Analysis Of Aristotle's Views Of The Highest Good

The first book of Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics discusses a “highest good”. Sections 5 and 6 discuss various views of the highest good including Plato’s view of said topic. The discussion begins by mentioning how common people identify this good simply as pleasure which makes them feel satisfied with lives of pure enjoyment. Today, I think this is still very true. Several people think themselves happy because they can satisfy what they desire which gives them pleasure. I think that is how wealthy people with extravagant things feel. Aristotle also diverges slightly by mentioning that the most notable kinds of life are the life of enjoyment, the political life, and the contemplative life. Later on, Aristotle says that “cultivated and active

Clearly this cannot lead to a happy life since these people wouldn’t actively be seeking excellence and therefore happiness. After this Aristotle mentions the contemplative life in passing since he discusses it in depth later on. Aristotle has thus far outlined the rest of the books in this way. We know that the highest good is happiness and that later on different styles of living will be discussed including what they entail. In section 6 of Book One Aristotle describes Plato’s view of the good. He begins this section by saying he must address the “universal good” and its meaning which is actually a fairly significant motif of Ethics itself. The universal good or the final good is the reason for life so it involves our virtues and if we have courage or wisdom. These topics are discussed in books two, three, six and so on. Aristotle goes on to disprove the universal good as one of Plato’s “forms” saying that the good is used in different ways to describe quality and

In several societies, what people desire is based off of not only how it makes them feel on the inside the recognition they receive from others. Some people will buy extravagant things because they feel better about themselves with those things. A man buys a fancy expensive car and he feels fancy and opulent himself. Not to mention the reaction this behavior solicits from other people. Attention is drawn quickly to extravagant things because that’s part of what extravagant means --eye-catching. Next, on page 10, Aristotle says of Plato that: “a man had better give up even theories that once were his own and in fact must do so.” He says that even though these theories and the people who have them are important to us, in the name of truth it is okay and even necessary to disagree. Aristotle argues so far as to say it is our “duty to honor truth more highly than friends.” I thought this point was important to mention considering this entire book is a discussion on ethics. Therefore, throughout these ten books one thing that is greatly imperative to