Aristotle Being Virtuous Analysis

Aristotle was an ancient philosopher who had a very careful and well thought out definition of virtue. He believed that virtue is both intellectual and moral. On the intellectual aspect, he believed that virtue takes time and experience. However, on the moral aspect, he believed that virtue came from making it a habit (Nicomachean Ethics p. 71). For example, “men become builders by building houses” (p. 73). The question that arises from this definition is how does one act virtuously? To become virtuous, one must act in the mean between two extremes, the excess and the deficiency. However, “moral qualities are so constituted as to be destroyed by excess and by deficiency” (p. 77). Courage is the mean between cowardice and rashness. If one was …show more content…
In this case, one of the questions may be, what exactly are the actions one must take in order to become virtuous? Aristotle does not state which actions an individual must take, it’s almost like a hole in the argument. All Aristotle says is that we must act moderately in ways most like the mean, but how do we distinguish where the mean is? It all depends on the individual. We are all different so what is virtuous to one may not be as virtuous to another. This can be very confusing. Also, considering Aristotle was in a completely different time with different values than the society we reside in today does, there was agreement to what actions individual were not supposed to take. Today, society is increasingly open to other aspects so the line of right and wrong is not black and white. Should we all just be impulsive like we really want with no regard to what is right and wrong instead of attempting to act virtuously? When we are impulsive, we get what we desire and we are happy. If we are all happy and gain what we want out of the life we are currently living, why is that bad for society? Being impulsive brings an individual happiness. For example, there is a really expensive makeup palette that just hit the shelves. A woman really wants this palette and she has just enough money to purchase it. Instead of saving the money, she acts upon her impulses and indulges herself and buys the palette. After she purchases it, she feels good about herself because she feels that the makeup will make her more beautiful, resulting in her happiness. It is also a chain reaction. The company that produces the palette gains profit and now the business is pleased. The joyfulness of the society as whole would benefit every individual within. As for the continuously moving line of right and wrong, there is the concept of gay marriage. For years, it has been widely regarded as wrong, but now, society is more open to it. The individuals in