Human nature is constructed to aim for something good at the end of every act. Every human aims at achieving the happiness as an end result. That is the reason why in this paper‚ I will argue that Aristotle’s theory‚ Nicomachean Ethics‚ is the most plausible theory in describing human nature and answering the question of how one should live in order to attain happiness. According to Aristotle all the human activities are directed towards a final end‚ which he claims to be the happiness. He also claims
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Aristotle teaches us that man’s “telos” or ultimate end is “eudaimonia”. In order to understand this‚ “the first thing then that he does is to consider what makes human beings different from the rest of other beings. And what he discovers is that human beings have a function or ergon that is exclusively and characteristically human.” In other words‚ in order for the human beings to experience its telos or ultimate end‚ which is eudaimonia‚ human beings need first to analyze what makes him a human
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learned by experience. It is us adapting to our natural surroundings and striving towards the good life everyday of our life. The intellectual virtue is the ability to reason. According to Aristotle‚ it is our nature to reason. Aristotle’s eudaimonia (happiness) is living well and doing well in the affairs of the world. Happiness is life’s aim which like I stated before‚ involves both moral and intellectual arête. Aristotle states that “The happy life for a man is a life of the conscious following
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People have defined happiness as some kind of good of a human being. In Nicomachean Ethics: Book I‚ Aristotle defines happiness as the activity of living well‚ which in the Greek word is called eudaimonia. He tends to think that happiness is how we balance and moderate our lives to seek the highest pleasures‚ which he calls maintaining the mean. In the following excerpt from Book I‚ Aristotle talks about how happiness presumably consists in attaining some good or set of goods. “Now goods have
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function of humans is an activity of the soul and must act in accordance with virtue‚ or goodness.” A person can only be happy when they are fulfilling their function. (Cahn 114). When a person is fulfilling their function‚ they are eudaimon. Eudaimonia is the Greek term for
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Aristotle asks a fundamental question. Why are we here? Is there an end goal for us? What is the ultimate purpose of humans? One of his key arguments was the state of happiness. The definition has changed over time‚ from the time of the Greeks to now. Eudaimonia is a Greek word that roughly translates to Happiness. Although the more accurate translation is “Human Prosperity and Flourishing”‚ we use this word broadly‚ as Happiness. In modern times‚ happiness is defined as a
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Aristotle believes that through reason a person can achieve happiness or Eudaimonia. In his Nicomachean Ethics‚ happiness is achieved by fulfilling your function well. Humankind’s function is to exercise reason. This ethical conduct is achieved by following the Golden Mean‚ were one should always seek a middle ground between two extremes. I believe that life can benefit by following reason and a person could use a Golden Mean to determine the right action‚ however there are some instances where it
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Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics is an examination of a morality based on happiness. In his book Aristotle describes two types of the best life‚ each based on different types of reason. However there are inconsistencies between the two types of best life‚ which to be resolved require a look at‚ and the possible inconsistencies within‚ human nature. Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics is shown to be a perspective of morality requiring a critical examination‚ but which nonetheless reflects an important moral
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his book of Nicomachean Ethics. He tries not to find out the “why” of the existence of the humanity on the Earth‚ but the ultimate goal a human being is supposed to strive to‚ in order to give sense to his life. He believes‚ this ultimate goal is Eudaimonia. This word can be translated as “happiness”‚ but also fulfillment‚ flourishing or living well. To prove that happiness is the ultimate goal and not merely a purpose among many others‚ Aristotle gives some criterias. “ We can identify three (or
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What is that end or goal for which we should direct all of our activities? Eudaimonia‚ inherently translated as “happiness‚” carries implications of accomplishment and contentment. In Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics‚ happiness is not described as an interior emotion‚ but as an activity. Happiness is a subject that can be assessed just as precisely by an onlooker as by the person being observed. “Happiness‚ above all else‚ is held to be; for this we choose always for itself and never for the sake of
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