Aristotle’s belief in ends can be reconciled, at least to an extent, to Christian teaching. God made humans for a purpose and humans can be said to be good when they achieve their God-ordained purpose. Similarly, Aristotle’s emphasis on cultivating good character and his belief that moral actions must be accompanied by good motives also adheres to Christian teaching. However, many critics say that Aristotle’s method for determining the human end is flawed. As apposed to what he believes, it seems inadequate to determine the human end by observing what it is that humans strive after because, since the Fall, every facet of humanity has been corrupted by sin. Consequently, humans often desire and try to attain things that are sinful and that God …show more content…
However, we do not achieve Eudaemonia by actively seeking it out. It is attained through the appropriate ordering and pursuit of appropriate goals, in the right manner. From this it might be said that Eudaemonia is something that is greater than the sum of its parts, and as we don’t seek it, it is something of an additional by-product of conducting our pursuit of all other goods. Similarly exemplified as, studying in university and realizing you have achieved profound personal growth. A further quality of Eudaemonia is that it is desired for itself and not for the sake of some further good. No one tries to live well for the sake of some further good. You try to live well to live well, and there is nothing beyond that. Aristotle’s conception of happiness is not just a mental state, he is asking what is good for human beings and also what it is to be a good human being. In addition, critics have argued that there cannot be a single description for the best sort of life for everyone because there is simply too much variety between people. Based on a direct translation to happiness, Eudaemonia in this sense is relative to different
In Book 1 of Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics, he argues that happiness is the best good, and the goal of an individual and of those leading and governing society. Here, happiness is understood as both living well and doing well, rather than the convention sense of happiness as an emotion. According to Aristotle, happiness is achieved though actions involving reason and in accord with virtue, or the best of the virtues of there are more than one. In this paper, I will provide a brief overview of the work and its author, then proceed to provide an overview of the ideas expressed and the argumentation supporting them, before finally performing an analysis and critique of the ideas expressed.
John Stuart Mill and Aristotle both address the idea of happiness as the goal of human life. They explain that all human action is at the foundation of their moral theories. Mill addresses the Greatest Happiness Principle, which is the greatest amount of pleasure to the least amount of pain. Similarly, Aristotle addresses happiness through the idea of eudaimonia and human flourishing. According to Aristotle, eudaimonia is happiness, it is the state of contemplation that individuals are in when they have reached actualized happiness. Also referred to as happiness or human flourishing, it is the ultimate goal of human beings. Happiness is “living well and acting well.” He explains that once general happiness becomes recognized as the moral standard, natural sentiment will nurture feelings that promote utilitarianism. According to Aristotle, happiness is a state of being. Both Mill and Aristotle agree that in order to attain true happiness, human beings must engage in activities that are distinct to humans and that make them happy. Aristotle’s idea of eudaimonia and human flourishing is a more compelling argument than Mill’s for happiness and the final end because Aristotle explains that the virtues bring human beings to happiness.
