ARISTOTLE

AND
VIRTUE
THEORY
Aristotle is a towering figure
in ancient Greek philosophy,
making contributions to logic,
metaphysics, mathematics,
physics, biology, botany,
ethics, politics, agriculture,
medicine, dance and theatre.
He was student of plato who
in turn studied under
Socrates.
 VIRTUE THEORY
Ethical theory that emphasizes an individual’s
character rather than following a set of rules.
What exactly does it mean to be virtuous?
If we can just focus on being good people, the right
actions will follow, effortlessly. Having virtue just
means doing the right thing, at the right time, in the
right way, in the right amount, toward the right people.
There’s no need to be specific, because if you’re
virtuous, you know what to do. All the time. You know
how to handle yourself and how to get along with
others. You have good judgment, you can read a
room, and you know what’s right and when. Virtue is a
skill, a way of living and that’s something that can
only really be learned through experience. Aristotle
said your character is developed through habituation
if you do a virtuous thing over and over again,
eventually it will become part of your character.
 Aristotle’s Ethics First published Tue May 1,
2001; substantive revision Fri Jun 15, 2018 Aristotle
conceives of ethical theory as a field distinct from
the theoretical sciences. Its methodology must
match its subject matter—good action—and must
respect the fact that in this field many
generalizations hold only for the most part. We study
ethics in order to improve our lives, and therefore its
principal concern is the nature of human well-being.
Aristotle follows Socrates and Plato in taking the
virtues to be central to a well-lived life. Like Plato,
he regards the ethical virtues (justice, courage,
temperance and so on) as complex rational,
emotional and social skills. But he rejects Plato's
idea that to be completely virtuous one must
acquire, through a training in the sciences,
mathematics, and philosophy, an understanding of
what goodness is. What we need, in order to live
well, is a proper appreciation of the way in which
such goods as friendship, pleasure, virtue, honor and
wealth fit together as a whole. In order to apply that
general understanding to particular cases, we must
acquire, through proper upbringing and habits, the
ability to see, on each occasion, which course of
action is best supported by reasons. Therefore
practical wisdom, as he conceives it, cannot be
acquired solely by learning general rules. We must
also acquire, through practice, those deliberative,
emotional, and social skills that enable us to put our
general understanding of well-being into practice in
ways that are suitable to each occasion