Why are hearts commonly seen as the main organ of life when arguably the brain is where personhood and self-consciousness is formed?

Question

Why are hearts commonly seen as the main organ of life when arguably the brain is where personhood and self-consciousness is formed?

In: 2

Answer 1

I like u/PrincetonToss’s answer, but I’d like to clarify that emotion might historically have been a stronger indicator of life and personhood than consciousness or thought.

With that in mind, let’s not forget that ‘heartache’ is a literal pain you feel around your heart when you’re in distress such as when you’re deeply sad or hear some bad news, so that’s another way in which the heart could be thought to be more closely connected to emotions, and thus personhood, than the head.