There are two main types of virtues: The Virtues of Characters and the Virtues of Thought. These virtues are about our …show more content…
These refer to emotions and actions, relationships with other people, and the goods that occupy our lives. The mean refers to the middle position of two excesses, it is the moderation in things and is always referred to in terms of an emotional response or a type of action, also what we do with these. Virtue is the mean between two vices (the middle position which is just right), the disposition that we develop within ourselves, our character.
A person is good when they have certain virtues are character traits. What makes a person good? They are good when they have certain virtues: honesty, generosity, bravery, courage, etc… Aristotle believed that there are cases where a person knows what the right thing to do is. Not necessarily that they will always do it.
The mean is not the same for everyone, there is no mean for every act. Virtue can be defined as the “fulfillment of humanity’s distinctive function and as the mean between extremes. Each virtue is a product of the rational control of the passions.” The mean could be considered as being the right amount. (the righteous thing).
Reason or desire determine personal rationality. We may see the problem yet habits are hard to break, and these can become so strong that they becomes excuses for why you would want to do something. Virtue is something important and Vice is something bad, something to be …show more content…
There is a distinction between acting in an appropriate way as opposed to mastering knowledge. A good citizen would know what the right thing to do is, and how to do it. Again, not only knowing how to identify it, but also knowing how to go about doing the right thing. The ultimate goal is happiness and the role of the state is to provide the proper channel to be able to achieve this.
Man is by nature a social animal. The state is a natural entity. It is not created, it is simply a natural thing. It is the organization between groups. Now, being a good citizen is not just having a right, being a good citizen is one who participates, who is actively involved. Aristotle recognized they were different kinds of states. He held that the basic qualification was a person’s ability to take their share in ruling and being ruled. A citizen has the right and obligation to participate in the administration of justice.
In order to be a good citizen, one must be able to recognize vices and focus on the mean. On the virtues that guide proper system of state. They must be adept to determining the right thing to do and come up with the right way to do it. A bad citizen is guided by personal interests, and though may be able to identify what the greater good is, might choose to let themselves be guided by vices or other interest that would not necessarily benefit the