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WRITTEN REPORT IN ETHICS

VIRTUE ETHICS

BSED ENGLISH 2D

NAME OF REPORTER:
RIVERA, CATHY MAE C.

NAME OF INSTRUCTOR:
MS. DESIREE ROSE FERNANDEZ

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 I. TERMINAL OBJECTIVES:
A. To provide understanding about Virtue Ethics
B. To evaluate the different Moral Philosophies of the Three Greek Philosophers
C. To highlight the significance of being a virtues person

II. OUTLINE OF THE LECTURE:

A. Introduction to Virtue Ethics
B. Defining Moral Philosophies of the three Greek Philosophers
C. Evaluation of the Greek Philosopher’s Ethical Theories

III. PRESENTATION/ DISCUSSION:

A. REVIEW
B. MOTIVATION
Group game: You act! We’ll guess!
Mechanics
The class will be divided into 2 groups. Each group will have 4 representatives, one will pick a word from a bowl and they
will act or interpret what was the word written. In one minute the rest of the group will try to guess what was their
group mates is acting, vise versa with the second group (5 words to guess each group).The team who will guess the most
will be the Winner
C. INTRODUCTION

Virtue ethics now stands as one of the leading moral theories in ethics. This paper will explore the importance of virtue
ethics in every people lives. More so, identified the different moral philosophies of the three Greek Philosophers. For
each, it will explain how they distinctly define right action with regards to the virtues or the virtuous agent.

D. LESSON PROPER

THE THREE GREEK PHILOSOPHERS

Socrates (470 – 399 BC) was a classical Greek (Athenian) philosopher credited as one of the founders of Western
philosophy, and as being the first moral philosopher of the Western ethical tradition of thought. An enigmatic figure, he
made no writings, and is known chiefly through the accounts of classical writers writing after his lifetime, particularly his
students Plato and Xenophon.

Plato (427- 348) was an Athenian philosopher during the Classical period in Ancient Greece, founder of the Platonist
school of thought, and the Academy, the first institution of higher learning in the Western world.

Aristotle (384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher during the Classical period in Ancient Greece, the founder of the
Lyceum and the Peripatetic school of philosophy and Aristotelian tradition. Along with his teacher Plato, he has been
called the "Father of Western Philosophy". His writings cover many subjects – including physics, biology, zoology,
metaphysics, logic, ethics, aesthetics, poetry, theatre, music, rhetoric, psychology, linguistics, economics, politics and
government.

The Contemporary theory in Ethics called Virtue Ethics is said to have started with these three great philosophers.

Virtue ethics defined

 Virtue Ethics is moral philosophy that teaches that an action is right if it is an action that a virtuous person
would perform in the same situations. According to the theory, a virtuous person is someone who acts
virtuously and people act virtuously if they possess and live the virtues. A virtue is a moral characteristic that an
individual needs to live well.
 Virtue ethics out emphasis on developing good habits of character and avoiding bad character traits or vices.
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  Virtue ethicist such as Aristotle, hold that people live their lives trying to develop their faculties to the fullest
extent.
1. Intellectual
2. Physical
3. Social
4. Moral and so on.
 Basically, the virtues are freely chosen character traits that are praise in others. People praise them because:
1. They are difficult to develop
2. They are corrective of natural deficiencies
3. They are beneficial both to self and society
 The ancient Greeks list four cardinal Virtues:
1. Wisdom
2. Courage
3. Moderation
4. Justice
- The Christian teaching on the other hand recommends faith, hope, charity, and love.

SOCRATES AND PLATO’S MORAL PHILOSOPHY

Since Plato wrote down and essentially adhered to Socrates’ Philosophy, it is practical for us to treat their ethical
theories jointly here.

In the dialogue Gorgias written by Plato, Socrates indicates that Pleasure and Pain fail to provide an objective standard
for determining moral from immoral since they do not exist apart from one another, while good and evil do.

In Euthyphro, Socrates ask Euthyphro whether something is good because the gods love it, or whether the gods love it
because it is good.

Divine CddA\\ommand Theory – god dictates morality.

Central to Plato’s Philosophy is his Theory of Forms – the objectivity existing immaterial entities that are the proper
object of knowledge. Everything in the material world is what is by virtue of its resemble to, or participation in, this
universal Form or Idea.

The highest of all forms is the form of the Good. For Plato, those who comprehend the good will always do good actions.
Bad actions are performed out of not knowing the good.

Virtue therefore is regarded as knowledge and can be taught. Knowledge of the good is considered as the source of
guidance in moral decision making that to know the good, it is argued, is to do the good.

ARISTOTLE’S ETHICS

Two Aristotle’s works

Eudemian Ethics -sometimes abbreviated EE in scholarly works, is a work of philosophy by Aristotle. Its primary focus is
on ethics, making it one of the primary sources available for study of Aristotelian ethics. It is named for Eudemus of
Rhodes, a pupil of Aristotle who may also have had a hand in editing the final work. It is commonly believed to have
been written before the Nicomachean Ethics, although this is controversial.

Nicomachean Ethics -is the name normally given to Aristotle's best-known work on ethics. The work, which plays a pre-
eminent role in defining Aristotelian ethics, consists of ten books, originally separate scrolls, and is understood to be
based on notes from his lectures at the Lyceum. The title is often assumed to refer to his son Nicomachus, to whom the

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work was dedicated or who may have edited it (although his young age makes this less likely). Alternatively, the work
may have been dedicated to his father, who was also called Nicomachus.

Three general descriptions, which are interrelated can be used to depict Aristotle’s ethics.

