...In “Nicomachean Ethics,” Aristotle distinguishes the vicious man, who is unrepentant of his actions (which are contrary to the good, as it is performed by a virtuous person), from the incontinent man, who regrets his actions (which regularly miss what they know to be good). Aristotle proposes the vicious man does not know he is vicious (otherwise he would regret failing to act toward the good), but the incontinent man knows he is incontinent. This is why they possess such relationships to repentance. I argue the incontinent man regrets his weakness in not acting as he thinks he should, but the vicious man has no weakness to repent for, therefore its absence is not proof he is ignorant of how he is perceived by a culture. The vicious man...
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...Nicomachean Ethics Book II & X Aristotle In Book II of Nicomachean Ethics Aristotle talks mostly about virtue and being virtuous. He says that virtue is character; it’s what makes us see if we are good or bad. He argues that for you to become good you have to do goodness and act good. If you act good the habit of being good will make your character that of a good person. He uses the example of a builder. A builder becomes a builder by building; a good person becomes good by doing good and making it a habit to do good. In order to be good you have to do good. Aristotle then discusses how one does good. He says that in order for you to do good you must avoid excess and deficiency. Being good is requires balance, a mean. Anything in excess is harmful. This mean is relative. Goodness is not universal and it is relative to each person. We must each find this average of good that applies to your own case. As humans we grow up and naturally we want to avoid displeasure and go after pleasure. Aristotle believes that often this isn’t the right thing; sometimes the good thing is having pain and displeasure if it means doing what is good. We must condition ourselves to choose what is good not what gives us pleasure. He then questions weather it is possible to do good with out trying to be good. Meaning that good happened on accident. Aristotle doesn’t think this is good enough. He says that you have to do the good action and still have to be good when you’re doing it in order for...
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...case is decided in their favor. The child is returned to them, against her will. Do ethics support the law in this case? Discuss. I personally believe that Ethics support the law in this case, although it may not seem this way at all angles I believe that as long as the parents have been rehabilitated from their drug problems it is the right thing to return the child to her rightful parents. The ethics behind this situation seems to be that a child belongs with his or her birth parents. The three primary schools of ethics state different theories towards the situation. The deontological theories are rules-based and focus on duties and rights, the principles we choose to follow in making tough decisions and our most general expectations for human behavior: be fair to everyone involved, respect the basic dignity of human beings, and simply do the right thing in every situation. Working with deontological ethics asks you what principle you will follow in making tough decisions, a decision about valuing the principle even before you meet the decision itself. The consequentialist theories are ends-based and emphasize the good that result from human actions: the pleasure, wealth, or happiness that might come about as a consequence of our individual actions or social policies. Outcome-specific methods of thought often imply ideas like, "The ends justify the means." Working with consequentialist ethics asks of you what outcomes you wish...
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...Give an account of Aristotle’s teaching about Natural law Aristotle was the first practitioner to contribute to the creation of Natural Law as inspired by his mentor Plato he developed the relationship between Natural and conventional justice and outlined the use of Natural inclinations in Natural law. In this essay I will outline Aristotle’s contribution to Natural law. Aristotle’s works, Nicomanchean Ethics and The Politics illustrate the close between legal and political philosophy. In Nicomanchean Ethics, Aristotle argued that law supports a virtuous existence, advances the lives of individuals and promotes the ‘perfect community’. He proposed people should employ practical wisdom or active reason in order to behave in a way that is consistent with a virtuous existence. Aristotle defined justice as ‘a state of mind that encourages men to perform just actions, ‘just’ meaning ‘lawful’, ‘fair’ and ‘virtuous’. In theory, then, there exists a universal standard of natural justice which is unchangeable, but in practice there must always be a mix of natural justice and legal justice in the laws of the city. Therefore while the principles of natural justice don't change, natural justice in action varies because in applying natural justice conventional justice needs to be added. Aristotle divided ‘political’ justice into ‘natural’ and ‘conventional’ justice. According to Aristotle, the content of ‘natural’ justice (or ‘universal’ law) is set by nature, which renders it immutable...
