Throughout history, we have endlessly questioned the nature of our reality- whether or not we feel comfortable in our own skin so to speak. Prior to being awakened at birth to our version of reality, we enjoyed an existence of intelligent design- pureness created to allow for a limitless existence. It is, therefore, by that same design that the body as Deutsch puts it, is seen as a prison holding the soul hostage, driving us to evil ends and maleficent pleasures. But it was not only Deutsch that understood the existence of the human soul as a prisoner- Plato too, in his dialogue, Phaedo, saw the body as a sort of prison. Not only shackling our souls to an existence riddled with distractions and temptations, he understood it as getting in the way of a rational clarity that was desired by so many yet achieved by so few. Why then, if the body had achieved holiness
and pureness once before, could it not return to a world of perfection? While we drive on with an existence riddled with disease, temptation, and sin- these characteristics of our everyday lives were not the intention of what the human experience was meant to be. They are seen as distractions- and hence the body too is merely a distraction that pulls our soul further and further from achieving pure existence. This then is the purpose of our time in prison- to get back on the path, to return our souls to a reality of holiness and righteous humanity. Plato understood this and witnessed that humans on a whole while resenting being pulled into the bodys appetites, saw it too as a hindrance to what could be and have given up on the fight to resist the temptations of this imperfect world; hence verifying Platos understanding of the human body as a prison for the soul.