Mind, Life, and Body

Excerpts: MIND, LIFE, Body. Each of these three words is in daily use and each may occur with half a dozen different meanings in as many sentences. Some of the meanings belong, moreover, to different universes of discourse so that mention of mind, life and body may evoke associations connected with psychology, philosophy, religion, or, perhaps, with just trivial mundane affairs. Small wonder then that statements in which the words are brought together often lead to profound misunderstanding and heated argument. To avoid both let me begin by establishing the universe of discourse with which these pages are concerned. This is all the more necessary because, more often than not, the context in which the three words occur together is a philosophical one and I do not, in these pages, propose to discuss them within the universe of discourse of the philosopher. Nor do I propose to discuss them within that of the theologian. For reasons that will become clear as I proceed, I propose to discuss them within a universe of discourse in which they have hitherto been brought together less often, namely, that of science. So any ethical or religious associations that the words may evoke, any metaphysical speculations, any discussion of values, will have no place here. The relation between mind, life and body is to be discussed only in terms of causality...