Ethics - aristotle's ethics

1. ARISTOTLE’S
ETHICSBy: John Paul Espino
De La Salle University – Dasmarinas
Facebook.com/Johnpaul.dss

2. ANCIENT ATHENS

3. ARISTOTLE

4. ARISTOTLE: GOODS
• Instrumental goods:
desired for the sake
of something else
• Intrinsic goods:
desired for their own
sake

5. HAPPINESS
• One thing is always desired for its own sake, never for the sake of something else:
happiness

6. HAPPINESS
• One thing is always desired for its own sake, never for the sake of something else:
happiness
• Happiness (eudaimonia) = living well = flourishing

7. HAPPINESS
• One thing is always desired for its own sake, never for the sake of something else:
happiness
• Happiness (eudaimonia) = living well = flourishing
• What does that require? Prosperity and luck, yes, but more

8. LIVING WELL
• What is it to live well?

9. LIVING WELL
• What is it to live well?
• Analogies:
– A good knife cuts well
– A good eye sees well
– A good teacher teaches well

10. LIVING WELL
• What is it to live well?
• Analogies:
– A good knife cuts well
– A good eye sees well
– A good teacher teaches well
• A good person _____s well

11. FUNCTION
• A thing’s function stems from what is special about it: what distinguishes
it from other things
– Knives cut: sharpness —> cutting
– Eyes see: ability to see —> seeing
– Teachers teach: ability to teach —> teaching

12. OUR FUNCTION
• What is the function of a
human being?

13. OUR FUNCTION
• What is the function of a
human being?
• What is special about people?

14. OUR FUNCTION
• What is the function of a
human being?
• What is special about people?
• We act according to rational
plans

15. VIRTUE
• Our function is rational activity
• A good person succeeds at rational
activity
• Virtue = excellence
• A virtuous person excels at rational
activity

16. TWO KINDS OF VIRTUE
• Virtue = rational activity
• Excellence in rationality: intellectual virtue
• Excellence in activity: moral virtue

17. BECOMING VIRTUOUS
• Intellectual virtue can be taught
• Moral virtue can’t be
• It requires developing habits
• We become good by doing good
things

18. RIGHT AND WRONG
• An act is right if it is something a virtuous person would tend to
do

19. CIRCULAR?
• Moderns: A virtuous person is one who tends
to do the right thing.

20. CIRCULAR?
• Moderns: A virtuous person is one who tends
to do the right thing.
• Aristotle: That’s not enough. A virtuous person
tends to do the right thing as virtuous people
do them.
• A good person consistently does the right
thing at the right time, in the right way, and for
the right reason.
• Virtuous people do the right thing for the right
reason: because it’s the right thing to do.

21. VIRTUE AS A MEAN
• Virtues are means between extremes
• Virtues constrain desires
• But we may constrain too little or too much

22. VIRTUES AND VICES
Drive Too little Just right Too much
Fear cowardly courageous rash
Pleasure self-indulgent self-controlled insensitive
Material goods stingy generous extravagant
Self-esteem vain high-minded
small-minded
Anger short-tempered gentle apathetic
Sociability obsequious friendly
grouchy
Boasting boastful truthful self-
deprecating
Humor clownish witty boring
Drive for honor ambitious ?
unambitious
Spending grudging magnificent vulgar

23. VIRTUE AS A MEAN
• We must give in to desire in the right circumstances, in the right way, for the right
reason, etc.
• Practical wisdom—the ability to draw the right distinctions and tell right from wrong—
allows us to find the mean
• There’s no rule for doing this
• You must learn to see what is right

24. CAN ONE BE TOO MORAL?
• It’s possible to be “too generous” (extravagant), “too courageous” (rash), “too witty”
(clownish), etc.
• Is it possible to be too moral?

25. Too narrow?
(False
negatives)
Too
broad?
(False
positives)
ARISTOTLE’S THEORY
• Right
Virtuous people
would tend to do
it