Eudaimonia Essays

The aim of Nicomachean Ethics is to determine what the good is which leads to the discussion of Eudaimonia and virtue. Aristotle’s opening sentence establishes that all actions aim at some good (1999, p. 3) so therefore good must be that which all people aim for. MacIntyre interprets that, “Good is defined at the outset in terms of the goal, purpose, or aim to which something or somebody moves. To call something good is to say that it is under certain conditions sought or aimed at. There are numerous

Aristotle’s conception of the “good life” which he outlined in the Nicomachean Ethics. As we will see, the “good life” for man according to Aristotle is one where we perform the particular activity which is distinctly ours and guides us towards eudaimonia – sometimes translated as ‘happiness’ or ‘well-being’. He shows us how the other conflicting depictions of the ‘good life’ are misguided, and how we should aim for a life of reason. First, however, I will discuss briefly what Aristotle meant by

person achieves a state of eudaimonia, or flourishing, which is the ultimate good. Instrumental goods, such as wealth or honor, are only valuable insofar as they contribute to a person's eudaimonia. Thus, the pursuit of instrumental goods must be subordinated to the pursuit of ultimate goods in order to achieve a truly good life. 2. In Aristotle's Nichomachean Ethics, pleasure is a temporary and subjective feeling that arises from sensory experiences, while happiness (eudaimonia) is a long-term state

is a goal, not a temporary state. While this might then be remedied if one were to translate “eudaimonia” as “flourishing”, we would then understand eudaimonia as more of a process, instead of an end goal. This would require one to rework the entire logic of whether there exists a function of human beings and what the ultimate pursuit in life should be. It seems that as long as one understands “eudaimonia” as “happiness”, not in a temporary state of mind but as “the entirety of one’s life filled with

friendships, health are all indifferent to achieving eudaimonia. They say virtues are all that are needed. These are things I would have thought to be virtues, but by technicality are not. I do not think I agree with this statement. To be able to achieve happiness, you must be alive. To be alive, you must need food , and you must have a certain level of health. Without these two things, you would die, and therefore not able to achieve eudaimonia, which is again a main goal in human life. Aristotle

“Happiness, on the other hand, no one chooses for the sake of these, nor, in general, for anything other than itself” Happiness is thought of differently amongst people; but happiness unlike most things is striven for, only for the sake of having it. On the contrary; things like honor and pleasure are pursued in an attempt to achieve the ultimate goal of happiness. Aristotle is picking apart the concept of happiness and directing your eyes to where he sees fit. For people tend to identify happiness

requires us to consider others for their own sake and not because they may benefit us. However I believe that Virtues allow people to perform his or her function excellently; when people perform his or her function excellently, people reach eudaimonia. Since eudaimonia is the greatest good, reaching it makes one a good person. This both benefits people and makes them good. Hursthouse emphasizes that this approach is not in conflict with self-interest. Instead, the virtues are constitutive of a good life

In Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle lays the groundwork for his perspective on virtue ethics, articulating the relationship between happiness, or eudaimonia, and virtue, or aréte. Aristotle’s particularly unique concept of happiness follows from his belief that happiness is the only end that humans wish to achieve that is purely an end in itself, and not a means as well, rather than an emotional disposition of happiness in the modern understanding of the word. Similarly, the Greek idea of virtue doesn’t

This statement might seem ridiculous: if eudaimonia could be gained by virtuous activity, why then lacking some other types of goods should have impact on one`s happiness? In response to this question, Aristotle emphasizes that lack of other goods leads to a diminution of virtuous activity. As it

Happiness & McCandless Happiness has been often mistaken for another emotion while in reality it comes from the translated form of the greek concept of eudaimonia which means flourishing, or literally translated to “good spirit”. With the concept of happiness clarified to an abstraction of fulfilment, or acceptance in life, rather than just a term used for a feeling of elation, it becomes a more open ended discussion piece due to the questions one could ask. What constitutes happiness? Can you

Aristotle’s first book in the Nicomachean Ethics, tackles the pursuit and function of man. Aristotle believes that because of mans rationality and intelligence, there must be one great purpose to all that we do. It cannot be something as basic as the gratification of pleasure since we are superior creatures, and it must be something beyond each sole virtue since there is not a complete end in themselves. Aristotle comes to the conclusion that this final end or “good”, must be happiness and uses the

In Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle argues that the human good is the soul’s activity that expresses virtue. Aristotle concludes this from an invalid argument. On the one hand I do agree that the activity expressing virtue is a requirement for the human good. But on the other hand, I insist that the human good is a state and not an action. By modifying this argument, I believe we can reach a new conclusion that will help us better understand what Aristotle meant by these concepts. To do this I must

In Book I of the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle brings up the idea that in order to discover the human good we must first develop a certain understanding and identify the function of a human being. Aristotle’s function argument is brought up through his belief that the human function is rational activity, meaning that our good as human beings is rational activity performed fine because this is what leads to living well. The good Aristotle tries to get across can be seen in many different forms depending

In Ancient Greece, happiness meant something different than what it means today. The word “happiness” or in Greek, “eudaimonia” meant living and acting well. However, in today’s society, happiness, to me, means something entirely different. Happiness is when I get home and I see my family after a long day at school. Happiness is when I get a good mark after I put a lot of hard work into an assignment. Many people believe that in pleasure we seek happiness, but that isn’t necessarily the case. In

In Greek, the word eudaimonia is often translated to happiness, and it means that happiness should be the final end or goal that each person aims for in their life. He also believes that it cannot be determined whether someone lived a happy, fulfilled life until it is over,

The main topic of Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics is eudaimonia, i.e. happiness in the “living well” or “flourishing” sense (terms I will be using interchangeably). In this paper, I will present Aristotle’s view on the role of external goods and fortune for the achievement of happiness. I will argue that he considers them a prerequisite for virtue. Their contribution to happiness is indirect, via the way they affect how we can engage in rational activity according to the relevant virtues. I will then

For many of years, thousands of philosophers have set out to try to answer one question: what makes an individual moral? Whether it be through certain theories that strive to explain what that person looks like or moral obligations that determine one’s character, they are all trying to answer the same question. As we investigate the overarching topic of ethics, one could find it hard for any one theory or moral code to perfectly define what that person looks like. With that said, during Rosalind

are dedicated to eudaimonia, i.e. happiness in the “living well” or “flourishing” sense (terms I will be using synonymously). In this paper, I will present Aristotle’s view on the role of external goods and fortune for the achievement of happiness. I will argue that he considers them a prerequisite for virtue. Their contribution to happiness is indirect, via the way they affect how we can engage in rational activity according to the relevant virtues. I will then object that this view threatens to

In Plato’s book Republic, he outlines the ideal just society. Through his written dialogue, Plato describes the ideal city. He calls this city Kallipolis and that is where I am from. Kallipolis means beautiful city. The city was outlined to be a healthy city where justice prevails. In the healthy city, the basic needs of the people are met in the most efficient way. Everyone works together to support each other in every aspect of their lives. The society values wisdom, courage, loyalty, and selflessness

Listening is an art, a skill, and a discipline that is considered to be an integral aspect in the success of the therapeutic alliance. Listening is not a passive technique, it is an active process in which the therapist listens to what is said, and how it is said, as well as listening to the whole person and the context of their social setting. Aspects of listening encompass linguistic, paralinguistic, and non-verbal aspects in order to tune in both mentally and visibly. Egan (2014) explains full