Aristotle’s Virtue Ethics Flashcards

• Virtue ethics is character based

  Helps you to flourish as a person. Making the correct ethical decisions is about becoming a virtuous person. We can only make the right choices if we have developed our virtuous side. Virtues can be developed through habit and training
• What does eudoaimonia mean?

  Happiness or flourishing
• End goal in any situation is to produce eudaimonia


  We achieved the end goal of happiness / flourishing when we become virtuous and Aristotle argued that this is a process that we grow towards by practising virtues
• How can we agree on what happiness is?

  Not physical pleasures or desire to want power like politicians. Not wealth either as it can be lost. Reflecting and philosophising brings pleasure 3 types of happiness are: pleasure seekers, seekers of honour and those who love contemplation
• The function argument: the ability to reason

  For Aristotle the distinguishing feature of humans is their ability to reason, which they get from their soul. Eg in plants the anima or soul produces the search for nourishment and food whereas in animals the anima produces the ability to move. Humans have these two characteristics but also the ability to reason. Humans are 'rational animals'. We should strive to achieve something better with our lives than simply living from pleasure to pleasure. Happiness for Aristotle is an activity of the soul
• What were the two parts of the soul according to Aristotle?

  The rational part and the non rational part
• What does the rational part of the soul contain?

  Excellence of practical reasoning and excellence of theoretical reasoning
• What is the practical part?

  Holds types of knowledge that are factual and not up for debate (a priori knowledge)
• What is the theoretical part?

  Weighs up knowledge and helps us to arrive at decisions
• What does the non rational part of the soul contain?

  The excellence of character and the excellence of the body
• What is the body part?

  Concerned with basic needs that keep us alive and is effectively our survival instant
• What is the character part?

  Helps us to distinguish between needs and wants
• What is the fruitcake example?

  Excellence of body part recognises I am hungry so it tells me to eat. Excellence of character part may desire cake to alleviate the hunger; I want it but don't necessarily need it. Excellence of theoretical reasoning part knows that fruit is better than cake and excellence of practical reasoning part weighs up the evidence and comes up with the suggestion of fruitcake. All the parts of my soul have been used in the decision. That is how our soul informs us as to what is right. By making wiser judgements over time, we become more virtuous
• Who used the example of the fruitcake?

  Vardy and Grosch
• What are virtues that we need to develop that will bring happiness?

  Specific virtues lie between two extremes. Our emotions and actions can be extreme either by being excessive or deficient or they can lie in the middle ground between those extremes.
• What are the two extremes?

  Excess and deficiency
• Excess of courage

  Recklessness
• Deficiency of courage

  Cowardice
• What is the golden mean?


  Right amount between excess (recklessness) and deficiency (cowardice)
• How is a courageous person defined?

  Someone that will assess the situation. They know their own abilities and they'll take action that is right in that particular situation
• How does the story of the janitor link to virtue ethics?

  Shows that sometimes you have to break the rules to display your virtuous character by helping others and treating them with empathy
• How does the lemonade story link to virtue ethics?

  In this story they have to keep to the rules. However it shows us that sometimes the rules should be flexible / broken especially if it's clear that something is a mistake. Virtue ethics guides you around the rules rather than through the rules