Happiness and the Virtues by Aristotle Term Paper

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Aristotle's Happiness and the Virtues.

Aristotle's ideal of happiness and virtues has been drawn to a large extent from his mentor and teacher, Plato. The context of his ideas is firstly that ethics and politics are closely intertwined, together forming the concept of Political Science. Secondly, virtue according to Aristotle is an innate human quality, which can be enhanced and developed by practice. Since it is innately human to be virtuous, this element is also closely associated with what Aristotle views as the ultimate good: to be happy.

According to Aristotle then, happiness is the purpose of all action (Smith viii). Furthermore this is seen in the social and political context of the time. Thus, happiness is a collective effort of individual and state, rather than just of the individual. While the ideal of happiness is to a large extent individual, the state plays a prominent role in making this happiness possible.

To emphasize the importance of happiness as the ultimate of human pursuits, Aristotle addresses this concept first. Virtue, while laudable, is the vehicle by which ultimate happiness is attained. Happiness then is divided into various paradigms, according to which human beings live their lives. Aristotle identifies happiness as adhering to four views: vulgar, active, contemplative, and money-getting. The philosopher proceeds to prove the vulgar, active and money-getting concept of happiness inferior to the contemplative, where virtue and knowledge play a prominent role. His treatise is then also aimed at the intellectual with a general education and a basis of good habits. This is the kind of person that would derive the maximum benefit for Aristotle's words (Smith xi).

Aristotle however goes on to say that, by whatever means happiness is sought, it is sought for its own sake alone, and is thus completely self-sufficient. This is the reason for his earlier claim that happiness is the ultimate purpose of everything.

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However, the way to happiness can be wrongly chosen. A person for example who pursues money in order to attain happiness will not succeed as well as the person who seeks happiness in virtue.

The basis of this claim also lies in Aristotle's view of human nature. A human being has an innate capacity for virtue. He explains vice by emphasizing that the seed of virtue is present, but it needs to be consciously nurtured and matured. If vice is pursued instead, it instead of virtue will grow and mature. Aristotle places virtue in two categories: the first is intellectual, and the second moral. The pursuit of virtue on an intellectual level then leads to the growth of morality and the eventual attainment of happiness (Browne xviii).

The pursuit of happiness and the growth of virtue as a vehicle to such happiness thus takes effort, or what Aristotle refers to as "energizing." This is the principle according to which virtue must be actively pursued in order to attain the highest degree of happiness. It is therefore possible to attain this degree of happiness, otherwise, according to Aristotle, its pursuit would be pointless. It is therefore reassuring that every person has an innate sense of virtue.

Knowledge and habit are therefore the prime ingredients of the successful pursuit of virtue as well as the attainment of the highest form of happiness. Indeed, the virtuous capacity itself is "improved by education and matured by habit" (Browne xix). It is thus important to pursue virtue by repetitious action, which would then form good habits. It then follows that there are three prerequisites for the moral act. These include knowledge attained by study; preference, which….....

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