THE GOOD LIFE

1. explain the concept of the good

life as posited by Aristotle
2. define the good life in own words
3. Examine shared concerns that
make up the good life to come up
with innovative and creative
solutions to contemporary issues
guided by ethical standards
The onward progress of science
and technology should be a
movement towards the good
life.
 Aristotle: Nichomachean Ethics
“All human activities aim at some good. Every
art and human inquiry, and similarly every
action and pursuit, is thought to aim at some
good; and for this reason the good has been
rightly declared as that at which all things
aim.”

“.....both the many and the cultivated call it

happiness, and suppose that living well and
doing well are the same as being happy.”
Eudaimonia = the good life
eu = “good”
daimon = “spirit”

a good life is marked by happiness and

excellence

a flourishing life filled with meaningful

endeavors that empower the human person
to be the best version of himself
Happiness is the ultimate end of human action.

Happiness defines a good life; that which comes

from living a life of virtue, a life of excellence,
manifested from the personal to the global
scale.
 Virtue plays a significant role in the
living and attainment of the good
life. It is the constant practice of
the good no matter how difficult the
circumstances may be. Virtue is the
excellence of character that
empowers one to do and be good.
 Example:
Making sure that one avoids sugary and
processed foods to keep health is an activity
that expresses virtue. (this action requires
discipline and practice)
When an action benefits the greatest number of
people, said action is deemed ethical. (John Stuart
Mill : Greatest Happiness Principle)

The ethical is, of course, meant to lead us to the

good and happy life.

Ethics should be enforced in the field of technology

so as to ensure the safety and morality of these
technology to people.
Ex. Mining
 Schools of Thought
• Materialism (Democritus)
• Hedonism (Epicurus)
• Stoicism (Epicurus – apathy)
• Theism (God)
• Humanism (Freedom/Technology)
Science and Technology has been, for the most
part, at the forefront of man’s attempt at
finding this happiness.

At the end of the day, the only question is

whether science is taking the right path
toward attaining what it really means to live
a good life.
When Technology and Humanity Cross
The human person has the autonomy to
make choices which may enable the
flourishing of his self and society.

The United nations General Assembly

proclaimed the Universal Declaration of
Human Rights on December 10, 1948 as the
global standard of fundamental human rights
for universal recognition and protection.
• Everyone has absolute moral worth by virtue
of being human.
• Human dignity is an ultimate core value of our
existence.
• When we fully recognize and appreciate this
truth in ourselves and in all the persons
around us, regardless of their status in life
then we pave the way for a just and
progressive society
• We have to ensure that human dignity lies at
the foundation of our endeavours.
• The good life as a life of justice, demands not
just equal treatment of human beings but also
preferential treatment to those who have less
or disadvantaged.
Article 1: All human beings are born free and
equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed
with reason and conscience and should act
towards one another in spirit of brotherhood.
Article 2: Everyone is entitled to all rights and
freedom set forth in this Declaration, without
distinction if any kind, such as race, color, sex,
language, religion, political or other status.

Article 3: Everyone has the right to life, liberty

and security of person.

Article 4: No one shall be held in slavery or

servitude; slavery and slave trade shall be
prohibited in all forms.
Article 5: No one shall be subjected to torture or
to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or
punishment.

Article 6: Everyone has the right to recognition

everywhere as the person before the law.

Article 7: All are equal before the law and are

entitled without discrimination to equal
protection of the law.
 In our pursuit of the good life, we should
protect and exercise human rights for
everyone.

Amid all these developments , human beings

become more free, more rational, and more
loving in our practice of science and
technology.
Why the future does not need us.
Bill Joy – Chief scientist and Corporate Executive
Officer of Sun Microsystems
Our most powerful 21st century technologies,
genetics, nanotech, and robotics (GNR), are
threatening to make humans an endangered
species. This possible extinction of the species
may largely come about due to the
unreflective and unquestioning acceptance of
new technologies by humans.
 “Accustomed to living with almost routine
breakthroughs, we have yet to come to terms
with the fact that the most compelling 21st
century technologies - robotics, genetic
engineering, and nano technology, pose a
different threat than the technologies that
have come before. Specifically robots,
engineered organisms, and nanobots share a
dangerous amplifying force. They can
self-replicate. A bomb is blown only one, but
one bot can become many, and quickly get
out of control.”
 Each of these technologies also offers untold
promise: The vision of near immortality drives
us forward; genetic engineering may soon
provide treatments, if not outright cures, for
most diseases; and nanotechnology and
nanomedicine can address yet more ills.
Together they can significantly extend our
average lifespan ad improve the quality of our
lives. Yet with each of these technologies, a
sequence of small, individually sensible
advances leads to an accumulation of great
power and concomitantly, great danger.”
 Humans should have learned the lesson in
the atomic bombings of the Japanese cities of
Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 that killed
over a hundred thousand people.

Science technology may be the highest

expression of human rationality. People are
able to shape or destroy the world with it.
Aftermath of Atomic Bomb in Hiroshima
The first atomic bomb was dropped on Hiroshima, Japan, on August 6, 1945, during
World War II. The blast completely destroyed 68 percent of the city and damaged
another 24 percent, and an estimated 60,000 to 70,000 people were killed or reported
missing, according to United States estimates.
Encarta EncyclopediaHulton Deutsch
© 1993-2003 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
 “I have felt it myself. The glitter of nuclear
weapons. It is irresistible if you come to them
as a scientist. To feel it’s there in your hands,
to release this energy that fuels the stars, to
let it do our bidding. To perform these
miracles, to lift a million tons of rocks into the
sly. It is something that gives people an
illusions of illimitable power., and it is, in some
ways, responsible for all our troubles – this,
what u might call technical arrogance, that
overcomes people when they see what they
can do with their minds.” Freeman Dyson
 Human nature may be corrupted when
the powers of our mind, our
rationality, and our science and
technology become manifest. If we
are not able to rein in the vanity and
arrogance that such powers unleash,
then we are on the way to destroying
the world.