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...Aristotle As an important figure head in the field of philosophy, Aristotle and his numerous influences will be detailed. Identification and evaluation of key concepts and analyses that comprised his theories will be discussed along with identification and description of his contributions to the field of philosophy will also be offered. Lastly, further discussion will focus on how the culture and the time period influenced his ideology. Metaphysics Metaphysics is a branch philosophy concerned with explaining the fundamental nature of being. It is considered to be one of the greatest philosophical works. It kind of piggy backs off of Plato’s theory of forms. Plato believed that the nature of things is eternal and doesn’t change, but we know from just living in this world that things are always changing daily. Aristotle wanted to reconcile these contradictory statements of the views of the world. Aristotle used the influence of both Heraclitus and Parmenides. One believed that things appear to be permanent but they are really gradually changing all the time. Parmenides, argued certain conclusions could be reached by using reason alone and making no use of senses. After studying at the Academy, Aristotle would turn against his teaching and felt that there was a connection between the abstraction of existence and the science of nature. Aristotle described substance as material reality and formal and discusses the connection between actuality and potentiality. According to...
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...I. THE THEORY OF THE IDEAS AND PLATO’S ONTOLOGY I. 1. The ontological dualism The theory of the Ideas is the base of Plato’s philosophy: the Ideas are not only the real objects ontologically speaking, but they are the authentically objects of knowledge epistemologically speaking. From the point of view of ethics and politics, they are the foundation of the right behaviour, and anthropologically speaking they are the base of Plato’s dualism and they even allow him demonstrate the immortality of the soul. Plato defends a clear ontological dualism in which there are two types of realities or worlds: the sensible world and the intelligible world or, as he calls it, the world of the Ideas. The Sensible World is the world of individual realities, and so is multiple and constantly changing, is the world of generation and destruction; is the realm of the sensible, material, temporal and space things. On the contrary, the Intelligible World is the world of the universal, eternal and invisible realities called Ideas (or "Forms"), which are immutable and do not change because they are not material, temporal or space. Ideas can be understood and known; they are the authentic reality. The Ideas or Forms are not just concepts or psychic events of our minds; they do exist as objective and independent beings out of our consciences. They are also the origin of sensible things, but although they are the authentic beings, Plato, unlike Parmenides of Elea, do not completely...
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...My review is going to assume the perspective of Aristotle: Choose one of these thinkers, and based on the assigned readings from his work and your understanding of his view of stories and storytelling, explain what he might think of Boccaccio’s work. The review should contain a very brief summary that identifies and discusses the main idea(s) of both The Decameron and the text by your chosen critic Followed by a critique of The Decameron’s strengths and weaknesses in the voice of your chosen critic. Platos views on storytelling- He opens by characterizing the effect of poetry [and storytelling] as a 'crippling of the mind'. It is a kind of a disease, for which one has to acquire an antidote. The antidote must consist of a knowledge 'of what things really are'. In short, poetry is a sort of mental poison, and is the enemy of truth. This is surely a shocker to the sensibilities of any modern reader and his incredulity is not lessened by the peroration with which, a good many pages later, Plato winds up his argument Plato thought ethics was an exact (theoretical) science; Aristotle thought precision was extremely difficult in a science such as ethics. Please note that "science" is being used in its ancient sense of knowledge in general. Aristotles views on storytelling- Art does not attempt to teach. It merely asserts it is thus or thus that life is perceived to be. That is my bit of reality, says the artist. Take it or leave it – draw any lessons you like from it – that...
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...Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, together with Socrates and Plato, laid much of the groundwork for western philosophy. IN THESE GROUPS * FAMOUS PHILOSOPHERS * FAMOUS PEOPLE WHO MADE DISCOVERIES * FAMOUS GREEKS * FAMOUS PEOPLE WHO DIED IN GREECE Show All Groups 1 of 3 « » QUOTES “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.” —Aristotle Synopsis Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle was born circa 384 B.C. in Stagira, Greece. When he turned 17, he enrolled in Plato’s Academy. In 338, he began tutoring Alexander the Great. In 335, Aristotle founded his own school, the Lyceum, in Athens, where he spent most of the rest of his life studying, teaching and writing. Aristotle died in 322 B.C., after he left Athens and fled to Chalcis. Aristotle - Mini Biography (TV-14; 03:02) Learn more about the life of Greek philosopher Aristotle, whose work profoundly influenced the modern scientific method, in this mini biography. Early Life Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle was born circa 384 B.C. in Stagira, a small town on the northern coast of Greece that was once a seaport. Aristotle’s father, Nicomachus, was court physician to the Macedonian king Amyntas II. Although Nicomachus died when Aristotle was just a young boy, Aristotle remained closely affiliated with and influenced by the Macedonian court for the rest of his life. Little is known about his mother, Phaestis; she is also believed to have died when Aristotle was young. After Aristotle’s father died...
