Mekelle፡Telaviv, Nairobi, Pretoria, London, (Tigray Herald)
Where I Differ from Plato: The Body Is Interconnected
Written by Batseba Seifu
I am currently reading the Republic by Plato. In this philosophical magna opus, Plato constructs a philosophical framework that elevates the soul as the ultimate guide to truth, justice, and wisdom. On the other hand, he sees the body as distractive. For Plato, the body is the soul’s prison— that draws the individual away from higher forms of knowledge. In this dualism, reason and intellect reside in the soul, and virtue is achieved by disciplining the body under the guidance of the rational mind.
I differ from Plato in the very foundation of that division. I do not see the body as a corrupting influence nor as separate from the soul or mind. Instead, I see the body as interconnected. Our thoughts, feelings, desires, and even moral judgments are not merely the domain of the soul or brain in isolation, but of a complex, embodied system involving our being – an entire organism.
Plato’s Hierarchical Model: Reason Over Flesh
Plato’s tripartite theory of the soul presents a model of inner harmony similar to that of a just state. He divides the soul into three parts: the rational (reason), the spirited (will/emotion), and the desire. Justice, in Plato’s terms, occurs when reason rules over spirit and appetite, just as the philosopher-king rules over soldiers and workers in the ideal state.
This model implies a strict hierarchy: reason is divine, while the bodily desires and physical needs are obstacles to be mastered. Even death is treated not as an end, but a release—the soul is freed from the body’s prison and can finally engage with the eternal Forms. The philosopher’s journey, in Plato’s view, is to transcend the sensory world and rise toward the reason, untainted by bodily interference.
Modern Science: The Collapse of Mind-Body Dualism
This is where modern science diverges. Today, mind-body dualism, once philosophically dominant, is refuted. The body is not a separate and lower thing. Rather, it is a partner in cognition, emotion, and consciousness. Neuroscience, immunology, and psychology all point to the body as an integrated, active participant in thinking processes.
- The Brain is Not Alone
It’s long been assumed that the brain is the seat of the mind, but even that view is becoming outdated. The gut-brain axis reveals that the enteric nervous system— “second brain”—plays a role in emotional and cognitive processes. Imbalances in gut microbiota have been linked to depression, anxiety, and even impaired cognitive function. The vagus nerve, which connects the brainstem to the digestive tract, enables constant communication between the two systems. This suggests that mental health is also a bodily state.
- Embodied Cognition
The theory of embodied cognition in cognitive science and philosophy of mind asserts that the body is integral to how we think. Even abstract reasoning is based on physical experience. For example, we often speak and think in metaphors rooted in physical orientation—“falling into depression,” “rising to the occasion,” or “grasping a concept.”
According to this view, even moral reasoning arises from embodied experience. Exposure to physical disgust—such as a foul smell—leads to making more severe moral judgments. Thus, we can conclude that our ethical decisions are influenced by bodily sensations. This challenges Plato’s otherworldly conclusion that reason and the soul operate independently of the flesh.
- Emotion is Physical
Plato believed that emotion (the “spirited” part of the soul) must be submissive to reason. But emotions are not irrational noise—they are physical signals essential to adaptive behavior. Emotion and bodily feeling are central to rational decision-making. Damage to the brain’s emotional centers can lead to the loss of decision making because reason without emotion is paralyzing.
A New Philosophy of the Self
If we take these scientific findings seriously, they do not just correct Plato’s metaphysics—they revolutionize our understanding of human nature. The self is not a ghost in a machine, nor a pure soul dragged down by the temptations of the body. The self is an embodied being: breathing, sensing, feeling, and thinking all at once.
Even the idea of a soul must be rethought in light of embodiment. The ancient Greek conception of psyche as an immaterial essence may still resonate spiritually in some religions, but biologically, consciousness is not localized in the soul or brain alone—it is distributed across the entire nervous system. There is still a debate as to what consciousness is. But, we can at least agree that we, as individuals, are interconnected whole beings.
Revisiting Plato: What Can Be Retained?
None of this is to say that Plato was entirely wrong. His emphasis on reason, discipline, and justice still holds philosophical value. His ideal of a harmonious soul, in which each part functions in balance, may even be echoed in the modern idea of the body’s ability to regulate internal conditions. However, his framework needs reorientation. Harmony is not the rule of the brain over the body, but the integration of mind and body into a dynamic whole.
If Plato sought transcendence through the soul’s release from the body, today we find wisdom in returning to the body, in recognizing its intelligence, its memory, its emotion. In the attention to the body—we find not a lesser truth, but a deeper one.
In diverging from Plato, I affirm that the body is not an enemy of truth, but a co-author of it. Our biological, emotional, and cognitive systems are interwoven so tightly that any attempt to separate them twists reality rather than illuminate it. Modern science shows us that the intellect does not float above the physical—it emerges from it, is shaped by it, and returns to it in every heartbeat, breath, and sensation.
Plato envisioned a soul escaping the body. But in our time, the wiser journey is not out of the body—but deeper into it.
