PHIL 2310 Final

Controversial statement that is the subject in Pieper's book

"All men by nature desire to know. " Aristotle supports his claim by saying "a sign of this is the delight that we take in our senses, particularly the sense of sight."

Complete

"radical virtue ethics" meaning that virtue ethics can be viewed as complete ethical theory on its own or alternative to other ethical theories.

Seeking happiness is not in our control

According to Pieper and Aquinas seeking happiness is not under control, we do not plan it. All humans seek God and happiness by nature and necessity. It is a satiation of the will.

Capacity

Active and passive. The passive is to receive from the outside and the active is the power of having something on the outside as an object .

Pieper's Five signs of human happiness

Active concern for oneself, living a just life, acts of mercy, the activity of the artist, and loving God.

Beatitudes

An Ultimate state that is not encountered in everyday life. The object of our beatitudes is the whole which is achieved through contemplation.

Joy

An affect resulting from the satisfaction of the human will.

What virtues consist in

Aristotle believed that a virtue is a mean between two extremes. Using his own word, a virtue is "the mean by reference to two vices: the one of excess and other of deficiency. For example, courage is the mean between the extreme of cowardice (deficiency) and foolhardiness (excess). We are virtuous when we hit the golden mean that is relative to us.

The first four activities for human happiness

are not a means to an end so they cannot give human happiness

Connection between happiness and beatitude

as the term of happiness makarios which is when humans share in the perfect happiness of the gods.

amazement

one is amazed because the object is intuitively there for the taking but there is something left over.

loving god

rejected because is working in an abstance of faith and because it is not loving God but seeing God

Providing for the necessities of one's life

rejected because we are doing it for the sake of survival which means it is not final.

acts of mercy

rejected because we do them to stop the suffering of others, a practical activity that does not lead to happiness.

3 kinds of earthly contemplation

religious, poetic, and philosophical contemplation

Earthly Contemplation

the contemplation that we do in our everyday lives on earth.

Kantian Retributivism

the idea that punishment should be proportional to the crime

Utilitarianism

the theory that tells that the right thing to do is to produce the greatest amount of happiness for the greatest number.

What the 3 kinds of earthly contemplation have in common

they all are a form of loving knowledge or knowing love

The Whole Good

A goodness so very good that there is nothing in that is not good, and nothing outside of it that could be good.

The Moral Law

A system of rules specifying what is right or wrong.

What Aristotle means when he says that virtue is mean between two extremes

A virtue is a mean by reference to two extremes, the one of excess and the other of deficiency.

Virtue

According to Aristotle it is simply a good praiseworthy trait of character manifested in habitual action

living a just life

justice is done for the sake of order and communal life. It is just justice, and a virtue can't lead to happiness because it is a stepping stone.

Virtue that allows for impartiality

Beneficence

Intuitive

knowledge of what is present

Earthly Contemplation

Concrete contemplation of the here and now, not narrowly or supernaturally. Examples include religious, poetic, and philosophical.

Examples of virtues

Courage, justice, moderation, prudence, honesty, and loyalty.

activities of the artist

Different than the others because the artist has no use but through their work they try to put us in contact with the whole good. rejected because the purpose is outside of itself

3 characteristic elements of earthly contemplation

Disinterestedness, intuitive and amazement

Multiple Strategies Utilitarianism

Diverse strategies to reach the utilitarian goal.

According to pieper how to conceive, attain, and possess the whole good.

Eckhart stated that the process of becoming happy is like being inundate by a tremendous wave, but Piper rejects this. Happiness is the key to the whole good.

Moral Law examples

Ethical egoism, Social contract theory, Utilitarianism, Deontology.

Virtue Ethics

Ethical theory concerned with the character traits of man concerning the notion of good.

Finite goods not capable of quenching our thirst for ultimate happiness because

Even if a person were given the entire universe they would say it is not enough. Finite good are not capable of fully quenching our thirst for ultimate happiness, even all of them together. There are still things outside that we crave for.

