Eudemudian Ethics
This is the preface or introductory text spanning all columns.
2 - 1 All goods are either external or within the spirit; the latter are preferable. Wisdom, Goodness, and Pleasure are in the spirit and are considered an End. The spirit's contents are states, faculties, activities, and processes. Goodness is the best disposition or state of things used or worked. This is evident from induction. The spirit, having its work, assumes that a better state yields better work. The work of each thing is its End. Therefore, the work is a greater good than the state or disposition.
2 - 2 Positing that each thing's work is its End, and the better the state, the better the work, the work of each thing is its greatest good. Thus, the work is more valuable than the state. The term 'work' has two meanings: the product of a process (e.g., a house from architecture) and the process itself (e.g., seeing from sight). For things whose work is their use, the act of using is more valuable than possessing the state. Goodness's work is causing life, making happiness the activity of a good spirit.
2 - 3 Living well and being happy are equated with doing well; active life involves employing things. Happiness is not a one-day affair or for a child. Praise is given to goodness for its deeds. Happiness isn't praised because it is the reason other things are praised. The virtuous are as good awake as asleep. Sleep is inaction of the spirit. Thus, goodness is not found in the nutritive part of the spirit. The spirit has parts that partake in reason. Goodness relates to reason, controlling appetite and passions.
2 - 4 The reasoning faculty controls appetite and passions, and moral virtue involves right principle. Intellectual excellence involves reason, controlling the spirit. Moral virtues concern the part capable of following reason. Moral Goodness relates to pleasures and pains, as these impact spirit. A good disposition arises from the best actions. Goodness results from the spirit's best movements, directed towards the best state, balancing pleasure and pain. Moral character develops from habit, involving governing reason, affecting emotions and states of character.
2 - 5 Moral character, developed through habit, follows reason. Emotions, faculties, and states of character relate to pleasure and pain. These influence moral character. Goodness concerns mean states between extremes. Different pursuits (e.g., gymnastics, medicine) have means, the best states. Moral goodness involves mean points in pleasure and pain. Emotions include anger, fear, and desire, each with excessive or deficient states. The spirit experiences these emotions, leading to different moral characters. Balance in emotions and states leads to moral goodness, with virtues representing middle states.
2 - 6 Emotions and states are excessive or deficient. Balance is necessary. Goodness lies in the middle state. Emotional balance affects moral character. Virtues, like courage and temperance, are middle states between extremes. Excess and deficiency define vices. Goodness involves balancing emotions, resulting in virtues. Anger, fear, desire, and other emotions must be moderated. The mean state is the best. Moral goodness requires controlling emotions, achieving balance. Each emotion has a middle state, representing virtue. Balance in pleasures and pains leads to moral goodness.
2 - 7 Each virtue lies between two vices. Emotional balance is crucial. Goodness involves mean states. Excessive or deficient emotions lead to vices. Balance is necessary for moral goodness. Emotions, like anger and fear, must be moderated. Virtues, like courage and temperance, represent balanced states. Moral goodness arises from balanced emotions. Virtues lie in the middle state. Each emotion has a mean, representing virtue. Balance leads to moral goodness. Emotional moderation is key. Excess and deficiency define vices. Moral character requires balanced emotions.
2 - 8 Emotions must be balanced for moral goodness. Excessive or deficient emotions lead to vices. Virtues lie in the middle state. Goodness involves balanced emotions. Each emotion, like anger or fear, has a mean state. Balanced emotions result in virtues. Moral goodness arises from emotional balance. Excess and deficiency lead to vices. Virtues represent the mean state. Balance in pleasures and pains is essential. Moral character requires emotional moderation. Goodness lies in the middle state. Emotional balance leads to virtues. Each virtue is a mean between extremes.
2 - 9 Balanced emotions lead to moral goodness. Virtues lie in the middle state. Emotional moderation is crucial. Excess and deficiency define vices. Each emotion has a mean state. Moral goodness arises from balanced emotions. Goodness involves mean states in pleasure and pain. Emotions like anger and fear must be moderated. Virtues represent balanced states. Moral character requires emotional balance. Balance leads to virtues. Excessive or deficient emotions lead to vices. Each virtue is a middle state. Goodness lies in emotional moderation. Moral goodness requires balanced emotions.