1. Self realizationism. In his philosophy, when someone acts in line with his nature or end (telos) and thus realizes
his potential, he does moral and will be happy.
2. Eudaimonistic. It focuses on happiness (eudaimonia), or the good for man, and how to obtain it.
3. Aretaic or virtue based. Whereas act – oriented ethics is focus mainly on what we should do, a virtue ethics is
interested basically in what we should be, that is, the character or the sort of person we should struggle to
become.

 Aristotle’s Telos
A telos is an end or purpose. Aristotle believes that the essence or the essential nature of beings , including
humans ,lay not at their cause ( or beginning) but at their end (telos).
The essence or telos of human being is rationality and thus, a life of contemplation (aka Philosophy ) is the best
kind of life for true human flourishing.

Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics can be thus summarized in this manner:

“ All humans seek happiness ( well being ) but in different ways. True happiness is tied to the purpose or end (telos) of
human life. The essence (telos) of human beings(that which separates and distinguished them as a species) is
reason.Reason employed in achieving happiness (human telos) lead to moral virtues ex. Courage, temperance, Justice
and prudence.

 Happiness and Virtues

Aristotle believes that the ultimate human goal is Self Realization. This entails achieving one’s natural purpose
by functioning or living consistently with human nature. Accomplishing, it turn, produces happiness; whereas
inability to realize it leads to sadness, frustration, and ultimately to poor life.

Three Nature of Man

1.Man is a thinking animal

The man is in the scheme of nature as “thinking animal.” The spirit which distinguishes man as a rational being is
“incapable of being destroyed” It is a special part of the psyche (soul), which in turn is the force that animates the body.
The soul is the body “trained”, and contrary to the spirit of Plato, does not have a separate existence from the body.

2.Man is a political animal

Man is a “political animal.” In this Aristotle means that man lives in a more “polis”. Man becomes man among others,
living in a society governed by laws and customs. The man develops his potential and realize its natural end in a social
context. This is the “good life.” This is not an easy life, but a life of virtue is reflected in the highest good (eudaimonia),
often translated as happiness.

3.The good life

Aristotle’s ethics is a study of choice in action: how man should live to live better? For Aristotle, the ultimate happiness
lies in the pursuit of wisdom for his own good, as asserted in the Nicomachean Ethics.

Ethics for Aristotle, is the inquiry of the Human good. This is to say that the purpose of studying ethics is to make
ourselves good, though Arisotle assumes that we already want to become good. This human good is Eudaimonia or
Happiness.

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He added that it is the only intrinsic good, that is purued for its own sake. While other things, such as pleasure, wealth,
and honor are merely means to an end.

 Virtue as Habit
Aristotle’s idea of happiness should also be understood in the sense of human flourishing. The flourishing is
attained by the habitual practices of moral and intellectual excellences or virtues.
Hexis- is an active state, a condition in which something must actively hold itself.

 Virtues and the Golden Mean

Two kinds of Virtue
1. Moral virtues are dispositions or habits of living that deal with the whole person. For example,
prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance are moral virtues.
2. Intellectual virtues are habits of thinking like understanding the nature of things, judging the truth of
matters, reasoning from a truth known to a truth that is not known.

Aristotelian philosophy, the golden mean or golden middle way is the desirable middle between two extremes, one of
excess and the other of deficiency.

Vice- excess and defect

Middle ground- virtue lies neither in the vice of deficiency nor in the of excess.

Aristotle 4 basic moral virtues:

 Courage
 Temperance
 Justice
 Prudence

Example:

Two extremes which should be avoided by man. The first is cowardice which is the extreme of deficiency. The second is
recklessness which is the extreme of excess.

Cowardice is exemplified in the action of a man who fails to help a loved one inside a burning building.

Recklessness, on the other hand, is shown when a man without any protection for himself enters a burning building to
rescue a loved one.

Both are considered extreme actions which should be avoided as they do nothing to a man’s search for happiness. The
first is considered extreme because it is very unusual for a man who knows that a loved one is inside a burning building
but fails or refuses to do something about it such is an act of cowardice as he only intends to save himself. On the other
hand, it is worse when a person decides to enter a burning building when he fully knows that he will not be able to get
out of the burning building alive.

Aristotle emphasized that there is no exact middle in every situation. The middle will always depend on the situation. In
the situation mentioned, the mean would be to call for professional help. However, if the fire has just started, it would
be wrong to just stay and watch the building burn to the ground.

This is considered Aristotle’s most important contribution because it re-affirms how important achieving balance is in
life. It must be stressed that the Greeks during the time of Aristotle have struggled to find the right balance in their life.
Achieving balance is more difficult in the modern world. Unlike during the time of Greek philosophers, the modern
society is faced with more obstructions that will hinder the achievement of balance. Life is much faster. Competition is
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much stiffer. Temptations are greater. Indeed, achieving the right balance in ones personal and professional lie has
become much more difficult.

 Phronesis and Practice

In using the golden mean to become virtuous, we must recognize not only that the mean is neither too much
nor too little but also it is relative to us moral agents.
What constitutes right amount of something may differ from one another.

E. CONCLUSION
Virtue Ethics address the role of character and addresses the question of what makes a good human being. The idea is ,
if we can train ourselves to be good human beings, moral dilemmas can be solved easily. And this is something we can
train ourselves to do. Virtue is a matter of getting into the habit of acting virtuously. But indeed, in order to get into the
habit we have to know what it means to act virtuously in the very start.

IV. REFERENCES:

Hualda L et al. (2018). Ethics Principles of Ethical Behavior in Modern Society. Malabon City. Mutya
Publishing House Inc.

Tim, P. (2016) Philosophies and Philosophers .Retrieved from:

https://www.google.com.ph/amp/s/www.the-philosophy.com/man-political-animal-meaning-aristotle-
quote/amp

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