OCTOBER 10

NORMATIVE THEORIES
1. Aristotle’s Virtue Ethics
2. Aquinas’ natural law
3. Utilitarianism
4. Kant’s deontology
5. Existentialism

1st preliminary: how should we view this inquiry in relation to supreme question?
Proper persepective—we should assume that we should inquire WITH the philosophers
(treat ourselves as company of the philosophers) in their inquiry into the supreme
question of morality and that we will help ourselves in the process; not view as
academic study
nd
2 preliminary: how do we therefore read these theories/philosophers?
Proper perspective—We need to read them in the original works that they wrote (classic
texts) where theories are embedded, not the secondary watered-down theories

Disadvantages of reading text

- Difficult to read original text (but shouldn’t be reason to not read) because of
different time and different context
o Thinking about this [supreme] question requires complicated tight
chains of reasoning
- Texts are very long
o Discussion will be slow
- Boring sometimes

Advantages
- If we read primary text, we will see how philosophers think
o We will learn many lessons from them and perhaps we will think like
them
- If exposed to how they think, it could help us think philosophically
o We will learn how to philosophize and become good thinkers

Aristotle’s virtue ethics

Nicomachean Ethics (pp. 1-30)
 - Aristotle’s son is named Nicomachus
Framework (will help us understand the book)
1. What is the question that Aristotle is trying to answer?
**The question of Aristotle- not in first part of book
2. What is the presupposition of the question?

Video: 75-yearlong study about the good life

80% happiness is to reach
75% is to become famous
What makes people really happy and healthy?
Good relationships – social connection
724 men are participants for the 75-yearlong Harvard study into answering the question
16 are still alive
Since 1938
First group- sophomores/finished college in WW2
Second group- boys

Loneliness is a toxic thing in achieving a happy and healthy life

Question: what is the good life? What is the best life?

Presupposition: there is only one best answer

OCTOBER 15
The Question
Aristotle: There is a single kind of life or one correct answer to the question
“Is there really a thing such as the good life?”
“How do we then begin to answer that difficult question?”

A. WHAT IS THE GOOD LIFE?

Starting point: We begin by looking at human life itself which consists of human actions.
Thus, Aristotle is an ethical theorist.
Craft line of inquiry every action decision  some good
*Craft – sculpting, poetry, drama, craft of creating swords

“Every action and every decision aim to seek some good” means every action seeks some ends
—objective, purpose, aim
“Lahat ng gawain at lahat ng pagtatanong, gawa, at desisyon ay may tunguhin”

It is the end that constitutes the activity.

It is the achievement of this purpose that makes the activity the activity that it is if and only if
the activity reaches the end that makes it the activity.

e.g. washing dishes  malinis mga pinggan

going to class  to learn
hammering  bury a nail
medicine  to diagnose, health

Telos of the activity – Greek term for “end”

P1: Each thing aims at some good (telos) then the good is that which all things aim.
 contrast some a good from the good
 what is the best?
 what is good that aims at it

Fallacious: If each of us were born from a parent, then there is a parent from which all of us
were born from

B. Some goods are higher than other goods (hierarchy of telos)

e.g. blacksmith  create some metal tool like spears

swords etc  to kill someone in battles  to win the war/victory

There is telos at every performance

What is the essence of highest end?
The other telos are just materials/mere instruments to achieve the higher telos. They have no
intrinsic value; value is merely instrumental.

OCTOBER 21
A. “a good” vs “the good”

action  telos
end
good
 1. that for the sake
of which the action
is pursued

2. achievement of
the telos constitutes
success in the activity

A good – that which that some activities aim; end of some action
The good – that which all activities aim at; the act of aiming at something better; hypothetical

Number 2 paragraph 1

B. Principle of Hierarchy
action for telos
telos for another telos
multiplicity of telos that we pursue as human beings

e.g.
action: going to school/attend class
- pursued for telos
telos: to learn/to listen to lecture (but also an action)
- pursued for telos
- more valuable than the first action multiplicity of
telos: to pass the LE (action) telos
- for sake of something else
telos: to pass Ethics 1

C. ”The good” exists

P1: If we choose everything for something else, desire will be empty and futile
- level of importance in telos multiplicity
P2: Desire is not empty and futile
- if series of telos multiplicity goes on without ending (ad infinitum)
P3: We do not choose everything for something else
 - there is something that we choose for the sake of itself not for the sake of
something else
P4: We choose something for its own sake
- “the good”

*if telos multiplicity has an end, then there is completion and fulfillment of desire

If p, then q
“” not q then not p

What is the good life? What is the best life?