It was Aristotle’s belief that everything, including humans, had a telos or goal in life. The end result or goal was said to be happiness or “eudaimonia”. He explained that eudaimonia was different for each person, and that each had a different idea of what it meant. Further, he said that people must do things in moderation, but at the same time do enough. The theory, of “the golden mean of moderation” was the basis to Aristotle's idea of the human telos and concluded that living a virtuous life must be the same for all
Aristotle is an ancient Greek philosopher who has played a part in subjects such as mathematics and ethics. As a known student of Plato, Aristotle’s knowledge on various topics immensely affected people’s philosophical views. For Aristotle, his definitions of human happiness and a good life consist of being virtuous all throughout life. Happiness comes from being an overall good person; this is “the best way to lead a life and give it meaning” (Psychology Today). According to Aristotle, happiness is a continuing achievement. “Happiness is more a question of behavior and of habit—of ‘virtue’—than of luck; a person who cultivates such behaviors and habits is able to bear his
According to Aristotle, every action performed is done to attain an end goal (or good). The goals for each
The goal of the ethical life, according to Aristotle, is good. All human activity is directed toward
In Aristotle's sense, I believe that human beings have final causes. One of the main purposes for human beings is to survive. The formal cause will be the way we evolve to adapt to our surroundings and to reproduce to ensure continuity of the human race. The efficient cause are our ancestors. Finally, the material cause for our existence is due to the existence of a creator. As human beings, we work to ensure that we do not perish due to starvation and dehydration. We invest in research extensively and invent new objects to increase our standard of living and quality of life. We adapt to extreme temperature conditions by insulating or cooling ourselves. Additionally, we work to improve on our healthcare quality so that one can live longer
In this section I will explain Aristotle’s definition of eudaimonia and its relationship to happiness, morality and the virtues. Aristotle defines eudaimonia in the
From the beginning of their evolution, human beings have been searching for the meaning of happiness. While many may see this to be an inconsequential question, others have devoted entire lives to the search for happiness. One such person who devoted a great deal of thought to the question of man's happiness was the famous ancient Greek philosopher, Aristotle. In his book The Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle discussed the meaning of happiness and what it meant to live a good life. He asserted that the devise which has been invented to create what is good for man is called "politics;" and it "uses the rest of the sciences"¦so that this end must be the good for man." (Aristotle, I, ii) Aristotle also identified four general means by which people live their lives in order to gain happiness, but stated that only one was a means by which a person could actually attain it. According to Aristotle, it was not political power, wealth, or worldly pleasures by which a person could achieve real happiness, it was living a contemplative life.
Aristotle begins his exploration into the most outstanding life by attempting to figure what the highest possible good achievable is for human beings. He comes to the conclusion that most people will agree that happiness is the most sought after good. Happiness is self-sufficient and is the complete end of things pursued. However, they cannot seem to agree how to achieve happiness and what happiness is. In order to figure out what happiness is, Aristotle must evaluate the true function of human beings. This true function, as seen by Aristotle, is the key to achieving happiness. Aristotle describes happiness by saying:
People’s rational soul gifts them with the potential of being virtuous, which allows them to determine their principles and standards throughout life. By correctly following these virtues, a person can be “eudaimon” which means they are not simply enjoying life, but is enjoying life by living successfully. Virtues do not guarantee happiness, but it is an essential aspect in the journey to happiness. Together, the nature of the universe can be explained to be a a never-ending search for each individual’s happiness. If the world was painted in black and white, there would only be one definition of happiness (the ultimate goal for all people) and there would be no search for such.
Aristotle is one of the greatest thinkers in the history of western philosophy, and is most notably known for expressing his view of happiness in Nicomachean Ethics. Aristotle develops a theory of how to live the good life and reach eudaimonia (happiness). Eudaimonia has been translated into, living a happy and virtuous life. Aristotle’s definition of the good life as the happy life, consist of balancing virtues (arête), the mean, external goods, political science, and voluntary action.
Aristotle, one of the greatest philosophers of all time created an idea that happiness is the ultimate end goal. This world renowned philosopher argues that exercising a fulfilling life will lead to happiness. Likewise, happiness is said to be the ultimate end goal of all activities in life. Basically, Aristotle portrays every activity as a subordinate to becoming happy. He argues that being self sufficient, and leading a fulfilling life will create happiness through virtue. A virtuous person is noble and possess the ability to rationalize. In order to be noble one must posses the ability to create equilibrium of the soul. That is, staying within the mean. Similar to the mean, Aristotle depicts
What makes for true happiness (eudaemonia)? What is the Good?”). Be sure to reflect on “the Good” for both individuals and societies—the ‘greatest good’. Include the topics of work and wealth in your response.
That is the highest end and the best life we could possibly live. Eudaimonia is translated as happiness. Even though it does not mean what we understand happiness to be. Eudaemonia is so much more than just being happy. Aristotle wrote, “For we have said that happiness is a certain sort of activity of the soul in accord with virtue” (Aristotle 9). To reach eudaimonia, a person has to be functioning well. In order to be functioning well, we have to act using logos, which is our reasoning.