The human body and prosthetic limbs

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So, I was watching a certain anime and a good few of the characters have prosthetic limbs. One of the characters said that their prosthetic limbs were an “extension of their soul”.

So, that got me thinking: I know that the body is the temple of the spirit and that the soul is often described as the “form of the body”. I also know that parts of our body are replaceable, that once a part of our body dies, that the soul is not attached to it anymore. When a new body part, whether that be new a heart or liver or whatnot is placed in our body, that the soul helps to animate that body part, right?

So, what about prosthetic limbs? If it is fully moveable, down to each finger or joint, is the soul attached to that limb like any other living part of the body since it is able to express the body the same way a real limb does? If so, would that work the same way for a prosthetic limb that doesn’t really move much on it’s own (like a simple hook arm or a peg leg).

Then, we can go further…

What if in the distant future we were able to replace any body part what-so-ever with a fake one when needed. What if someone had nearly all their body parts replaced with such inventions…something like this balticasia.lt/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Ghost_in_the_Shell-379748254-large.jpg They practically become part cyborg.

How do you think that would work? Would they be fully human anymore since they don’t have much of their old body left?

Just some fun speculation ^^ Thank in advance 🙂
 
roseproject said:
So, I was watching a certain anime and a good few of the characters have prosthetic limbs. One of the characters said that their prosthetic limbs were an “extension of their soul”.

So, that got me thinking: I know that the body is the temple of the spirit and that the soul is often described as the “form of the body”. I also know that parts of our body are replaceable, that once a part of our body dies, that the soul is not attached to it anymore. When a new body part, whether that be new a heart or liver or whatnot is placed in our body, that the soul helps to animate that body part, right?

So, what about prosthetic limbs? If it is fully moveable, down to each finger or joint, is the soul attached to that limb like any other living part of the body since it is able to express the body the same way a real limb does? If so, would that work the same way for a prosthetic limb that doesn’t really move much on it’s own (like a simple hook arm or a peg leg).

Then, we can go further…

What if in the distant future we were able to replace any body part what-so-ever with a fake one when needed. What if someone had nearly all their body parts replaced with such inventions…something like this balticasia.lt/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/Ghost_in_the_Shell-379748254-large.jpg They practically become part cyborg.

How do you think that would work? Would they be fully human anymore since they don’t have much of their old body left?

Just some fun speculation ^^ Thank in advance 🙂
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To answer your question, no. Our soul is connected to much more than silicone.

Also, the anime is Fullmetal Alchemist, isn’t it? :😛
 
We would retain our soul. Great strides have been made with prosthetic limbs, which is a good thing. However, should it be possible to construct replacement organs, limbs and human tissue using the grown patient’s own cells, it would be preferable. Not for the purpose of vanity but as a real alternative to the artificial.

Ed
 
Soul can only bind to **living **human flesh. Not metal or plastic.

ICXC NIKA
 
I recall that there is a different way of looking at tools in Japan than we have in the west. In the west, tools are just that: tools we use to do things. We see this often in portrayals of weapons - the character in question has all the grit and determination and etc., they just need the tool. In the Japan there tends to be the outlook that the tool becomes an extension of the person who is wielding it - again we can see this in pop culture. Swords, guns, mechas, etc. are all intimately connected to the characters that wield them. They’re not just devices that heroes use but rather are part of the hero.

This doesn’t answer your question, of course, it just struck me as a bit of pop culture we learned in my history of Japan class and I can see the theme in American vs. Japanese productions. I don’t know what the anthropology says on why there is this difference.
 
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