Aristotle's Clamence: The Role Of Judge Penitent

Human nature is a widely debated subject that has been contemplated by many philosophers throughout history. Two philosophers that have conflicting views regarding the topic of human nature and ethics would be Jean-Baptiste Clamence and Aristotle. In the novel, The Fall, by Albert Camus, Clamence plays the role of judge penitent by narrating his view on nihilism. It is through this occupation that Clamence makes the reader understand the absurdity in life. His argument is that there is a duplicitous nature of life, and us as human beings are prone to adding meaning to a meaningless life by obtaining power to feel a sense of accomplishment. However, there is a value in life that Clamence fails to recognize and this is the basis of Aristotle’s

He established the role of judge-penitent in order to help rebuild a new identity for himself. Clamence felt a false sense of accomplishment by living an authentic life and by not acceding to the regulations of society. It was by becoming a judge- penitent that he was able to impose his own theories about life and nihilism among his clients that gave him power. Clamence used his own methodology to make his clients believe that the world is filled with piranhas and that everything was done out of self-interest. However, what Clamence failed to comprehend was the true path to happiness and how happiness was not attained through meager pleasures, but by living a satisfying life and complying to one’s own principles. He doesn’t comprehend the meticulousness of contentment. There is not just one path to joy, but a multitude of them and each path varies depending upon the values instilled in each human. We should give worth to these paths as human beings since they signify our existence. It is through these paths that we are essentially able to attain

He had a lower quality life because he didn’t full understand “the good” and was nihilistic. Happiness was an activity for Aristotle, but for Clamence it was goal that he was never able to achieve because he went after the momentary and lower pleasures in life. Higher pleasures involve reasoning and thinking, but lower pleasures involves the senses and can also be associated with pain, which is why Clamence lived a very sorrowful and unhappy life. According to Aristotle, you should only do good because it is good in itself. Clamence only did good deeds for the sole purpose of receiving appraisal for it. Therefore, do good not for the sake of pleasure but as a motivator. Pleasure accompanies action and reveals our state of virtue, which can lead us to happiness. Happiness is an activity not a process because it is a way of living without an endpoint. By having the virtue of contemplation you are choosing the mean and grounding yourself so you can have an overall happy life. By being contemplative, you are stringent towards obstacles that you encounter in your daily life so you remain happy even if you have encountered hardships and it helps you solidify your virtues. Contemplation also helps correct our evil desires by letting us be open to all of our options since it allows us to be reflect deeply upon our actions and its immediate and long term