OBJECTIVES

At the end of the lesson, the students should be able to:

 examine what is meant by a good life;
 identify how humans attempt to attain what is deemed
to have a good life; and
 recognize possibilities available to human beings to
attain good life.
 INTRODUCTION

In Ancient Greece, long before the word “science” has been

coined, the need to understand the world and reality was bound
with the need to understand the self and the good life.
 For Plato, the task of understanding the things in the world runs
parallel with the job of truly getting into what will make the
soul flourish.
 It was Aristotle who gave a definitive distinction between the
theoretical and practical sciences. Whereas “truth” is aim of the
theoretical sciences, the “good” is the end goal of practical
ones.
ARISTOTLE and how we all
aspire for a good life
ARISTOTLE
-The first philosopher who approached the problem of
reality from a “scientific” lens; and
-first thinker who dabbled into the complex
problematization of the end goal of life: Happiness
PLATO & ARISTOTLE
embarked on a different
approach in figuring out
reality
 PLATO
 thought that things in this world
are not real and are only copies
of the real in the world of
forms.
 change is so perplexing that it
can only makes sense if there
are two realities; the world of
forms and the world of matter.
ARISTOTLE
 puts everything back to the
ground in claiming that this
world is all there is to it and
that this world is the only
reality we can all access.
 disagreed with his teacher’s
position and forwarded the
idea that there is no reality
over and above what the
senses can perceive.
 PLATO ARISTOTLE
 thought that things in  extend the analysis from
this world are not real the external world into
and are only copies of the province of the
the real in the world of human person and
forms. declares that even
 change is so perplexing human being are
that it can only makes potentialities who aspire
sense if there are two for their actuality.
realities; the world of
forms and the world of
matter.
 PLATO ARISTOTLE
 claims that despite the  every human person aspires
reality of change, things for an end. The end is
remain and they retain happiness or human
flourishing.
their ultimate
“whatness”  claims that happiness is be
all and end all of everything
 convince that reality is that we do. We may not
full of these seemingly realize it but the end goal of
contrasting everything that we do is
manifestation of change happiness.
and permanence.
Happiness as the goal of the good life
 In 18th century, John Stuart Mill declared the greatest
happiness principle by saying that an action is right as
for as it maximize the attainment of happiness for the
greatest number of people.
 Individual happiness of each individual should be
prioritized and collectively dictates the kind of action
that should be endorsed.
 School of thoughts which aims for the good and
happy life.

 Materialism
The first materialists were the atomists in ancient Greece.
Democritus and Leucippus led a school whose primary belief
is that the world is made up of and is controlled by the tiny
invisible units in the world called atomos or seeds. For
Democritus and his disciples, the world including human
beings, is made up of matter. Atomos simply comes together
randomly to form the things in the world.
-matter is what makes us attain happiness.
 School of thoughts which aims for the
good and happy life
Hedonism
 Hedonists, for their part, see the end goal of life in acquiring
pleasure. Pleasure has always been the priority of hedonists.
For them, life is about obtaining and indulging in pleasure
because life is limited.
 The mantra of this school of thought is the famous “Eat, drink,
and be merry for tomorrow we die” led by Epicurus.
School of thoughts which aims for
the good and happy life

Stoicism
 Another school of thought led by Epicurus, the stoics
exposed the idea that to generate happiness, one must
learn to distance oneself and be apathetic. The original
term apatheia, precisely means to be indifferent.
 School of thoughts which aims for the
good and happy life
Theism
 People find the meaning of their lives using God as a fulcrum
of their existence.
 The ultimate basis of happiness for theist is the communion
with God.
School of thoughts which aims for
the good and happy life
Humanism
 Espouses the freedom of man to carve his own destiny
and to legislate his own law, free from the shackles of
a God that monitors and controls.
 For humanists man is literally the captain of his own
ship.