Mind vs Body

[Sanctuary]

right, but our appearance makes a huge impact on the minds of others. most of the time people will accept our mental flaws in exchange for our bodies. physical attraction is seems to be the most popular topic for all males or females. we have discussed many times that we wouldn't date obese or ugly people. but we do date cheaters and abusers if they are good looking.

In the context of romance, of course looks will have a higher impact. Guys will always judge a girl by her looks first and foremost. And some girls don't feel that there is a better option at the time than the pretty boy who is a cheater or abuser.

Even then, physical attractiveness only gets you through the door, it doesn't keep you there.

But I was talking about life in general. And to address the original question, I still feel mind is more important because when people think of who we are, they think of our mental qualities and not necessarily our physical qualities unless we're just acquaintances.

But to address Sonrisa's view on relationships as governed by appearance - if I were to swap bodies with an uglier guy and retain my mind, I might not be as successful in certain areas as I am now, but I'd still be relatively successful. Barring major major deformities, you can always work to make yourself presentable if you know how.

[flea]

Mind is part of the body.

really? which part?


that's like saying the cool air that comes out is part of the air-coditioner.

[NeoSeminole]

flea says:

"really? which part? that's like saying the cool air that comes out is part of the air-coditioner."

mind = brain. Hope this helps.

[IndiReloaded]

So how can one lose one's mind but not one's brain?

[NeoSeminole]

you're confusing a metaphor with a literal interpretation. No one actually loses their mind (i.e. it doesn't run away).

[IndiReloaded]

How about a computer then? Brain = CPU and mind = ???

[NeoSeminole]

the hardware specs = brain and performance = mind (???)

I'm not a computer expert. So I dunno.

[doppelgaenger]

Y'all are still arguing about that?

That's not even in the scope of the topic. The topic is what makes us who we are. I answered that simply by saying it's everything around us that makes us who we are and that mind/brain or body alone are quite insignificant.

Instead of telling me that my style of communication is 'trying to hard', 'too poetic', or metaphorical, does anyone actually want to challenge that by proving me wrong in that everything around us is less significant?

[NeoSeminole]

doppelgaenger says:

"Y'all are still arguing about that?

That's not even in the scope of the topic. The topic is what makes us who we are. I answered that simply by saying it's everything around us that makes us who we are and that mind/brain or body alone are quite insignificant.

Instead of telling me that my style of communication is 'trying to hard', 'too poetic', or metaphorical, does anyone actually want to challenge that by proving me wrong in that everything around us is less significant?"

no brain = no mind = no concept of self = no individual identity

our surroundings are irrelevant. However, if you really want to go there, then I will one up you and say that everything around us is insignificant by itself without time and space for it to exist. Now prove me wrong

[doppelgaenger]

You're a classical realist, Neo. If I asked you the age old if a tree fell in a forest question, I know exactly how you'd answer it.

What I said is in the assumption that one has a brain, one is a human being, one has lived, and obviously there is time and space. Under those circumstances it is experience, which governs the mind, and which shapes personality.

Furthermore, what is significant and what is insignificant is determined by the individual. Objective or subjective truth would not exist outside of time and space, therefore what you said does not make logical sense. I'm saying this without even considering the idea that time and space are only part of human perception.

[IndiReloaded]

Time is irrelevant as well. We can't perceive past or future only right now. So, if you want to get really weird, our 'mind' is just a snapshot of present time. Our brain has continuity, but not our mind.

[NeoSeminole]

doppelgaenger, imagine we could subject 2 individuals to the exact same experiences from the moment they were conceived. Would they have identical identities?

[IndiReloaded]

doppelgaenger, imagine we could subject 2 individuals to the exact same experiences from the moment they were conceived. Would they have identical identities?

Nope. Biology is full of stochastic events that would affect the outcome. In fact, you can't even get two identical individuals from conception. Even with identical DNA sequence, you will still end up with differences. Dolly et al were not totally identical. Evolution through multiple mechanisms, neat eh?

[doppelgaenger]

doppelgaenger, imagine we could subject 2 individuals to the exact same experiences from the moment they were conceived. Would they have identical identities?

That depends on what you mean by identity.

[NeoSeminole]

doppelgaenger says:

"That depends on what you mean by identity."

I mean the same thing as the OP when she asked "what really makes us?"