"God is not at one with Himself, God is not happy"

God is a happy being but people have a hard time believing this because why would he let so much confusion and incoherence into the world if his end goal was human happiness

The Golden Mean

For Artistotle, it is a mean between two extremes. The virtue of courage would lie between cowardliness and foolishness.

Eudaimonia

Greek for happiness

Bonum Universales

Greek for the whole good

Difference between happiness and beatitude

Happiness is the immortal richness of the divine life and beatitude is an ultimate state that is not encountered in everyday life. The happiness of this life will never be able to completely satisfy us, but the beatitudes will.

How Aristotle began his ethical reflections in the Nicomachean Ethics

He starts by asking his ethical reflections by asking questions about the notion of character the good for human beings. He asked "What is good for human beings?"

Anscombe's modern philosophy article

Her article helped renew interest in Virtue Ethics

Macintyre's Five Lists of Virtues

Homeric, Aristotilian, New testament, Victoria, and Benjamin Franklin virtues

Example of virtue ethics not saying when the virtues should be applied to different circumstances

If you hear someone your friend use to know dies do you tell them or do you spare their pain. Virtue ethics does not tell us

Example of conflict between virtues

If your friend gets a bad hair cut are you suppose to be honest and tell them the truth, or lie a be kind. Radical virtue ethics cannot.

Problem with impartiality and seeing everyone as morally equal

Impartiality is important when considering morality and everyone's interests being equally important. The problem arises when considering loved ones. Most ethical theories struggle with the balance between being impartial towards everyone while still having to be partial towards loved ones.

Ways Rachels thinks it's necessary to expand our moral community

In very general terms Rachels thinks that we need to have a global view of the moral community and this should include every human being and future generations, and animals. Everyone, and animals should be considered.

Virtue ethics cannot explain why virtues are good or desirable

It cannot explain why a virtue is a virtue and their answers tend to look like those of other ethical theories. None are explained in terms of virtues

three ways virtue ethics is an incomplete theory

It cannot explain why the virtues are good or desirable, when to apply the virtues, an cannot deal with conflicts between the virtues

Virtue ethics cannot deal with conflicts between the virtues

It cannot help us with moral conflicts

Happiness is not intellectual according to pieper

It is not intellectualism, nor is it elitist. It is realistic to to believe that people are curious about their world. Not all will achieve happiness. Beatitude cannont be achieved outside of joy, love, and friendship so Pieper is not viewing happiness in an intellectual way.

Difference between Joy and beatitude

Joy is an affect resulting in the satisfaction of the will. Beatitude is a virtue not encountered in every day life. . Joy is secondary in the relation to possessing the good. Joy is result of the satiation of the will, beatitude is an achievement of all the good.

Beatitudo

Latin for beatitude

Capacitas

Latin for capacity

Two advantages to virtue ethics

Moral motivation and doubt about the ideal of impartiality.

Indispensable premise of happiness

Necessary condition for happiness that is love

Problem with ethical theories that surround right actions

People will act in a way that will emphasize personal qualities like friendship, love, and loyalty. but not because it is the right thing to do.

The process of becoming happy

Piper agrees with Aristotle who sees becoming happy as more than an active process. Happiness is not a static quality but consists in activity. He makes this point using three important propositions. Happiness means perfection, perfection means full realization, and realization is achieved by action.

Pipers last objection to his view that man's ultimate happiness consists in contemplation

Piper uses the problem of evils as the last objection to consider his view.

Five activities that are considered as being worthy contenders for ultimate human happiness

Providing for the necessities of one's life, living a just life, acts of mercy, activities of the artist, and loving God

Multiple Strategies Utilitarianism is based on the belief that a right action is 'right' if it accords with a person's best plan. Items included in a persons best plan

Rachels believes that we should have a list of virtues and strategies to increase the happiness of a single person. He is taking virtue theory, and other moral theories and stitching the best parts together for Utilitarianism.

Theology

Science of first principles/ causes

What Anscombe says about modern moral philosophy in her famous article "Modern Moral Philosophy

She does not like utilitarianism, she believes its a law with out a law giver. She thinks modern moral philosophy is broken and unworkable. Good aspects should be taken and bad ones left behind.

