First of all I just would like to say the episodes we watched really had me thinking. How does my mind actual interact with my body? Are they separate entities that support each other? Can one really exist without the other? These are just the few questions that circulated my mind as I watched these episodes.
I started off watching the “Out of the Past” episode from Altered Carbon (I am definitely watching the rest of this show). The show takes place in the future so of course they have developed a way to live longer… however it’s a very interesting take. They literally take the consciousness or the mind and put it in a stack where essentially the body comes disposable after. I feel like this encompasses the concept of cybernetics because essentially this stack is like computer software which can be transferred over to a new sleeve (body). Therefore the body is essential because the stack can’t continue without a new sleeve. This shows how the body is a necessity to the mind as it provides the necessary feedback for the mind to continue.
The scene above really shows this transfer from on sleeve to another. It’s really trippy. I feel this scene is like a computer going through an update. The mind which has just been placed into a new body and it is updating to adjust to this new body. I mean talk about a long update!
The “Return to Tomorrow” episode from Star Trek: The Original Series was next on my list. For me, it really reflected the thought of 4e cognition. But in particular embodied cognition was highlighted throughout the episode. In particular when the mind entity of Sargon transmitted into Captain Kirk’s body, it was almost as if Sargon felt euphoric to be in a body once again. He is so happy to finally feel all his sensorimotor capabilities and how desperately he needs it which is what embodied cognition represents.
We can’t have our mind and the emotions without a body to really feel all those emotions. Which is why Sargon so desperately needs help in order to regain his body again. To me it makes sense, I would not want to exist without actually being able to physically feel. It is a necessity.
The last stop for me was the Futurama episode, “The Day the Earth Stood Stupid.” Now first I feel like I went from very realistic and probably to very unrealistic and not possible. I mean after all it is Futurama. I feel like here we really see that common concept of the “Brain in a Vat.” I mean after all the big brains say it all. The brain essentially is suspended in a vat as it is floating around in what appears to be liquid. Here the mind is separate from the body and is located only in the brain which is why the these big brains have immense power and able to take over.
Really though…this is Futurama so I can’t fully take it seriously.
I will say though all these episodes allow me to really explore the concepts of the mind and body and that relationship. It really does make me question which is more important or if they are equally important. I mean its a trip which I don’t think we will ever have a solid answer for.
4 thoughts on “Mind Over Body? Or Body Over Mind? ….Or Both?”
The episodes really had me questioning consciousness as well. I agree with your interpretation that the body is essential in order for the mind to be efficient as well, but I wonder how it got to the point in their society where the body became of less value. Without the body, there is a mind that cannot physically function. Without the mind, the body is just a “sleeve”. I think this idea transfers over to Star Trek, seen in the scene that you highlighted that Sargon felt euphoric when he was able to physically function again. Even though he is the most powerful being in their universe, he is essentially nothing because he does not possess a physical form.
April Myint
I also agree that these episodes generated many different questions relating to the body and mind for me as well. I never thought of the two being separate entities, even after seeing many different example throughout media that have shown exactly that. Futurama is a very comedic show that is in no way meant to be taken seriously. However, there are many different episodes including this one that have some kind of underlying message. Seeing the intelligence of humans be ripped away even in a comedic manner is somewhat frightening. Simple intelligence connecting people to who they truly are in their minds and bodies is something I would have never thought of without that episode.
jjwaterman
When talking about Altered Carbon, I agree with the fact that the scene where he realizes he’s in his new body and he sees his old consciousness being replaced by his new one is like a computer going through an update. That’s actually a very interesting way to look at it. Just thinking about it, this concept can be juxtaposed to “Return to Tomorrow” where Sargon “uploads” his consciousness into Kirk’s body, but in that sense, Sargon can control whether he can leave Kirk’s body or not–but sticking with the computer comparison, you can see when Sargon is officially in Kirk’s body, he feels a new “sense” of freedom as he can feel the air he breathes and the feet he walks on.
tpenske
Hi Alesha,
I am glad you enjoyed the first episode of Altered Carbon. You’ll have to let me know what you think of the rest of the series.
Your discussion of the connection between the stack and the sleeve is really interesting, and it got me thinking about some of the show’s world building. When the parents of the little girl put into the older adult body complain, she says that she doesn’t want to be in the dark again. So that suggests that, even when unsleeved, the consciousness of the person exists. But what does that consciousness—completely disembodied—look like? We see something similar to this play out in the Star Trek episode you watched. Sargon’s consciousness exists in a disembodied state in that orb in the beginning of the episode. But as you discuss, what does it mean to have a mind without a body? How can Sargon feel love for Thalassa if he doesn’t have a body to feel with?
Jessica Hautsch