By: Ezekiel Gacee

For many years, the concept of the soul has been in existence, with the philosophical approach of Plato being far more advanced than that of his predecessor Socrates. Plato’s theories were a bit radical and taken from a different dimension away from the traditional polytheistic Greek gods. Melinda appears to believe in Plato’s philosophical approach that defines a man’s makeup.

According to Plato, the body consists of the body and the soul. Plato argues that the body has a soul that is both spiritual and immortal and infuses during birth. 

The soul is, therefore, what defines the true self of an individual. While Melissa appears to have a contrary opinion regarding the soul’s existence, this theory is a central argument in Greek philosophy. Melinda can argue based on Plato’s observations that the world is an imperfect place. In addition to this, Plato believed that the human body is often an embodiment of worldly desires, a phenomenon that entraps the soul.

However, the soul is there to correct the immutability and the imperfection of the world. There is some credibility about Plato’s argument on the existence of the soul and human conscience. 

Form his line of thought, every person has an innate sense that predetermines right and wrong. This natural sense is, in most cases, independent of any religious influence. As stated by Penner, many are the times that people experience a nagging sense of guilt when they commit a wrong (16). This approach provides a convincing argument with an undeniable logical thread in line with Plato’s initial premise on the immortality of the soul. 

Melissa is likely to respond to Melinda’s argument by stating that not everyone believes in the existence of the soul theory fronted by many Greek philosophers. Scientific arguments have vehemently opposed the philosophical concept of the soul, arguing that the human body runs itself. The discussion regarding the soul’s mortality is premised on the thesis that the soul could have been in existence before the body.

From a logical perspective, this assumption is that anything that has a beginning has an end. 

There are significant weaknesses related to Plato’s argument on the existence of the soul and, in particular, regarding the immortality of the soul that Melissa can use to discredit Melinda’s evidence. First, human beings are not immortal. At some point in life, a person dies and ceases to be in existence. However, Plato alleges that the soul evolves when a person is living and even after death.

From this argument, the concept of time is a prerequisite for the soul to progress. 

Taking away the aspect of time is like taking away the space in which a body occupies; this, by extension, means that space and time are concurrent phenomena hence the body and the soul cannot be separated. According to Moreland and Scott (65), the soul cannot, therefore, be immortal, let alone being in existence. From this approach, the idea that the soul exists appears to be a human invention meant to serve philosophical and religious purposes. 

There is a considerable level of religious and spiritual logic regarding the existence of the soul. However, it is essential to note that the theological concept is a mental construct that does not have autonomy over contradictory theories on human existence. It is inconceivably irrational to argue that humans consist of a body and soul. It is further absurd to assume that after a person dies, the soul continues to develop through a process known as metempsychosis (reincarnation).

Even though the idea of the soul has some connection with reality, so is every object in existence. 

Works Cited

Moreland, James Porter, and Scott B. Rae. Body & Soul: Human nature & the crisis in ethics. InterVarsity Press, 2009.

Penner, Terry. The Ascent from Nominalism: Some Existence Arguments in Plato’s Middle Dialogues. Vol. 37. Springer Science & Business Media, 2012.