving two horses. The charioteer signifies the rational part of the soul. The foul black horse signifies the appetitive part of the soul and the white noble horse next to it signifies the spirited part of the soul. This white horse shows characteristics such as love, modesty, and restraint. On the other hand, the black horse has characteristics such as insolence and pride. While the charioteer is the one holding the reins, he is overcome by the black horse and the white horse as they try to push him into different directions. The white horse works to keep its counterpart in check but, as Plato describes in Phaedrus, the black horse who is steering towards the desires of the individual is the one who takes control in the end.

Question two

One of the major arguments against the theory of Dualism is with regards to causal interaction. Descartes states that the point of causal interaction is in the pineal gland, which can be found between the two hemispheres of the brain. According to Descartes, Fine particles of matter, called animal spirits, flow underneath the pineal gland. These animal spirits then imprint an image on the pineal gland. Th...

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... words, multiple realizability and the Turning Machine focus on the idea of taking input from various different mental and physical stimuli’s and putting it into a state that other physical kinds, such as animals and computers, can understand and imitate.

Works Cited

Bickle, J. (2007, July 27). Multiple realizability. Retrieved from

http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/multiple-realizability/

Eliasmith, C. (2006, February 27). Dictionary of philosophy of mind. Retrieved from

http://philosophy.uwaterloo.ca/MindDict/dualism.html

Heil, J. (2004). Philosophy of mind: a guide and anthology. Oxford, New York: Oxford

University Press.

Mahon, J.E. Causal interactionism. Retrieved from

http://home.wlu.edu/~mahonj/Descartes.M6.Interactionism.htm

Schweller, K. What is a turing machine?. Retrieved from

http://web.bvu.edu/faculty/schweller/Turing/Turing.html

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