PP110 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Phronesis, Episteme, Eudaimonia
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Not what should i do? (becoming a good person) Aristotle ~the genus of moral virtue: it is a state of character, not a passion or a faculty (p. 41) *a disposition is a tendency to act in a certain way rather than having to do so. I (cid:272)hoose to s(cid:373)oke, i do(cid:374)"t ha(cid:448)e to. For aristotle virtue, the state of being good for something (fulfilling a function well) For x to be virtuous is for x to have the capacity to fulfil its purpose (cid:894)the a(cid:272)or(cid:374)"s purpose is to (cid:271)e(cid:272)o(cid:373)e a tree. If it fulfils this, it"s a good a(cid:272)or(cid:374)(cid:895) Consequently, everything, quite generally, happens in agreement with some end. *everything in nature, left to its own devices, will develop or change according to its nature, according to its ends (telos) inherent in it. *everything has four causes (reasons for being: formal, material, efficient, final. Example: the final cause of a statue is its purpose of being beautiful.
