Corpses And Substance Dualism: The Metaphysics Behind The Obvious

Metaphysics and epistemology await one at every turn, "hiding" inside and around the most abstract and mundane parts of life alike.  Some of the exact applications of this fact pertain to distinctions between the nature of things that almost everyone will either hear about or think about at some point in their lives.  While there is actually a great deal of philosophical interest in certain aspects of death, one aspect in particular is rarely touched upon openly.  This side of death relates to substance dualism, the (true) metaphysical stance that consciousness is immaterial (nonphysical) and the physical body is made of matter.  The difference between a nonliving human body and a living person establish something that can be proven by rational reflection on the concept of consciousness without any other specific experiences, but conceptual proofs with more practical sides can be effective at communicating ideas to people who are less likely to contemplate philosophical subjects on their own.

Though the concepts of a living and dead body can be distinguished without having ever seen a corpse, seeing a lifeless body provides sensory examples of the distinction.  There would be no conceptual or observational differences between a corpse and a conscious, living person if it were not for the metaphysical distinction between a consciousness and a physical body.  On one level, part of this is so obvious that many people might overlook the ramifications of the metaphysics behind what separates a corpse from a live human.  On another level, it is not immediately evident what the exact differences between consciousness and the body are until one has specifically thought about them.  Thankfully, the issue is not as gratuitously complicated as some philosophically inclined people like to pretend.

It is still quickly apparent that there is a distinction between a lifeless body and a living one.  No one looking at a corpse can be rational if they truly think that what they are seeing is the same as a person who has not died.  However, beyond this, most people would likely have little to say.  The metaphysics behind the obvious can be ignored, but the truth of baseline substance dualism is there for anyone who searches for it to find.  The only thing missing from a dead body, of course, is the mind that animates it!  If a body is a body whether it is live or dead, and a corpse lacks consciousness, then the consciousness intertwined with a living human body is not physical, as a body is.  This is just another way of proving that the mind is immaterial even though the body it resides in is purely physical.

Even something like the difference between a living and dead body has immense philosophical ramifications that can be almost completely avoided by people who go about their lives without any direct concern or awareness for matters of ultimate truth.  Otherwise obvious logical facts that follow from more "practical" aspects of human life can be completely unnoticed for an entire lifetime unless a person seeks them out intentionally.  Death is something most people have either seen firsthand or been told of many times, and everyday language suggests that many people already distinguish between their minds and bodies to a slight degree already, but the connection between these things is not something the typical person is likely to understand quickly.