ARISTOTLES ETHICS

SUBMITTED TO:
SUBMITTED BY:
PROF. KARAMJIT SINGH
ANURADHA
MBA
 ARISTOTLES ETHICS
The Nichomachean Ethics is a collection of Aristotles notes,
edited by his son, Nichomachus.

Modern ethics is focused on rights and duties.

Aristotle is interested in them too (indirectly), but he is more

interested in :
what is good for humans, and
how we ought to live
 THE HIGHEST GOOD
The highest good and the end toward which all human activity
is directed is happiness, which can be defined as continuous
contemplation of eternal and universal truth.

Happiness, then, seems to be the highest good for humans.

It seems self-sufficient.
 HAPPINESS
We have seen that
THE GOOD is happiness (most desired), and
THE GOOD is reasoning well (by analogical argument)

HAPPINESS = REASONING WELL

HAPPINESS = If an activity of the soul (reasoning) in conformity with

virtue (reasoning well) so, happiness is NOT
a feeling
a condition or state of mind
desire-satisfaction (getting what you want)
something you can receive
 VIRTUE

Aristotle: to understand happiness, we must understand virtue

Doing something well or with excellence is one definition of a
virtue.

Things are said to have virtue when they perform the

function proper to them well the function that is proper
to a thing is called its work
Also, a things work is what only it can do, or what
nothing else can do so well
 INTELLECTUAL VIRTUES
For Humans this work is reason (we are rational animals),
composed of :
theoretical wisdom (sophia)
scientific reasoning (episteme, gk; scientia, latin)
intuitive understanding (nous)
practical wisdom/practical reason, prudence (phronesis)
craft knowledge, skill, art (techne)
 MORAL VIRTUES
Aristotle identifies 11 moral virtues, all governed by one
intellectual virtue, prudencegood deliberation
1. Courage
2. Temperance
3. Generosity
4. Magnificence (generosity with wealth)
5. Magnanimity (proper pride)
6. Right ambition
7. Good temper
8. Friendliness
9. Truthfulness
10. Wit
11. Justice
All except Justice are a mean between extremes
 HOW ARE MORAL VIRTUES ACQUIRED?

Virtues are attained or acquired by practice and habit

We become just by doing just acts, generous by generous acts,
temperate by temperate acts, etc.

How do we know what acts are just or friendly in the first place?
1) We learn by observation (look back to slide 3)
2) We ask a virtuous person
3) We use prudence to find the mean, or
the right amount of an action,
the right time for an action,
the right object (immediate and or distant object) for an
8
action,
the right manner of acting, etc.
Moral virtues are not habits; they are:
dispositions to act that are acquired by habituation.
purposive dispositions, lying in a mean determined by
reason
To posses a virtue is :
to hold a complex mental framework of the right feelings,
attitudes, understanding, insight, experience, etc.
to have a multi-track disposition, unlike a simple habit
such as being a tea drinker or coffee drinker.
A morally virtuous person, then, ideally,

Has all eleven moral virtues

Each virtue is established by practice and habit, subjecting

feelings and actions to reason

Each virtue is settled between excess and deficiency by

comprehensive understanding, or multi-track assessment
Possessing the virtues is a matter of degree, and few if any
possess them all or equally.

virtuous

continent

incontinent

vicious.
 VIRTUE OR CONTINENCE?
We ordinarily praise folks for overcoming their desires or temptations
in order to do what is right. Dont continent people deserve praise
then, perhaps even more than the virtuous?
Giving back a lost wallet full of money is easy for a virtuous
person

If it is hard because you are in dire need of money, then returning

it is praiseworthy

But, if it is hard because you dont care about other people, its
return is less praiseworthy
 ARISTOTLE VIRTUE ETHICS IN
BUSINESS
Virtuous leaders might ask:
Am I taking more than my share of rewards-more than
my contribution is worth?
Does the distribution of goods preserve the happiness
of the community?
Does it have a negative effect on morale? Would
everyone enter into the employment contract under the
current terms if they truly had different choices?
Would we come to a different principle of allocation if
all the parties concerned were represented at the table?
 In his Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle concludes that the ethical
role of the leader is not to enhance his or her own power but to
create the conditions under which followers can achieve their
potential.
Am I behaving in a virtuous way?
How would I want to be treated if I were a member of this
organization?
What form of social contract would allow all our members to
develop their full potential in order that they may each make
their greatest contribution to the good of the whole?
To what extent are there real opportunities for all employees to
develop their talents and their potential?
To what extent do employees participate in decisions that effect
their work?
To what extent do all employees participate in the financial gain
resulting from their own ideas and efforts?