2 - 10 Moral goodness involves balanced emotions. Virtues lie between vices. Each emotion has a mean state. Goodness arises from emotional balance. Moral character requires moderation in pleasure and pain. Virtues represent balanced states. Excess and deficiency lead to vices. Emotional balance is key to goodness. Each virtue lies in the middle state. Balance in emotions leads to moral goodness. Goodness involves mean states. Emotions must be moderated. Excessive or deficient emotions define vices. Moral character requires balanced emotions. Goodness lies in the middle state.
2 - 11 Uncontrolled man acts voluntarily, driven by desire against rational thought. However, voluntary action doesn’t mean acting in accordance with desire or passion. If an uncontrolled man acts unjustly by following desire, it suggests voluntary action. Yet, acting against one's best judgement due to desire is a paradox. The self-controlled man acts in accordance with rational calculation, while the uncontrolled acts on desire. Both actions appear voluntary but involve internal conflict. Thus, voluntary actions are not solely guided by desire or passion, but involve rational choice.
2 - 12 Voluntary actions are done with thought, not just desire or purposive choice. Acting under compulsion is involuntary, whereas acting with knowledge is voluntary. Force and necessity, often considered opposites of voluntary action, apply differently to inanimate and animate beings. Rational and appetitive parts in humans create complex motivations. Self-controlled and uncontrolled actions involve internal conflicts but remain voluntary. True voluntary action involves knowledge and rational choice, distinct from compelled actions. Hence, acting voluntarily is defined by thoughtful decision-making rather than mere desire or compulsion.
2 - 13 Forced actions occur under external pressure, differing from voluntary actions. Self-controlled and uncontrolled actions involve internal conflict but are still voluntary. Rational principle and appetition within a person drive actions. True forced actions involve external compulsion against internal impulses. Pleasure and pain coexist in both self-controlled and uncontrolled actions. Internal impulses cause actions in humans, making them voluntary. The nature of desire and rational principle complicates voluntary actions. Ultimately, voluntary actions arise from internal impulses and rational decision-making, not external compulsion.
2 - 14 Actions done under duress are technically voluntary but pressured. Compulsion occurs when external threats force undesirable actions. Actions for avoiding severe penalties may seem involuntary but are voluntary because of choice. The distinction lies in the agent's control over circumstances. Unnatural actions driven by severe threats appear involuntary. Love, anger, and natural impulses often overpower rational control. Forced actions depend on the agent's capacity to endure pain or seek pleasure. Thus, some actions appear forced due to external pressures, but true voluntary action involves internal decision-making and control over choices.
2 - 15 Voluntary actions involve knowledge and choice, unlike involuntary actions. Knowledge of the person, instrument, and result defines voluntary action. Ignorance of these aspects makes actions involuntary. Voluntary actions occur when one knows and can choose otherwise. Actions done knowingly, even if carelessly, are voluntary. Involuntary actions arise from ignorance or external compulsion. Knowledge and thought are crucial for voluntary actions. Purposive choice, involving deliberation and decision, defines true voluntary actions. Thus, voluntary actions stem from informed decisions, not mere desire or ignorance.
2 - 16 Purposive choice involves deliberation about means, not ends. Wish and opinion influence choice, but they differ from purposive choice. Animals and children lack purposive choice, which involves rational deliberation. Choice is about practicable actions within one's power, unlike mere wish or opinion. Ends are assumed, but means to achieve them require deliberation. Deliberative opinion leads to purposive choice. Thus, purposive choice is a rational, deliberate decision-making process about actions leading to desired ends, distinct from mere wishes or opinions.
2 - 17 Deliberation focuses on means to achieve desired ends. Ends are fixed, but means require careful consideration. Rational calculation determines the best means. Deliberation involves evaluating alternatives to achieve the End. It starts with the End and works backward to actions within one's power. Deliberative appetition leads to purposive choice. This process is unique to rational beings, distinguishing them from animals. Therefore, purposive choice arises from deliberation about practicable means, ensuring rational and thoughtful decision-making toward achieving desired goals.
2 - 18 Purposive choice results from deliberative opinion and desire. It involves rational calculation and decision-making about practicable means to achieve ends. Deliberation focuses on actions within one's power. The process starts with the End, considering the best means to achieve it. Rational beings deliberate about means, not ends. Purposive choice is voluntary but distinct from mere wishes or opinions. It involves thoughtful decision-making and evaluating alternatives. Thus, purposive choice is a deliberate, rational process, ensuring actions align with desired ends through careful consideration of means.