At this point, Aristotle’s definition of “the good” is successful but still very formal and very
general. We are still unclear what constitutes “the good life”.

Aristotle: even if the definition is still very general, it is still very important to pursue and study
this because knowing what is this “the good” which constitutes completion of all actions of
human beings, will help us attain it in the end. The knowledge may not be precise/too detailed.
The Archer knows how to direct its action because he knows what the target looks like thus, he
will try to appropriate the action to hit the target.
We can pin down action if we want to aim “the good” like The Archer.
There must be a discipline that is responsible in helping citizens to achieve the good.

D. Politikē teknē
- political science (not the current polsci)
- study of politics context of
- discipline to inquire “the good life” Greek life
- politicians must help achieve citizens achieve “the good life”
o completion of human life/human action

Study: millennials and gen z are short-sited when it comes to waking up every day. in a period
of time, this rises to the hypothesis of the rise in depression and other mental health problems.

Aristotle’s ethics is an ethics of hope and perseverance on going on with life because there is an
end to the human life; may kaganapan ang tao
Aristotle’s ethics is to pinpoint why we wake up every day. There is a meaning to it.
We need to pinpoint What is the good life? to answer How ought one live?

OCTOBER 24
The good (formal definition)
1. that which everything seeks
2. that which is sought for the sake of itself

E. How do we make the formal definition more precise/substantive/informative?

Common beliefs – argument towards principles; starting belief

beginning with things known to us
Name: Eudaimonia = Happiness (not best English translation)
Human Flourisihing (best English translation)
1. Living well
2. Doing well

Definitions:
Principle of good life – “the good”
Arguments from principles – beliefs come from principles
e.g. premises are principles, conclusion is belief
 people and chicken
Arguments toward principles – begin with beliefs to conclusion
Things known to us – what are the things known to community to which they accept
Things without qualifications – principles
Eudaimonia – eu: blessed, daimon: spirit; a blessed spirit/a blessed life
living well/doing well – soul is blessed; a quality superior to just merely/barely living;
highest quality of living

Why did Aristotle begin with common beliefs?

1. He’s being consistent with framework of mind. He’s always beginning with human life by
examining common beliefs.
2. Good is something achievable/must be achievable by human beings. Principles may not
be achievable by human beings.

What is the name that people call “the good”?

We have conception to this kind of good called Eudaimonia (formal definition of “the good”)
that we pursue for its own sake. Blessedness is influenced by the cosmology of Greeks. Because
they believe that Olympian gods can bless the human soul/spirit, you’re living Eudaimonia. If
you’re blessed, you are living well and doing well.

Eudaimonia
Even if not happy, it is still a life worth living. You’re not always happy.
English term is “a flourishing life”.

NOVEMBER 5
In Filipino culture, “the good” or Eudaimonia is “maginhawang buhay”.

F. Three Lives
What do people think constitute Eudaimonia (all rejected by Aristotle)
1. Vulgar  Life of gratification – has central good (bodily pleasure) or dominating
good that makes it a life of gratification
A: Life of gratification cannot be the good because this life is not a life proper for a
human being. Pleasure is only for animals. But human beings are not just a body, but
we also have rationality. We are embodied souls.
2. Cultivated  Life of political activity – central good (honor)
A: Rejected because honor can be taken away from you because it is only given, not
born with it (i.e. summa cum laude). It is not good to define yourself based on the
honors given to you. It does not identify your intrinsic character or your worth.
People pursue honor in pursue of something else or of prudent people recognizing
that they are virtuous. Honor does not satisfy Human Flourishing because people do
not pursue honor for the sake of honor, but for recognition.
3. The wise  Life of study – central good (knowledge)
*Life of money making – central good (wealth)

All of these clarify what Eudaimonia is in relation to human life.

1. Eudaimonia is a kind of human life
Consists nothing BUT Eudaimonia. Suppose that Eudaimonia is pleasure, then it consists
of nothing but pleasure. Therefore, the others that does not consists of pleasure, it is
not Eudaimonia; kind is a set

Set A Set B Set C

 E x x

2. Eudaimonia as a component in a human life (of various sorts)

Different sets contain other goods in them. Wherein the central good is Eudaimonia.
Set A Set B Set C

oooooo xxxxxxx yyyyyyy

E E E

Humans can live many kinds or versions of lives.

