In After Virtue, author Alasdair MacIntyre critiques the state of modern morality and proposes an argument in favor of Aristotelian virtue ethics. For MacIntyre, he believes that a lack of community driven morality is the cause of moral decline in society, and that this decline began during the age of Enlightenment. He explains that the Enlightenment brought society into a state of disruption because the intense focus on individualism drove people to philosophical emotivism. Emotivism is defined by MacIntyre as being “the doctrine that all evaluative judgements and more specifically all moral judgements are nothing but expressions of preference, expressions of attitude or feeling, insofar as they are moral or evaluative in character” (11). Emotivism (like relativism) leads to a subjective form or morality, which MacIntyre’s thesis explains to be deeply flawed. MacIntyre favors virtue ethics because he believes it to bring about a more objective moral value system. …show more content…
MacIntyre yearns for the days of the Greek polis where one’s moral duty was to ensure that the state and society as a whole benefited from decisions and moral actions. He explains that the polis and the associated conception of a medieval kingdom “are conceived as communities in which men in company pursue the human good and not merely as - what the modern liberal state takes itself to be - providing the arena in which each individual seeks his or her own private good” (MacIntyre 172). MacIntyre is correct in saying that many of society 's moral failings are based in a sense of selfishness that permeates those in leadership roles; however, his proposed “solution” of a return to Aristotelian virtue ethics is not truly
Virtue ethics is an approach that “deemphasizes rules, consequences and particular acts and places the focus on the kind of person who is acting” (Garrett, 2005). A person’s character is the totality of his character traits. Our character traits can be goo...
Approximately three hundred years separate the earliest of these works, The Prince, from the most recent, Utilitarianism, and a progression is discernible in the concept of morality over this span. Machiavelli does not mention the word "morality," but his description of the trends and ideals of human political interaction allow for a reasonable deduction of the concept. Locke, too, does not use the word, but he does write of "the standard of right and wrong." In contrast, Mill writes explicitly and extensively of morality in its forms, sources, and obligations. A logical starting point in this examination is a look at their relative views of human nature.
Klagge, JC 1989, Virtue: Aristotle or Kant? Virginia Tech Department of Philosophy, Web version accessed 14 May 2014.
An Analysis of Matt Ridley’s The Origins of Virtue. Inwardly examining his own nature, man would prefer to see himself as a virtuously courageous being designed in the image of a divine supernatural force. Not to say that the true nature of man is a complete beast, he does possess, like many other creatures, admirable traits. As author Matt Ridley examines the nature of man in his work The Origins of Virtue, both the selfish and altruistic sides of man are explored.
On Virtue Ethics. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003. http://www.oxfordscholarship.com. ———. "
Machiavelli wrote one of the most influential treatises on leadership that is still utilized in politics and management today. One of the defining conceptions he explores is locating a balance between being virtuous and righteous and practicing carefully selected deceit and cunning. Gilgamesh’s exhibition of leadership is much more primordial and archetypal, yet does more to highlight the inherent tragedy and emotional trauma present in such high-stakes situations. Ultimately, the differences in leadership between the two is a product of radically different eras, in which the notions of power and the state were at opposite ends of a spectrum, as were the structures that organize people.
Is virtue all we need? Virtue epistemology is the theory that all of the things we believe are done so through an ethical process. They play an important role, in that our own personal experiences and intellectual facets are what drive this process. The fundamental idea of virtue epistemology is that knowledge is a form of a more general phenomenon, namely success through abilities. Which is turn means: knowledge is a cognitive achievement through cognitive abilities (perception, memory, experience, etc.). Knowledge doesn’t need to be anything beyond a justified true belief.
Virtue theory is the best ethical theory because it emphasizes the morality of an individual in which their act is upon pure goodness and presents as a model to motivate others. Aristotle was a classical proponent of virtue theory who illustrates the development habitual acts out of moral goodness. Plato renders a brief list of cardinal virtues consisting of wisdom, temperance, courage, and justice. This ethical theory prominently contradicts and links to other theories that personifies the ideal being. However, virtue theorists differ from their own expression of these qualities yet it sets a tone that reflects on the desire to express kindness toward others.
