My Ántonia By Aristotle Character Analysis

Does one need other means besides virtue to obtain happiness? In Nicomachean Ethics by Aristotle, he discusses this topic. Throughout the book, Aristotle claims there are other means necessary. Through the examination of a passage from My Ántonia by Willa Cather, this idea is proven further. Virtue is something needed to obtain happiness, but along with Virtue, one also needs sufficient means, such as external goods and the absence of misfortune. Establishing Aristotle's definition of virtue helps prove this idea further. Aristotle claims that there are two types of virtue, those being "that of intellect and that of character" (Aristotle 1103a.14-15). Intellectual virtue comes about through "teaching" (1103a.15). An example is wisdom. Aristotle

In My Ántonia, the book ends with Jim paying Ántonia a visit after not visiting her in years. Ántonia has "a fine life" now, as Jim says (Cather 235). Ántonia has ten children and is married to a man named Cuzak. While examining Ántonia’s life, Jim claims that "[he] wondered whether the life that was right for one was ever right for two"(235). Through this observation, Jim is implying that Ántonia has the life that is right for her. Jim believes that this is not necessarily the life that Cuzak wanted, but he believes it is the perfect life for Ántonia. During Jim’s visit, Ántonia possesses the virtue of generosity. According to Aristotle, generosity is the mean of "wastefulness and stinginess" (Aristotle 1107b.10). Ántonia very much expresses that she has this mean during Jim’s stay. She is very welcoming to him, offers to let him stay, makes his food, and teaches him about all of her children. In Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle makes a claim that relates to Ántonia’s adulthood. Aristotle says that "no activity is complete when it is impeded, and happiness is something complete"(1153b.14-15). This means that when a person achieves happiness, no other things are interrupting it. Further on, Aristotle talks about how different misfortunes can cause happiness to be impeded. This relates to Ántonia’s life while she is an adult because while she is an

Throughout Ántonia’s life, she experiences many great misfortunes, but a very impactful one is the death of her father. Ántonia is always very worried about her father, and she constantly reminds Jim that her father does not "look good"(Cather 59). After Ántonia makes her last comment about this, Jim finds out that her father has committed suicide and that Ántonia and her family were in "great distress"(62). Once Jim finally sees Ántonia after this disaster, she hugs him, and Jim notes that "it seemed to [him] that [he] could feel her heart breaking as she clung to [him]"(74). Ántonia’s father's death has brought great sadness into her life. This is also another instance of when Ántonia's life was not "right" for her (235). During this time, Ántonia possesses the virtue of courage. According to Aristotle, courage is the mean of cowardice and rashness (Aristotle 1104a.19-23). Ántonia is very courageous after hearing about her father’s death; she is not afraid and even goes on to continue his work in the fields (Cather 79). Ántonia was not too cowardly, and she most definitely was not too rash during this time. This experience of Ántonia and her family also relates very closely to a passage in Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics. Aristotle says, "People who claim that the person being tortured or the person who has fallen on very bad times is