Virtue Theory

• What is virtue theory?

  Teleological theory that focuses on how to become a better person over time - shift away from rules and focuses on how to develop the correct character and qualities to behave virtuously.
• What is the greek word for character?

  Ethos
• Explain the aim of life according to Virtue Theory

  Superior aim of human life is eudaimonia (happiness/flourishing)

  • Example: people study to get good grades, get into a good uni and eventually to live a good/happy life.
  • Living a good life (eudaimonia) is the goal (telos) to every human action - everything else is a mean to that end (subordinate aim)
• How is eudaimonia achieved?

  By being virtuous and cultivating a virtuous disposition.
• What is the function argument?

  • Something’s function is its distinctive characteristic - what its uniquely good for
  • Something is good when it performs its function well
  • For example, an axe is good when it chops well
• How does the function argument apply to Virtue Theory?


  • Human’s distinctive characteristic - ability to reason
  • Eudaimonia is achieved when we reason well, are guided by reason and have good reasons for our actions
• What enables something to function well?

  • Virtues
  • For example, axes function: chop, virtues: sharpness and solidity
  • Our function: reason well, virtues that will enable this will be character traits, dispositions.
  • For example, virtue of temperance: right attitude towards pleasure, deficiency of temperance: greed/addiction - unable to reason well
  • Cultivating virtues is ESSENTIAL to functioning well and achieving eudaimonia.
• What is the Doctrine of the Mean?

  • Virtues exist on a spectrum between the vice of excess and the vice of deficiency.
  • Example: courage is the ‘golden mean’ between the excess of recklessness and the deficiency of cowardice.
  • A virtue is the habit of choosing the mean between extremes, a virtuous person has fully developed the habit of choosing the golden mean
• What are the 3 aspects of happiness?

  • a life with enjoyment
  • a life with freedom
  • a life of reflection and contemplation
• What is the most important virtue according to Aristotle?

  • Wisdom: characteristic of a person that can maintain all 3 aspects of happiness
• What does Aristotle argue about the process of becoming virtuous?


  • It‘s a life long process as we are not born virtuous
  • moral virtues ( courage, temperance, generosity) are cultivated through habits
  • intellectual virtues ( intelligence, scientific knowledge, wisdom) cultivated through education
  • Lead to moral, physical and intellectual EXCELLENCE
• What are the Four key virtues?


  • Temperance
  • Courage
  • Wisdom ( drives them all and naturally produces a just, virtuous outcome ) Justice
• What is Aristotle’s quote about the process of becoming virtuous?

  • ‘But we must add in a ‘complete life’’
  • ‘One swallow does not make a summer, nor does one day’
  • ’One day or a short time does not make a man blessed and happy.’
• Where are the Beatitudes found?


  Sermon on the Mount: Matthew 5 - 12
• How are the ideas of Aristotle and Jesus similar?

  • Jesus also promotes the idea of a desire for the virtuous outcome in life in order to achieve fulfilment (heaven/ eudaimonia)
  • Example: Jesus promotes the idea of being persecuted for the sake of righteousness, similar to Aristotle’s virtue of courage
  • Both share a focus on condition and result on the basis of what qualities you need, to achieve the most fulfilling goal in life
• What is the key scholar for Virtue Theory?

  Aristotle
• What is the Key text for Virtue Theory?

  Nichomachaean Ethics