The Epic of Gilgamesh, the Iliad, and Oedipus Rex all center on morality in terms of each character’s social behavior from the beginning to the end of the story. Gilgamesh, Achilles, and Oedipus are three central characters that embody strong qualities of strength, however carry different experiences of morality. Furthermore, all three characters hold different moral codes that are dependent on their ability to resolve the unique situations that they are in. Nevertheless, morality has ultimately impacted the character’s perception of their role in society in terms of whether or not their actions benefit someone or something. This paper will be examining the morality of the three main characters as they undergo major character transformations
Virtue manifests itself differently within Christine de Pizan’s novel The Book of the City of Ladies and Niccolo Machiavelli’s novels The Prince and The Discourses Letter to Vettori. Pizan describes virtue in a moralistic sense, one closer to Aristotle and Plato’s traditional view. On the contrary, Machiavelli has a warped sense of morality and his view of virtue is one without a moral tone; he argues that a prince must adapt himself to whichever situation he finds himself in. Despite their disagreement of the materialization of virtue, they both attribute it to powerful people. Glory is attained through establishing a good political community; it can be marked in preserving the rule, stability, freedom and military power. Although their expressions of virtue differ, their ideas are similar regarding the relationship between virtue and glory; virtue should indefinitely leads to glory.
Virtue is a word that is often associated with having the highest honor and integrity. Everyone has a slightly different definition of virtue. I would like to examine: how has the definition of virtue changed throughout the years? I will analyze Nichomachean Ethics, by Aristotle, and The Prince, by Machiavelli. Aristotle wrote Nichomachean Ethics around 350 BC, while The Prince was written in the early 1500’s. With a nearly 2,000 year time period between these two great works, how has the idea of virtue changed?
17, No. 3, p. 252-259. Urmson, J.O., (1988). Aristotle’s Ethics (Blackwell), ch.1. Wilkes, K.V., (1978). The Good Man and the Good for Man in Aristotle’s Ethics. Mind 87; repr.
Scholars describe the term “honor” as one that varies from culture to culture. With that in mind, the two focused cultures of this paper are the Greco-Roman and the Mediterranean. In the Greco-Roman world, honor and its counterpart shame, were a psychological means of keeping the social body under control. Honor was attributed to those who conformed most to the value system of the group. Not conforming, not only meant one was disapproved by the social body, but it meant one was socially disrupting the group’s continued existence. The basis of honor was largely projected through maintenance of “agreement and unity” for the good of the larger group. In fact the greek word idiots, was coined after individuals who failed to participate in their civic duty for the common good. For example, shop owners, who instead of shutting down business to joi...
This theory involves evaluating the individual making the decision rather than the actions or consequences themselves. Aristotle defined “virtue as a character trait that manifests itself in habitual actions.” (Boatright, 2012) This means that you are not considered virtuous because you did the right thing one time, you must be consistent. Virtue character traits include: compassion, courage, courtesy, etc. these traits not only allow for ethical decision making but they also provide happiness to the individual possessing the traits. When a person has virtue as a part of their character their actions will be moral and ethical without having to choose between what they want to do and what they should do – the decision would be the same. Their actions and feelings would coincide with the moral rationale of the virtue theory. Advantages of the virtue theory are instilling good moral character traits into individuals allowing for more ethical decision making based on personal character. Also, the virtue theory promotes happiness through good moral character which encourages people to make ethical business decisions but also ethical personal decisions – leading to a more fulfilling life. A disadvantage is virtue ethics is trying to determine a list of virtues that people should possess, each trait needs to be carefully
Virtue Ethics Virtue ethics is a theory used to make moral decisions. It does not rely on religion, society or culture; it only depends on the individuals themselves. The main philosopher of Virtue Ethics is Aristotle. The. His theory was originally introduced in ancient Greek.