Virtue Ethics is a tradition, which goes back to Plato and Aristotle in fourth century BCE. Virtue Ethics is also known as arêtaic ethics, which comes from the Greek word arête, which means excellence or virtue. Virtue Ethics is a very ancient way of looking at morality and has only become popular again fairly recently. According to virtue ethics, the heart of morality is not found in actions nor in duties, but in the person performing the actions, the agent. This means that virtue ethics is not deontological nor is it teleological.
The virtues, argues Aristotle, are the admirable traits that lie between the more extreme character traits- the aim of life should be to pursue a middle way or mean between the extremes. Any extreme character trait can be a vice and virtue lies in avoiding these extremes in favour of a middle way, Aristotle illustrates this with the virtues of temperance, liberality, magnificence, high-mindedness, controlled anger, friendliness, modesty, and righteous indignation. Aristotle did not think that it was at all easy to live the virtuous life as keeping to the middle way and avoiding extremes was difficult and reason was central in attempting to do this.
Virtue theory is not so much interested in the question 'What should I do?' but rather in the question 'What sort of person should I become?' This has more to do with character and the nature of what it is to be human, than with the rights and wrongs of specific actions. The saints or hero's that stand out as examples of exemplary behaviour are rarely if ever motivated by one or other ethical theories- instead their behaviour stems from the consistency of the sort of person they are. Virtue Theory needs to seek to determine whether there are any key virtues that underpin the life of an admirable human being. There are many different virtues and they may all be good- moral choices may depend on how one ranks different virtues and which one outweighs the others.
Virtue Ethics rests on developing a consistency of behaviour in accordance with certain general ethical principles. St Thomas Aquinas says that we should examine all our actions, even those that are insignificant, and ask ourselves 'Are these ways of acting making us more just, prudent, temperate and brave?' Whilst normal discussion of ethics concentrates on the 'exciting issues' such as euthanasia, just war or abortion, virtue ethics concentrates more on the day to day activities of life and the sort of characters which human beings develop. A contrast can be drawn between: 1- The Ethics of Dilemmas-, which ...
This is a preview of the whole essay
Virtue Ethics rests on developing a consistency of behaviour in accordance with certain general ethical principles. St Thomas Aquinas says that we should examine all our actions, even those that are insignificant, and ask ourselves 'Are these ways of acting making us more just, prudent, temperate and brave?' Whilst normal discussion of ethics concentrates on the 'exciting issues' such as euthanasia, just war or abortion, virtue ethics concentrates more on the day to day activities of life and the sort of characters which human beings develop. A contrast can be drawn between: 1- The Ethics of Dilemmas-, which uses ethical discussion to decide on how moral problems are to be resolved, and 2- Virtue Ethics- which seeks to determine the sort of person a person should become.
Aristotle, who lived in the fourth century BCE, is one of the most influential of all philosophers, and his thinking is the main source of inspiration for modern followers of virtue ethics. Aristotle was a pupil of Plato and later went on to become a teacher of Alexander the Great; the amount he achieved in all kinds of areas of knowledge has probably never been surpassed. Aristotle's main work about morality is called Nicomachean Ethics. In this book, he started out from the assumption that what everyone wants most is a full and happy life: this all-round well-being is known as eudiamonia. Some people have translated eudiamonia as 'happiness', but it has a wider meaning than this: it involves both being happy and also living well, not only achieving happiness but also deserving it. It is a word, which does not have a really adequate English counterpart. Perhaps the phrase 'good living' or 'a good life' might serve as a translation.
Aristotle argues that eudiamonia is the highest good because we desire it for its own sake and not as a means to anything else at all. Other good things, such as justice, are desired because they lead to a good life, whereas good living itself is not wanted for anything, which it might lead to; it is inherently worth having. He believed that there were three main forms of happiness: happiness as a life of enjoyment of pleasure, happiness as a free member of society, and happiness as a philosopher. Eudiamonia involves the combination of all three, rather than concentrating on just the first.
The best and happiest life for people, according to Aristotle, involves living well in a community or society, being able to exist alongside other people with due regard for their interests as well as one's own, and with the appropriate concern for the development of the society and the education of future generations. For Aristotle, then, ethics was very closely linked with politics. Aristotle believed that the best way for people to achieve eudiamonia was for them to develop and exercise those qualities that are most productive for living in a society.
Extremes of behaviour and of character are unhelpful in a society; for example, very timid people at the other, can both cause problems. For Aristotle, then, virtue could be found in what he called the 'Golden Mean': striking the right balance between extremes. Each of the extremes he called a 'vice', and the midway point where the right balance is struck he called a 'virtue'. Aristotle used the example of courage, as a virtue, lying in between foolhardiness and cowardice; both of which are vices. What is morally right, for Aristotle, is to develop in oneself the virtues that will result in living in moderation, according to the golden mean.
In the same way, an athlete would adopt a fitness routine in order to develop his or her own character, trying to make a habit out of the virtues so that they become less of an effort and more a part of the personality. Right actions will automatically follow, once the agent acquires the virtues: an excellent person will automatically behave in the right way. Future generations can be taught goodness from the example of those who have gone before them. Good actions will automatically follow if a person has seen real life examples of what is right. Aristotle said that it can be argued that we learn more about morality from the living examples of virtuous people, than we do from learning a set of rules or principles.
Aristotle was careful to point out that there are differences between a moral virtue and an intellectual virtue. Intellectual virtues, such as a proficiency in foreign languages, are partly the result of the talents with which a person is born, and owe a great deal to teaching, whereas the moral virtues are learnt by living them. By making an effort to live a virtuous life, people develop the habits of virtue, and virtue then becomes part of the character rather than an effort. Aristotle was convinced that virtue is something, which we acquire, and not something, which we have when we are born; different people are not inherently good or bad, but become good or bad according to the habits they develop in themselves. Virtue can only be acquired by doing it; Aristotle made the comparison with a craftsman, who learns his craft by constant practice and observation of others who have this skill.
Aristotle also pointed out that it is not enough to have the know-how or even the habit of behaving as the virtuous person does; the actions are not as important as the character, and therefore the virtuous behaviour must be done with the right motivation, as the virtuous person would do them. Aristotle said that the best way of learning about the virtues was to follow the example of the virtuous man. This could be an 'ideal type', following the example of how we imagine a virtuous person would behave; or it could be following a real example of an actual saint or hero, such as Socrates, Jesus, Gandhi, Mother Teresa or Nelson Mandela.
Philippa Foot, in her book 'Virtues and Vices', set out the reasons for her support of virtue ethics, arguing in particular that although virtue can not guarantee happiness, it can often be an important part of achieving it. She also discusses some of the questions raised by virtue ethics, such as whether the person who is by nature virtuous is to be admired more, or less, than the person who has to struggle hard to be good and yet succeeds.
Alisdair Macintyre and Richard Taylor are two modern philosophers who have continued promoting virtue as a new direction in ethics, and who seek to combine the thinking of Aristotle with other ideas in an attempt to form a coherent system, which can meet the objections of its critics.
It is said that the publication of Elizabeth Anscombe's article, 'modern moral philosophy' in 1958 brought virtue ethics back into popularity. In 1978 Phillippa Foot's 'Virtues and Vices' had a profound influence on the renewal of interest in virtue ethics.
What is Virtue Ethics? Richard Hall
What is Virtue Ethics? 1 30/01/04
