Theories Of Virtue Ethics

I would begin by saying my discussions will be centered on two intriguing theories I have learnt through this course deontology ethical theory and Virtue ethical theory. To my understanding, deontology theory takes on the face of a normative ethical position that judges the morality of an action based totally on regulations, rules and laws. The theory is far on occasion described as "responsibility-" or "duty-" or "rule-" based totally ethics, due to the fact that it emphasizes on guidelines "binding people to their responsibility". For instance deontology states that an act that is not appropriate morally can cause something top, such as capturing the intruder but killing is inaccurate even if it’s in defense of your own family for

Virtue ethics is a very different approach to the others and central to Aristotle's work. It does not primarily concentrate on the right action as such; the right action according to virtue ethicists is the one that the virtuous agent would do. Virtue ethics takes the central feature of morality to be the virtuous character, and the account of what the virtues are as the basis of the theory.

Aristotle outlined his theory of Virtue Ethics in his book Nicomachean Ethics. Aristotle focused his idea of ethics on agents rather than acts. His main idea is focused on the idea of human character- how can you be a better person? In fact, Aristotle once said: “For we are enquiring not in order to know what virtue is, but in order to become good, since otherwise our enquiry would be of no use.” Aristotle is given the credit for developing the idea of virtue ethics, but many of Plato's cardinal values influenced his ideas. Virtue Ethics is focused on the person's actions, not the consequences of that action. Aristotle believed if you had good moral values, then your actions would be "good" in theory. Rather than defining good actions,

Virtue ethics is a normative theory whose foundations were laid by Aristotle. This theory approaches normative ethics in substantially different ways than consequentialist and deontological theories. In this essay, I will contrast and compare virtue ethics to utilitarianism, ethical egoism, and Kantianism to demonstrate these differences. There is one fundamental aspect of virtue ethics that sets it apart from the other theories I will discuss. For the sake of brevity and to avoid redundancy, I will address it separately. This is the fundamental difference between acting ethically within utilitarianism, egoism, and Kantianism. And being ethical within virtue ethics. The other theories seek to define the ethics of actions while virtue ethics does not judge actions in any way. The other theories deal with how we should act, while virtue ethics determines how we should be.

1. what is virtue ethics and what does it do that the two major ethical approaches do not?

Aristotle’s idea of Virtue Ethics was influenced by his belief that all things and all humans have a purpose (a telos). For him a complete explanation of something has to include its final cause or purpose which essentially is to realise its potential. Virtue Ethics itself is concerned with the characteristics of a person rather than how a person behaves and it is this he outlined in his book Nicomachean Ethics. A ‘’virtue’’ are qualities that lead to a good life e.g. courage and honesty. Aristotle explains for a person to adopt these qualities into their own lives is to maximise their potential to achieve a happy life and he goes

Ethics is the moral criteria that we as human beings have. They are the rules of the game that are supposed to guide us through our decision making in life and how to behave to one another as part of a society. However, there are different perspectives on how this criteria should be used, and when and whom they apply to. I will focus on the three most influential moral theories: virtue ethics, deontology, and utilitarianism. Although there are many great names of philosophers that fall in those theories, I will be discussing Aristotle, Kant, and Mill’s perspective, respectively.

Virtue theory uses practical rationality to explain why one ought to act morally. Considerations that stem from human needs help us find reason in our actions. Those actions are ones that help us retain the function of our human will and the goodness of that will.

Virtue ethics emphasize the importance of one's character and their morals above dutiful behavior. Many virtue theories are built upon Aristotle's teachings that define a virtuous person as "someone who has ideal character traits" (Athanassoulis, 2004). Virtues can be defined as an agreement to standards of right or can refer to particular moral excellence (Merriam-Webster Online, 2013). Virtue theories hold that there are a universal set of principles and virtues that can be applied to various situations. Some virtue theories that have seen recent resurgence are Eudemonism, agent-based theories, and the ethics of care (Athanassoulis, 2004). In Eudemonism, virtues are based in flourishing with flourishing being "equated with performing one's distinctive function well" (Athanassoulis, 2004). Agent-based theories, on the other hand, contend individuals aim to mimic virtuous qualities they see in others based on common-sense concepts, and the ethics of care contends qualities like caring and nurturing should be considered to be virtuous traits as well.

Virtue defines the human goodness of an individual M. Harbour, V. Kisfalvi (2013), while other ethical theories such as utilitarianism, and relativism may discuss actions that are considered to be good or bad, ethical virtue discusses the person himself and the goodness of that human being.

Aristotle being a prize pupil and one of the most important Philosophers that believe for one to have virtue has to live a good life and base on their behavior. Moral virtues are totally different from intellectual ones. Intellectual virtues on can learn and Morals is one to live by.

Aristotle wrote the first book ever written about ethics titles “The Nicomachean Ethics,” and it is still one of the greatest and most influential. Its purpose is to teach us to be virtuous rather than to understand what virtue is. (Aristotle, 2009)

In addition, the virtue theory is said to be properly concrete, as it grounds morality in facts about human nature in comparison to other theories which ground morality in subjective principles or in abstract principles of reasoning. In relation to human psychology, the theory is said to be more accurate as it concentrates on less conscious aspects of motivation such as habits or short-term goals. Whereas, theories such as the deontology and utilitarianism place emphasis on decision making in relation to principles or rules. As such, it is often argued that the virtue theory offers a more united and comprehensive conception of moral life, which goes far beyond ones likes and dislikes, needs and wants and, in general, what type of person

Virtues are gained through nurture, and backing his thought, he explained that if we are born virtuously then we could not become bad. Yet, there are a number of bad people in the world. Aristotle saw that virtue and duty had a strong connection. This is because duty is an act in accordance with law, which enforces perfections. Since laws keep us in line, and our duty is to follow these laws, virtues come if you commit your duty. It is a cycle that repeats itself in the positive and the negative depending how we act. Because Aristotle was a Christian, he saw God as everlasting, and overall, see’s god as an important figure to live up to. Aristotle laid the framework to what would be the future of ethics. Although what he had reported would be found eventually, his views are what most believed as the golden rule, and future philosophers would just string off his ideas.

you ask what the virtues are, it is likely you would be told that we