2 - 19 Goodness is a balanced state, involving correct purposive choice. Badness results from excess or deficiency. Moral goodness involves choosing the mean in pleasant and painful situations. Goodness and badness relate to pleasures and pains. Purposive choice aligns with goodness when aimed at the right End. Deliberation about means ensures rational decisions. Virtue involves choosing the appropriate mean, avoiding extremes. Thus, moral goodness results from purposive choice, ensuring balanced, rational decisions in pursuit of the right End, aligned with the mean between excess and deficiency.
2 - 20 Goodness determines right ends; badness, wrong ends. Both are voluntary. Goodness leads to correct purposive choices aimed at the right ends. Badness causes wrong choices. Voluntary actions involve rational decision-making. Purpose determines character. Actions judged by purpose reveal virtue or vice. Goodness and badness are voluntary, based on purposive choices. Praise and blame arise from voluntary actions. Goodness aligns with right ends through rational choices. Thus, voluntary actions, driven by purposive choice, reflect character. Goodness leads to right ends, while badness results in wrong ends.
This is the preface or introductory text spanning all columns.
2 - 1 All goods are external or within the spirit; spirit preferable.
2 - 2 Work of each thing is its End, greater than state.
2 - 3 Living well equals happiness; active life involves employing things.
2 - 4 Moral virtue involves right principle, balancing pleasure and pain.
2 - 5 Moral character, developed through habit, follows reason and balance.
2 - 6 Balance in emotions affects moral character, leading to virtues.
2 - 7 Each virtue lies between vices, requiring emotional moderation.
2 - 8 Balanced emotions lead to virtues, essential for moral goodness.
2 - 9 Virtues lie in balanced emotional states; excess defines vices.
2 - 10 Goodness involves balanced emotions; virtues represent mean states.
2 - 11 Uncontrolled man acts voluntarily, driven by desire against rational thought.
2 - 12 Voluntary actions are done with thought, not just desire.
2 - 13 Forced actions occur under external pressure, differing from voluntary actions.
2 - 14 Actions done under duress are technically voluntary but pressured.
2 - 15 Voluntary actions involve knowledge and choice, unlike involuntary actions.
2 - 16 Purposive choice involves deliberation about means, not ends.
2 - 17 Deliberation focuses on means to achieve desired ends.
2 - 18 Purposive choice results from deliberative opinion and desire.
2 - 19 Goodness is a balanced state, involving correct purposive choice.
2 - 20 Goodness determines right ends; badness, wrong ends. Both are voluntary.
This is the preface or introductory text spanning all columns.
3 - 1 Courage is the virtue between cowardice and rashness, balancing fear and daring. The brave man is concerned with fears and endures formidable things rationally, not through ignorance or passion. True courage is displayed in facing significant, potentially destructive dangers, particularly those involving life and death. The brave man neither fears excessively nor is overly daring but maintains a balanced, rational approach to fear and danger.
3 - 2 Bravery involves enduring formidable things as reason dictates, fearlessly facing what is rational to endure. It is not driven by ignorance, passion, or recklessness but by a rational understanding of what is truly dangerous and what is not. The brave man faces fears appropriately, enduring significant dangers when reason and honor dictate, rather than for pleasure or other irrational motives.
3 - 3 Courage requires facing fear rationally, not driven by madness or passion. It involves a balanced, rational response to fear and danger, enduring formidable threats for the sake of what is fine and honorable. The brave man endures dangers neither excessively nor insufficiently but as reason and virtue dictate, maintaining a rational and measured approach to fear.
3 - 4 True courage involves rational endurance of death and significant dangers. It is displayed in the face of life-threatening risks, where the brave man maintains a rational and balanced approach to fear. Courage is not about being fearless but about enduring what is formidable with reason and honor, especially when facing potentially destructive threats.
3 - 5 Profligacy means unchastened indulgence, while temperance balances necessary pleasures. The profligate person is excessively indulgent in pleasures of touch and taste, while the temperate person maintains a balanced approach, avoiding both excess and insensitivity. Temperance involves a rational and measured enjoyment of necessary pleasures, steering clear of the extremes of profligacy and insensitiveness.
3 - 6 Temperance concerns touch and taste pleasures, avoiding excess and insensitiveness. It is the middle state between profligacy, which involves excessive indulgence, and insensitiveness, which involves a lack of necessary enjoyment. The temperate person enjoys necessary pleasures rationally, maintaining a balanced approach that avoids both extremes.
3 - 7 Profligacy relates to excess in touch pleasures; insensitivity avoids them. The profligate person indulges excessively in pleasures of touch and taste, while the insensitive person fails to enjoy these necessary pleasures. Temperance, as the middle state, involves a balanced and rational approach to these pleasures, avoiding both the excesses of profligacy and the deficiencies of insensitivity.
