1. Virtue Ethics revision summary

2. Key Words to be happy with
Virtue (arete) – skill or habit of character
Prudence (phronesis) – practical wisdom
Intellectual excellence (sophia) – non-moral wisdom
Happiness (eudaimonia) – flourishing
Golden Mean – midpoint between excess and deficiency
Cardinal virtues – Aquinas’ word for four key virtues
Theological virtues – Aquinas’ word for faith, hope, love
Teleological – theory where goodness depends on ends

3. Key assumption To do right actions we need right character.
This character (ethos) can be developed by
- Emulation (copy your heroes)
- Education (wisdom and understanding)
- Experience (learn from mistakes)

4. Aristotle’s idea of the soul
We have a rational side:
- Intellectual skills or virtues (technical, scientific)
- Moral skills or virtues (practical wisdom)
And an non-rational side
- Desires (warmth, clothing, shelter)
- Appetites (food, sex, drink)
By developing the intellectual skills we excel in sophia.
By developing the moral skills we excel in phronesis.

5. An ultimate aim Eudaimonia – the supreme good is flourishing
We flourish personally as we pursue the virtues.
We flourish as a community as virtues govern our common life.
We acquire intellectual virtues by training and education.
We acquire moral virtues by habit (practising).

6. How do we pursue excellence?
The virtue lies at a mid point between the vice of deficiency the vice of excess.
Example: courage lies between cowardice (vice of deficiency) and recklessness (vice of excess).
Some of Aristotle’s list of virtues might surprise us:
Magnificence = greatness
lies between meanness and over-indulgence
So a BMW lies between a Skoda and a Rolls-Royce

7. Aquinas added to Aristotle’s virtues
Aquinas tried to reconcile Aristotle and Christianity
Aquinas called these the cardinal virtues
- justice (giving people their deserts)
- temperance (moderation)
- wisdom (phronesis or prudence)
- courage
Aquinas calls these theological virtues (Christian)
- faith
- hope
- love

8. Reason is the key
We should act out of virtue, not because of the consequences, but because we are wise.
The exact way to apply the virtue of courage for example depends on circumstances.
So we need reason (phronesis or practical wisdom) to decide on the right action in a situation.
This skill of reason is developed by practice.
Throughout our lives we build this skill, just as we develop intellectual skills to gain sophia (wisdom in the intellectual sphere).

9. The importance of character
As humans we seem to need heroes.
Our heroes (Wayne Rooney, Rihanna) have great skill (virtue means skill in Greek, arete).
But their characters are not always morally skilful or virtuous (they get sent off, take drugs etc)
So our society may arguably have lost the idea of emulating (copying) moral heroes to build a greater society...so that all may flourish (eudaimonia).
Modern virtue ethicists like Alasdair MacIntyre argue we have lost our way. Click on the link to find out more about MacIntyre.

10. Evaluating Virtue Ethics
morality is about building character.
the view of human nature is more holistic (emotions, reason, habits).
recognises our social life is a construct, and so is our idea of virtue. So virtues are adaptable to our culture.
But...
decisions are difficult – how do you solve dilemmas?
virtues may conflict eg lying to save a friend (truth v loyalty).
Bertrand Russell argued they are bourgeois values of passionless mediocrity. Click on link for a table.