Virtue, The Soul, And Justice Philosophy at its best

[gunbound 0]

I have long been interested in a subject that many know something about, yet very few care to learn, want to learn, or are able to learn. But this is because most people don't realize the virtue of this knowledge. First of all, this subject I speak of is philosophy; but more specifically, this is related to Platonic philosophy. To give you a short introduction, let me just say that Plato was a philosopher from over 2300 years ago who set the foundations for philosophy and politics for all subsequent history. He was also the teacher of Aristotle, who then taught Alexander (the Great). What I am about to teach you about can be a part of and a benefit to everyone's life. What I have to write here is just a portion of my favorite things about this subject.

 

Virtue

 

In one sentence: virtue is something doing its best to do what it is best designed to do. When we talk about virtue we are particularly talking about what humans or other animals do, but is can also be used to describe something like a pencil, if that makes it easier for you to understand what this means. The virtue of a pencil is to write. The virtue of a bird is to fly. The virtue of a human is to think (use the power of our brain). Get it? But while a general example such as this is can be refined, such as saying that some birds can fly better than others, let this example remain simple - remember that what is important for this lesson is that virtue is part of human life.

 

Human virtue is our ability to use our mind, and that's what we're most interested in here because philosophy is something designed for humans by humans - not for birds or pencils. And we can all clearly see why a human's virtue is in the mind. Of course, if it weren't for our high capacity, we wouldn't be reading these lights on the computer screen. But the mind can do so many things more than to create resources to help us survive and reproduce; it can do much more, and this is the object of philosophy. Philosophy = love of wisdom.

 

The Soul

 

So the question is, how to we become virtuous?

 

Like all actions that we humans make, we make choices to act in ways that will help better ourselves (this is another debatable subject, but just take it for granted for this sake of this argument); virtue is our ability to do what is best for ourselves. What can we better for ourselves, and how? We can use the virtue of the mind to better our Soul.

 

What is the soul?

 

It is probably most common for people to think of a soul as a form - something like a blurry figure of a human being. This symbolic mental representation of the soul is not accurate because the soul is not something that exists in the sensible world. The soul is a metaphysical thing, meaning that it exists only in our mind. We can understand the soul quite easily (if I can explain it right for you) by understanding the way we use our mind. The soul is like our mind (in Greek, psyche = soul. Psyche is the root word for psychology). So let's try to dissect what our mind does when it's at work.

 

A man named Paul Sartre said that "man is doomed to have to make choices," and this is true. What makes humans different from other creatures is that they have the ability to use the mind and be able to make conscious decisions for our actions and we can understand why we make those decisions. A dog or a person may be able to hesitate about whether or not to approach a stranger, but while the dog won't be able to reflect on why it makes the choice it does, a person can. The point is that, for every decision we make there is a conflict between something that is in us as well as an ability to understand the reality of what we are trying to decide. Plato brought to light that the human soul is composed of two parts, which can be most easily understood as body & mind. We have instinctual parts of our soul that are connected with the natural part of us, giving desires, appetites, pleasures, etc., which are connected to the physical part of ourselves - the body. But in addition, within the body is the brain; it gives people the ability to do more than act on natural, impulsive, bodily instinct. The brain (the mind) also gives us the power of calculation. The mind is a functioning part of the body at a different level that takes input from the sensible world via our bodily senses, it stores the information as knowledge, and like a computer, that information is held for future reference and...decision making.

 

So as we see, there are these two parts of the soul: body and mind. However, the question ultimately arises about how our choices are made. Our brain makes choices, of course, but the brain is necessary for all operation. There must be something else within us that moderates between which part of the soul should make the decision - either the reasonable one or the natural one.

 

We all have desires - we need them - but we must also be careful to not give in to them when they do not produce what is best for us. It is particularly a human thing to have to make these choices, which is why Sartre says that we are "doomed" to have to make them. And the reason that we can do this is that it helps us live better lives and survive ? it is part of our virtue.

 

We can find out what this third part is if we are able to consider an example of it. Imagine that you are faced with something horrible, such as a dead person, and you don't want to look - yet at the same time you do. Or imagine that you have had five drinks and you want to have another, but you're not sure if you should. Or imagine that you have left home and the people you love because you have a goal in life that you must pursue, but while it is meant to be a good thing it also makes you sad to do. This third part of the soul is known as the spirit or, to be more modern, the emotion of the soul.

 

Now we see the three parts: 1) the reasoning part (mind), 2) the natural part (body), 3) and the spirited part (emotion). This third part, the spirit, might be the most complicated of the three parts. It arises when there is a need to decide between the sides of a choice we need to make. We feel the emotion from the spirit when we are deciding, and once the decision is over, the soul reverts back to either the reasoning part of the soul in control, or the natural part being in control.

 

Which is more virtuous part of the soul to be in control?

 

Justice

 

After having a fair understanding of Virtue and the Soul, it is not difficult to calculate for which part of the soul is the more virtuous part to be in control. The answer is that the reasoning part is to be in control, and when the reasoning part is in control of the soul, the soul is Just. But to truly see if this is accurate, we must further consider why it is best for reason to rule.

 

The natural part of the soul is given to us by default. We are born with nature and it allows us to survive and grow. Nature gives us the desires necessary for us to acquire what is necessary for the body and its physical existence. Nature is necessary because without it, we wouldn?t be able to sustain the body that is necessary to preserve the brain. And without the brain we would be without the ability to reason. However, while we could survive without reason, it would be an existence without virtue. And without that virtue, we are nothing more than weak creatures. Human ancestors could have never survived this long without the power of reason, and nothing can survive at all without nature.

 

The reasoning part of the soul becomes continuously stronger via what we learn about the sensible world. It could not exist without nature having given it the opportunity to do what it is best designed to do: it uses the information that it collects through the senses in order to have understanding, not only of the physical world that it experiences, but also of the metaphysical world in which it exists. The reasoning part can continuously learn from its environment, while the natural part only adapts to the environment. The reasoning part is far less limited than the natural part, making it the stronger. And most importantly, the reasoning part of the soul is able understand the soul in which it exists, while the natural part cannot.

 

When reason is in control of the soul, there is justice in the soul. Reason is able to know what is best for the soul (Form of the Good) while nature is not. When nature is in control, it is disposed to giving in to desires beyond its needs. When nature rules, having not the knowledge of virtue that only the mind can attain, it has the potential to overpower Reason and take over the soul. When nature is in control, the unreasoned pursuit of desires, pleasures, and appetites disrupts harmony between the two parts. But when reason is in control, it is able to make the best decision about what is best. When reason rules, it gives moderation (virtue of the natural part) to the natural part by giving it only what it needs ? no more, no less. And when reason rules, it allows the natural part to give it the knowledge it needs for wisdom (virtue of the reasoning part), in order to maintain the soul. Reason is able to create harmony between the parts, and this is Justice!

[biscuitrat 0]

I'm enlightened. I hope we go over that in Latin 3/4 when we do Prose and talk about Philosophers. I'm gonna go eat dinner now. But it's so interesting to read through. And it's actually intelligent, compared to some of the things I've read today (not on this site ><).Adios!