3 - 8 Temperance balances pleasures of touch and taste, avoiding extremes. It is the middle state between profligacy, characterized by excessive indulgence, and insensitiveness, characterized by a lack of necessary enjoyment. The temperate person enjoys necessary pleasures in a rational and measured way, maintaining a balanced approach that avoids both extremes.
3 - 9 Liberality means balanced wealth handling; avoiding prodigality and stinginess. The liberal person manages wealth rationally, avoiding excessive spending (prodigality) and excessive saving (stinginess). Liberality is the middle state concerning the acquisition and expenditure of wealth, ensuring a balanced approach that avoids the extremes of prodigality and meanness.
3 - 10 Great-spirited individuals disdain trivial honors, seeking worthy, significant recognition. They are characterized by a balanced and rational approach to honor, valuing significant and honorable recognition while disregarding trivial or unworthy honors. Greatness of spirit involves a focus on truly great goods, maintaining a dignified and rational pursuit of honor.
3 - 11 Greatness of spirit is the virtue between vanity and smallness of spirit. The man worthy of great things, who claims them appropriately, is praiseworthy. Greatness of spirit involves the right disposition towards honor and esteemed goods, not just useful things. Vanity is claiming great things undeservedly, while smallness of spirit is not claiming great things despite deserving them. The great-spirited man balances these extremes. A small-spirited man, even if deserving of great goods, does not claim them. The opposite character, thinking oneself worthy of small things, may align more closely with rational modesty.
3 - 12 The magnificent man demonstrates his virtue through appropriate expenditure, aiming for what is fitting in ornamentation and beyond mere necessity. Magnificence involves choosing suitable greatness in significant expenditures, unlike tasteless or excessive spending. Examples include spending appropriately on a favorite's wedding versus entertaining guests extravagantly. True magnificence balances suitability to the agent, recipient, and occasion. Similarly, liberality involves balanced wealth handling. Other virtues like envy, modesty, and friendliness balance emotions and actions, avoiding extremes. Each virtue, related to praiseworthy middle states, contributes to natural virtues when aligned with rational principles.
3 - 13 The truthful man, called "downright," is a middle state between dissembling and charlatanism. A dissembler makes false, depreciatory statements against himself, while a charlatan exaggerates his merits. The truthful man speaks of himself accurately, showing sagacity. Wittiness is another middle state, between boorishness and buffoonery. The witty man appreciates appropriate jokes, avoiding extremes. These praiseworthy middle states do not involve purposive choice but contribute to natural virtues. Envy, righteous indignation, modesty, and sincerity align with justice, temperance, and wisdom. The mean opposes the extremes more strongly, avoiding combinations of extreme behaviors.
3 - 14 The mean is more opposed to extremes than the extremes to each other. This opposition varies: sometimes more by excess, other times by deficiency. Causes include rarity (like insensitivity to pleasure) and proneness to specific errors. For example, daring relates more closely to boldness than cowardice. Understanding these nuances is key to recognizing virtues. The mean avoids extreme combinations, providing a balanced approach to life. This discussion of praiseworthy virtues, like greatness of spirit, magnificence, truthfulness, and wittiness, leads to a deeper exploration of justice, the next virtue to consider.
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This is the preface or introductory text spanning all columns.
3 - 1 Courage balances fear and rashness, enduring formidable things rationally.
3 - 2 Bravery involves enduring formidable things rationally, not fearlessly.
3 - 3 Courage requires facing fear rationally, not driven by madness.
3 - 4 True courage endures significant dangers rationally, especially death.
3 - 5 Profligacy is unchastened indulgence; temperance balances necessary pleasures.
3 - 6 Temperance balances touch and taste pleasures, avoiding excess.
3 - 7 Profligacy is excessive touch pleasures; insensitivity avoids them.
3 - 8 Temperance balances touch and taste pleasures, avoiding extremes.
3 - 9 Liberality balances wealth handling; avoids prodigality and stinginess.
3 - 10 Great-spirited individuals disdain trivial honors, seek significant recognition.
3 - 11 Greatness of spirit is the middle state between vanity and smallness.
3 - 12 The magnificent man balances great expenditures with appropriate moderation.
3 - 13 Truthfulness is a middle state between dissembling and charlatanism.
3 - 14 The mean opposes the extremes more than the extremes themselves.
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