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...Jennifer Canon PHI - 2010-15850 T 7PM Aristotle the Great Philosopher The Greek philosopher Aristotle made significant and lasting contributions to nearly every aspect of human knowledge, from logic to biology to ethics and aesthetics. In Arabic philosophy, he was known simply as “The First Teacher”; in the West, he was “The Philosopher.” Aristotle was born in 384 B.C. northern Greece in a town called Stagria . Both of his parents were members of traditional medical families, and his father, Nicomachus, served as court physician to King Amyntus III of Macedonia. Some believe it to be his father's influence that gave Aristotle his interest in anatomy and the structure of living things in general. At age 17 he went to Athens to enroll in Plato's Academy. He spent the next 20 years first as a student and then as a teacher at the school. When he left the school he emerged as a great teacher and had many opinions about his teacher Plato. For the next five years, Aristotle went to the coast of Asia Minor as a guest of former students at Assos and Lesbos. It was here that he began his research into marine biology and married his wife Pythias, with whom he had his only daughter, also named Pythias. In 342 Aristotle was summoned to Macedonia by King Philip II to tutor his son, the future Alexander the Great. Although speculation concerning Aristotle's influence upon the developing Alexander has proven irresistible to historians, in fact little concrete is known about...
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...INTRODUCTION TO PHILOSOPHY GREEK PHILOSOPHERS SOCRATES Socrates, perhaps the most famous of all philosophers, lived his entire life in Athens. Unlike Thales and other early thinkers, Socrates was more concerned with the health of the soul, than the nature of reality. Socrates spent his days in the streets of Athens, questioning people about their values. He termed himself a "gadfly" (horsefly) who ceasely irritated his fellow citizens into investigating their beliefs. Making many powerful enemies in the course of his life, Socrates was sentenced to death by the Athenian Assembly in 399 BC. One of Socrates' wonders is that he invented rigorous, ethical investigation. His conversations with his fellow Athenians, as recorded by Plato, are the first records we have of an individual, by his own careful reasoning, trying to discover the guiding principles of moral choices. METAPHYSICS Because Socrates always claimed that his only wisdom was that he knew nothing, it is difficult to determine his metaphysics, his view of reality. However, in some accounts of his conversations, like Plato’s EUTHYPHRO, we may catch glimpse of his beliefs. Socrates seemed to hold that individual entities, like holy actions, have universal characteristics, like Holiness, which can be discovered by the mind after careful investigation. This may mean that he anticipate Plato’s metaphysics that thee is higher, eternal world of truths (like Holiness) which exists independently of this world. EPISTEMOLOGY ...
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...Aristotle (Ancient Greek: Ἀριστοτέλης, Aristotélēs) (384 BC – 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. His writings cover many subjects, including physics, metaphysics, poetry, theater, music, logic, rhetoric, linguistics, politics, government, ethics, biology, and zoology. Together with Plato and Socrates (Plato's teacher), Aristotle is one of the most important founding figures in Western philosophy. Aristotle's writings were the first to create a comprehensive system of Western philosophy, encompassing morality, aesthetics, logic, science, politics, and metaphysics. Aristotle's views on the physical sciences profoundly shaped medieval scholarship, and their influence extended well into the Renaissance, although they were ultimately replaced by Newtonian physics. In the zoological sciences, some of his observations were confirmed to be accurate only in the 19th century. His works contain the earliest known formal study of logic, which was incorporated in the late 19th century into modern formal logic. In metaphysics, Aristotelianism had a profound influence on philosophical and theological thinking in the Islamic and Jewish traditions in the Middle Ages, and it continues to influence Christian theology, especially the scholastic tradition of the Catholic Church. Aristotle was well known among medieval Muslim intellectuals and revered as المعلم الأول - "The First Teacher". His ethics, though always influential, gained...
