Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics: Reading Guide

What is a "good,' according to Aristotle?

"that at which all things aim."

What are Aristotle's objections to Plato's conception of the Good?

"the good cannot be some common and single universal"

What is "decision," and how is it related to action, according to Aristotle?

-"decision is a deliberative desire" -"The principle of an action--the source of motion, not the goal--is decision"

What is a virtue and why does Aristotle claim that happiness is a virtue?

-"the best good consists in possessing or in using--that is to say, in a state or in an activity that actualizes the state" -"activity in accord with virtue is proper to virtue"

Aristotle claims that virtues are "states." What does he mean?

-"what we have when we are well or badly off in relation to feelings." -"we do not become good or bad by nature" -"virtues are neither feelings nor capacities, the remaining possibility is that they are states."

Why are pain and pleasure important for developing virtues of character?

-It "is about pleasures and pains. . .That is why we need to have the appropriate upbringing. . . to make us find enjoyment or pain in the right things"

What are the 3 ways of life, according to Aristotle, and which does he recommend?

-gratification, political activity, and study -study

What is the "mean," how is it related to virtue, and how is the mean achieved?

-mean is the possibility of error -"Virtue... is a state that decides the mean relative to us, which is defined by reference to reason..." -It is achieved

What are the 3 common conceptions of the highest good, according to Aristotle, and what is the "highest good," according to Aristotle?

-pleasure, wealth, and honor. -happiness, "living well and doing well are the same as being happy."

What are the characteristics of happiness, according to Aristotle, and how does he define happiness?

-something that suffices for parents, children, wife, and friends -"something complete and self-sufficient"

What is the difference between "virtues of thought" and "virtues of character," and how do each come about?

-wisdom, comprehension, and prudence -generosity and temperance

Are the dead happy, according to Aristotle? Why, or why not?

Aristotle calls happiness an "activity," therefore someone who is dead is not necessarily happy

What are the "five states in which the soul grasps the truth in its affirmation and denials," according to Aristotle. Explain each one.

Craft- "what is produced and what is achieved in action" "a state involving true reason concerned with production" Scientific Knowledge- " Prudence- "a state grasping the truth, involving reason, concerned with action about things that are good or bad for a human being" Wisdom- " Understanding- "

Is it possible to achieve precision in ethics, according to Aristotle? Why, or why not?

Yes, even though every person is capable of making a mistake. "For the educated person seeks exactness in each area to the extent that the nature of the subject allows."

What is the relationship between politics and the highest good, and why does Aristotle describe politics as the "highest ruling science?"

good for the whole should be held higher than the good for the individual

What is the difference between something that is good-for-itself and subordinate goods?

subordinate goods work to please the good-for-itself ones