QUESTION: WHAT IS EUDAMONIA THEN BETWEEN THESE TWO

A life without pleasure cannot be human flourishing

NOVEMBER 7
G. Ergon argument
Ergon – Greek for function
“Argument from function”
Argument is supposed to answer “where do we look for the definition of the good?”
Aristotle thinks that we need to begin with human life.
Claim of argument is we look for the definition of the good in the function of human
being
Premise: Our assessment of the goodness of activities and people who perform those
activities is informed by the function of that activity.
Human activities are informed by the function they are supposed to perform. Our
judgment of the goodness of x is informed on our conception of the function of x.
For Aristotle, our assessment of anything in the world is always informed by the
function of that x.
Flautist  human that engages in some kind of craft i.e. playing the flute
Sculptor  sculpting of objects
Driver  driving
Student  studying
 It seems absurd to say that the flautist is good because he is good in washing the dishes
or the driver is good because he is a good cook.
If you want to know whether or not the flautist good, ask, “what is the function of a
flautist?”
You cannot say a phone is good because it has three cameras. Because the function of
the phone is for communication.
Task of Aristotle is to make implicit to explicit.
Human beings already exist in a moral/practical world. Thus from this, he assesses the
function of humans to define them explicitly.
Definition of good should be looked into the function of the human being.
It’s absurd to say that human function has no function AS a human being.

Premise: Human beings must also have a function in so far as they are human beings.

H. What is the function of a human being in so far as he/she is a

human being?
For Aristotle, every single things has an end, has the good. They rely on their function to
achieve the end.
Question is the good for a HUMAN BEING. Aristotle is asking the function that
distinguishes us as human beings. In other words, it (H.) is a distinguishing function.
1. living
in so far as living as animals, not living distinguishing function as human beings
2. nutrition and growth
no, we share this with plants and animals
3. sense perception
hearing, sensing, etc.

Reason is the exercise of action in accord to reason. Reason is possession. Activity of the
soul in accord to reason. Capacity (power) of doing action with the exercise of reason
made with logic and practicality. Has difference with just merely activity and just merely
capacity.
 rational action
 rational practical activity

Reason is a capacity but capacity is not enough, but instead the EXERCISE of capacity. It’s not
just action, it’s with accord to reason or is commanded by reason.
NOVEMBER 12
If doing rational action, we live more fully which is the best expression of being humans, not
just as mere animals. We sustain our being human. It’s not our emotions, impulses, or feelings
that best expresses humanity, but the capability of doing rational action.

Why rational action? Why not rationality or mere capacity to reason?

Because possessing rationality is something we share with the gods. Therefore, it is not a
distinguishing feature of humans. We bring forth into existence by doing activities.

I. What is good for a human being?

1. Principle: “For any x, if x has an ergon y, then x will be a good x, iff x produces fine
and well instances of y.” | Are Te/Excellence
2. A good human being performs rational actions excellently.
Eudaimonia = excellent life; a life that consists in the performance of excellent
instances of rational action; a virtuous life
- the meaning of excellence is still vague and general

J. What makes excellence?

What makes an activity excellent? (Chap. 7: Sec. 15, Sentence 1)
In accordan to VIRTUE.
1. good harpist  plays harp well and finely  plays the harp excellently  play the
harp in accordance to the virtues of playing the harp

good knife  it cuts well and finely  it cuts excellently  it cuts in accordance to
the virtues proper to cutting

8
Examine principles from what it is said about it. If it harmonizes with the actual truth or the
facts.
3 types of good: external, goods of soul, goods of body.
Goods of soul are most fully than others. Examine goods by using this type of good as it is
accepted by many.
The end/the good is correct as it is a good of one’s soul and is not external good.
Happy person lives well is also correct as he/she is living well and doing well.
Everyone’s good is correct on one point at least. Those who act will achieve the good. But it is
inevitable that everyone will act anyway. so everyone will achieve the good.
Active people have pleasant life bc being pleased is part of the soul.
actions in accord with virtue are pleasant by nature.
happiness is most pleasant then.
BUT happiness of the soul needs external goods too as resources (virtue and good fortune)

9
Happiness is acquired by…
happiness is one of the most divine things. goal of virtue is best good (divine and blessed).
happiness is activity of soul in accord with virtue (NOT FORTUNE). this conclusion then agrees
that political science is the best good (making devotion to citizens which makes them good
people).
happiness is reaching complete life. experiencing the good and the bad.

13
we must examine virtue to understand happiness. this is proper for polsci.
human virtue we must examine. virtue of the soul and not body.