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...Spencer Eckert Ethics November 13, 2009 Aristotle “All human actions have one or more of these seven causes: chance, nature, compulsion, habit, reason, passion, and desire.” (Aristotle), this quote has great meaning to me because this is the true reasoning behind human actions. This quote helps show that Aristotle was one of the most important founding figures in Western philosophy. It was Aristotle who was the first to create a comprehensive system of Western philosophy and in this philosophy he encompassed morality and aesthetics, logic and science, politics and metaphysics. Aristotle accomplished much throughout his life Aristotle was born 384 BC in Stagira in northern Greece, about 34 miles east of modern-day Thessaloniki. Aristotle father, Nicomachus and he was a court physician to the king of Macedon. Aristotle was trained and educated as a aristocracy. When Aristotle was at the young age of 18, he traveled to Athens to study under his future teacher, Plato at Plato’s academy. There is much information about Aristotle while he was working with Plato even though Aristotle stayed and studied with Plato for a full 20 years. But shortly after Plato’s death Aristotle left Athens to conduct philosophical and biological research with Xenocrates and to court of his friend Mermias of Atarneus. While in Asia, Aristotle traveled with Theophrastus to the island of Lesbos, where together they researched the botany and zoology of the island. Soon after their exhibition...
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...Aristotle (b. 384 - d. 322 BC), was a Greek philosopher, logician, and scientist. Along with his teacher Plato, Aristotle is generally regarded as one of the most influential ancient thinkers in a number of philosophical fields, including political theory. Aristotle’s’ writing reflects his time, background and beliefs. Aristotle was born at Stagira, in Macedonia. His father, Nichomacus, was the personal physician to the King of Macedonia, Amyntas. At the age of seventeen, Aristotle left for Athens to study at Plato’s Academy. He studied at the Academy for about twenty years, up until Plato’s death. Plato’s death sent Aristotle to a city in Asia Minor, called Assos, where his friend, Hermias was ruler. It was in Assos where Aristotle met, Pythias, who is described as either a niece or daughter of Hermias, who Aristotle married after the murder of Hermias, by the Persians. Aristotle then went to Pella, the capitol of Macedonia, where he became the tutor for the king’s son, Alexander, who later became Alexander the Great. When Alexander became King, Aristotle went to Athens where he began to lecture at the Lyceum. He lectured while walking about in one of its covered walkways, earning him the nickname Peripatetic”, which means walking about. Aristotle lectured and directed the Lyceum for twelve years, producing during this time the lecture notes which now form his works. Only a small amount of Aristotle’s works have survived. The writings...
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...Aristotle was an ancient Greek philosopher and scientist that helped form the scientific knowledge and theories we have today. Being the “first real kind of scientist” Aristotle had a huge impact on the science world. Without the studies of Aristotle, many of the scientist in the time after him would not have been able to form the theories and beliefs they developed by looking at the work done by Aristotle. As one will see, Aristotle spent most of his life studying, teaching and writing; making him one of the most famous scientist that lived. Aristotle was born in 384 B.C. in northern Greece in a place named Stagira. Both of Aristotle’s parents were born into medical families. It is commonly thought that Aristotle was raised by close family members, considering both of his birth parents died while he was a young child. For the short time that Aristotle had to live with his birth parents, his father taught him about medicine. He attended Plato’s Academy, at age seventeen, located in Athens. He stayed at Plato’s academy for twenty years as both a student then later a teacher. During his time here, he met Pythias, his...
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...Introduction Aristotle (384-322 B.C.) entered Plato’s academy at the age of seventeen and spent twenty years with Plato. During his stay with Plato, he expressed his brilliance such that Plato considered him as the brilliant mind of the academy. Given this relationship, Plato influenced Aristotle in one way or the other such that some people even considered Aristotle a successor of Plato when Plato died. However, this never distracted Aristotle from taking a different path in his career. In fact, Aristotle contrasted with Plato in many areas. He also criticized him because he argued in different manner (Newport, 1998). On the other hand, Aristotle had various components in his system. This paper evaluates the key components of Aristotle’s system and the various contrasts of his philosophical works in relation to that of Plato. The paper starts by evaluating the key components of Aristotle’s system before it evaluates the contrasts between their worldviews. Key components The first key component of Aristotle’s system is metaphysics. This component explains Aristotle’s philosophical views and the history of philosophy. Based on this component, Aristotle showed the relationship between the form and nature of history. He also became the first person who identified the technological language because of this component (Masih, 1999). With the help of this component, Aristotle also established both practical and theoretical reasoning. The second component of the Aristotle’s system...
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