Five signs of genuine human happiness

Simplicity, indisputability, eternality, self sufficiency, and peace

Michael Stocker's example

Smith comes to visit you in the hospital but not because he is your friend but because he feels it is his duty to do so.

Aristotle thought there were some virtues that were needed by all people, at all times, and in all cultures. This is why he thought this

Some virtues are needed by all people, at all times, and in all cultures. Aristotle wrote "One may observe in one's travels to distant countries the feelings of recognition and affiliation that link every human being to every other human being." Since we all have the same human nature, the same basic needs, the same problems, etc, it follows that we will all need a similar set of core virtues.

Rachels thinks we ought to treat people as they deserve

Sometimes there are good reasons to treat people differently. Those who treat others well deserve good treatment, and vice vers. Treating people as they serve is "a matter of treating people as responsible agents who merit particular responses, based on their conduct"

Two ways to view virtue ethics as a theory that can evaluate right or wrong

Supplemental and complete

Michael Stocker's example is morally wrong

The act of visiting the sick is not wrong, but his motive was not ethically correct. Actions were fine, but visiting the sick because it is your duty is not ethically proper.

Why virtues are good to possess

The answer depends on the virtue. Courage, for example is good for us to posses because we need it to steadfastly face the dangers/problems in our lives. Each virtue is valuable for a different reason. Aristotle believed that all of the virtues have the same value "They are all qualities needed for successful living." If we want to flourish as human beings, we need the virtues.

Happiness

The immortal richness of divine life, and man's part in it, share in the happiness of God when we see him face to face as opposed to the petty desires of life.

Pieper states "perfectly happy person...is the one who sees"

The quote means the realization of our human nature consists in the manner by which we are aware of reality.

Are the virtues the same for everyone?

The virtues are not the same for everyone. Rachels thinks there is "an obvious sense in which the virtues may differ from person to person. Because different people occupy different lives and social roles." While it is true that virtues are not exactly the same for everyone, there are some that cross cultural lines and that we all need.

Aristotle, Aquinas, and Augustine and cognition

They thought that cognition was the highest mode to have because "it is assimilation in the quite exact sense that the objective world, in so far as it is known, is incorporated into the very being of the knower"

Moral motivation

Unlike some traditional theories of obligation, virtue ethical theories can provide us with a satisfactory account of moral motivation. A satisfying account of why we perform an action.

Supplemental

Virtue ethics can be seen along with utilitarianism and deontology, or other ethical theories.

Loyalty

Virtue that allows for partiality.

Motive Utilitarianism

We should act from the motives that best promote the general well fare.

Piper and Aristotle hold that the moral life is not the ultimate in happiness

because goods such as wealth, glory and power are not final, or self sufficient. They wont satisfy the will.

Simplicity

characterizes the life of a happy person; contemplation is simple because it is intuitive, the seer has a single gaze, simple life shown through inner experience only

Disinterestedness

contemplation of the truth for truth's sake

Virtue ethics cannot say when the virtues apply to different circumstances

it cannot give full interpretation of the virtues, or when to apply them.

eternality

happiness is not happiness because it demands eternality. We live within the confines of time, not eternity. Though it does not mean we cannot get a glimpse of happiness

Self sufficiency

happy person does not need anything, in harmony with everything because everything is in him and nothing is outside of him and it cannot be taken away

How piper attemps to overcome the objection of contemplation

he says the world is fundementally plumb and sound, it is not fully evil. No modern academic or theologian would say the world is undeniably evil.

Rachels view on radical virtue ethics

he thinks it should not be viewed its own theory because it is radical even though it is not

Different components and ideas that must be part of a satisfactory moral theory according to Rachels

they must have reason, justice, fairness, and impartiality. Accurate moral judgement have to be supported by good reasons (sound arguments) and they require us to be impartial when it comes to the consideration of the interests of other moral agents.

Indisputability

true happiness is based on a firm foundation because that person holds whats true and certain of his happiness

Doubts about the ideal of impartiality

virtue ethical theories have virtues that are partial and impartial in their application.

peace

when you are not chasing after lower goods in a "hairy rush"