PHIL 21001 - Introduction to Ethics C. G.

Uher
Study Questions - Aristotle's Ethics

1. Why does Aristotle identify politics as the “master science”?(p. 4)

2. How is the Master Science related to Aristotle’s claim that all human activity aims at some
“good”? (pp. 3-5)

3. The ancient Greeks place much emphasis on discovering the proper function of the
subject/object being studied.(p. 16) Why might this be important to the understanding of
the object?

4. What does Aristotle describe as being the proper function of humans?(p.17)

5. Aristotle describes “Happiness” as the highest good. What does he tell us about
“Happiness” on pages 24-25?
6. At the end of Book I, Aristotle gives us a rough sketch of his views on human psychology.
What does his discussion reveal to us about the role that reasoning plays in morality?
(pp.31-32)

7. How does one begin to acquire the moral virtues, according to Aristotle? (pp. 34-35)

8. How does Aristotle relate the concepts of "excess," "deficiency," and "mean" to the Moral
Virtues?(pp.48-49)

9. Why are the "particulars" important in determining the “Mean” of a Moral Virtue? (pp.49-
50)

10. According to Aristotle, a moral action must be “voluntary.” Why does Aristotle insist that
an action is voluntary to be considered “moral”? [See beginning of Bk III]

11. What does Aristotle describe as the mental process involved in making a moral decision?
(Include in your discussion the concepts of the particulars, deliberation, and choice.)
12. In Book V, how is "Justice" related to the other Moral Virtues?

13. What are the Intellectual Virtues, and how are they different from Moral Virtues? (pp. 146-
149)

14. Which of the Intellectual Virtues paly a role in a moral decision-making and what role does
each play in that process?