The Philosophy of Neoplatonism: Applied to the Systemised Self – Part 22, Masters Series

Abstract

Neoplatonism describes reality as an ordered relation between unity and multiplicity: in Plotinus, the ineffable One or Good gives rise, not in time, but as an explanatory dependence, to Intellect, Soul, and the sensible world. This essay applies that account carefully to the Systemised Self, a proposed sociotechnical condition in which algorithmic systems can archive traces of a person, anticipate their actions, and return a predictive profile that can shape self understanding and choice. Maya, a student whose learning platform steadily narrows her studies to recommended tasks, provides a running case. Neoplatonism helps distinguish integration from genuine unity: a person may be rendered legible as one data profile while becoming less able to relate diverse experiences to reflectively chosen purposes and other people. Yet the One is not a hidden authentic self, and algorithmic coordination is not metaphysical emanation. The essay relates this account to the separate, Hegelian construct of the Hollow Absolute, reviews evidence and its limits, and presents the proposed Algorithmic Alienation Index as unvalidated. Neoplatonism’s contemplative return suggests a question of orientation, not a technological cure: can Maya use connected tools while retaining the capacity to evaluate their ends, revise her course, and participate in shared life?

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