SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY AND

NICHOMACHEAN ETHICS

Lesson 9
❖Everyone wants to do the right thing. But how
do they know what is right? Philosophical giant
Aristotle takes on the big question: HOW TO
FIND THE HIGHEST GOOD IN LIFE?
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❖is a book written by Aristotle named for

Nicomachus, which in keeping with the Greek
practice of boys being named after their
grandfathers, was the name of both Aristotle's
father and his son.
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❖In Nicomachean Ethics,
Aristotle discusses the following eleven (11)
virtues:
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1. Courage – the midpoint

between cowardice and
recklessness. The courageous
person is aware of the danger
but goes in any way.
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2. Temperance – the virtue

between overindulgence and
insensitivity. Aristotle would
view the person who never
drinks just as harshly as the one
who drinks too much.
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3. Generosity – the virtue of

charity, this is the golden mean
between miserliness and giving
more than you can afford.
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4. Magnificence – the virtue of

living extravagantly. It rests
between stinginess and
vulgarity. Aristotle sees no
reason to be ascetic but also
warns against being flashy.
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5. Magnanimity – the virtue

relating to pride, it is the
midpoint between not giving
yourself enough credit and
having delusions of grandeur. It
is a given that you also have to
act on this sense of self-worth
and strive for greatness.
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6. Right ambition – a
disposition to aim at the
intermediate between empty
vanity and undue humility.
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7. Patience – this is the virtue

that controls your temper. The
patient person must neither get
too angry nor fail to get angry
when they should.
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8. Truthfulness – the virtue of

honesty. Aristotle places it
between the vices of habitual
lying and being tactless or
boastful.
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9. Wittiness – at the midpoint

between buffoonery and
boorishness, this is the virtue of
a good sense of humor.
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10. Friendliness – while being

friendly might not seem like a
moral virtue, Aristotle claims
friendship is a vital part of a life
well lived. This virtue lies
between not being friendly at all
and being too friendly towards
too many people.
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11. Justice – the virtue of dealing

fairly with others. It lies between
selfishness and selflessness. This
virtue can also be applied in
different situations and has a
whole chapter dedicated to the
various forms it can take.
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❖Man's highest action and most complete happiness is a life of

contemplation of the highest goods.
❖The life of contemplation is so sublime that it is practically divine,
and man can achieve it only insofar as there is something divine in
him.
❖Contemplation is the action which best fulfills all the
qualifications that the ultimate good should have, because it is the
most continuous, complete and self-sufficient of all actions.
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❖For most people, mere exhortation will not be enough to make

them act virtuously. Consequently, good laws are necessary in
order to make people virtuous.
❖Laws and proper education are necessarily especially for the
young, in order to train their passions and desires to be in accord
with reason. Yet since such a great number of men are not virtuous,
laws are necessary not just for the young, but for everyone
 ACTIVITY
1 whole sheet of paper
PART A: Answer the following activities found in module 9
Activity 2: Skill-building Activities
Activity 3: Check for Understanding

PART B: Answer the following questions:

1. What is the goal of Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics?
2. Why do we need Nicomachean Ethics in science and
technology?