morality such as John Stuart Mill’s theory of Utilitarianism. In teleological approaches to morality‚ questions of right and wrong‚ or the notion what an individual ought to do‚ are determined by the consequences of a given action. One thinker to reject this idea of consequentialism was Immanuel Kant. In his Groundwork of the Metaphysics of Morals‚ Kant endeavors to establish a system of ethics that has no trace of the empirical nature of utilitarianism. To him‚ “the moral worth of an action does
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Meaghan Hill 24th September 2012 Ethics; Dr. Patton The Nicomachean Ethics - Virtues People are naturally self aware‚ and because of that we are under the impression we are in complete control over our personalities and actions. Aristotle reasons in “The Nicomachean Ethics” that peoples values and ethics are shaped by the society in which they live in‚ and that are ability to follow them is based on how we are raised. According to Aristotle we are trained in the behaviors that are socially acceptable
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Aristotle begins the Nicomachean Ethics by stating that‚ in all our actions and choices‚ we seek some good. The book is not an argument on why we ought to lead good‚ happy lives‚ but rather a description of the good life itself. Aristotle seeks to provide an account of the good itself‚ not to suggest that we should choose to be good. In stating that greater good comes from an end achievable in action that we wish for in itself‚ Aristotle suggests that there is something we can work toward in itself
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Moral Philosophy As Aristotle uncovered in the early chapters of Book 1 of Nicomachean Ethics‚ all actions teleological‚ aiming at the ultimate good. Everything we do is goal directed‚ with this ultimate end being happiness‚ but more exactly a maintained state of well being called eudaimonia. While the route to achieve this ultimate end can be unique for individuals and understood different by those of varying experience and intellectual levels‚ the chief good at the end always remains the
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Europe‚ decided to discover what it means to truly be happy and how humans could attain it. Aristotle studied many areas of human knowledge and wrote his thesis in his book The Nicomachean Ethics. He develops the notion that thinking will lead to the highest happiness that a human could achieve. In The Nicomachean Ethics‚ Aristotle talks about how humans have immediate goods in life such as “pleasure‚ money‚ or‚ eminence‚” which will contribute to the supreme good in life (7). However‚ the supreme
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Aristotle provides the teleological approach of how to live well in his collection of lectures‚ Nicomachean Ethics. In Book II of Nicomachean Ethics‚ Aristotle presents his definition of virtue in which it is "a kind of mean" (N.E. 129). According to Aristotle‚ moral virtue is a means to an end‚ happiness. By using Sophocles’s Antigone‚ I will support Aristotle’s theory of virtue in which he reasons it to be a state of character between two extremes. A virtue that remains relevant today as it did
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Aristotle – Nicomachean Ethics Book I 1. What does it mean to say Aristotle’s ethical theory is “teleological?” In Aristotle’s world‚ nature‚ which is made up of matter and form‚ is teleological‚ meaning it has an end or goal. For example‚ the telos of an acorn is to turn into an oak tree. At first something has its potential and then it makes the choice in life to actualize that potential‚ by virtue‚ and be the best it can be. There is an aim and purpose to everything and a purpose to everything
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Real happiness is what every person would love to experience throughout their lifetime. Yet‚ finding true happiness can be quite difficult. Aristotle presents an argument in his book‚ the Nicomachean Ethics‚ that to live a life of contentment you must live by the virtues set before you. He explains that happiness is something that can’t be defined easily‚ that it is distinct to each person. According to Aristotle‚ everything we do will result in some good‚ or happiness. We should aim towards this
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Ethics essay – Utilitarianism a.) Explain the main differences between the utilitarianism of Bentham and that of Mill. Utilitarianism is an ethical theory that looks at the concept of `utility`‚ or the usefulness of actions. Two of the most famous Utilitarians were Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill; Bentham was the first to introduce the theory‚ and his views were more similar to that of Act Utilitarianism. Mill on the other hand differed in his views‚ and his intention was to improve the theory
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actions that are within the mean; neither excessive‚ nor deficient. Aristotle also emphasizes that happiness is more permanent than pleasure. Indeed‚ he argues further that our ethics is defined by our actions. His main point is that we need to live temperate lives in order to be
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