Practical Wisdom Essay

1250 Words3 Pages

Aristotle’s theory makes everyday knowledge demanding. The type of insight into the good that is needed and the relation between practical wisdom and qualities of character are both complex. Practical wisdom cannot be taught, but requires understanding of life and virtue. Only the person who is good knows what is good, according to Aristotle. Aristotle argues that practical wisdom involves more than one kind of insight. First, there is insight into what is good or bad for man. Second, practical wisdom involves understanding what is required in a particular situation in light of a general understanding of what is good. The question that faces us on any occasion is how to achieve what is good. There are no rules for applying knowledge of the good life to the current situation. Sometimes what is right on a certain occasion is in accordance with right reason, might change from one occasion to another. This kind of insight is inseparable from making a good decision. Most of the time you must not only understand the situation, but know how to act well in it.
This makes it impossible to make true generalizations. Someone who hold in all cases about right, …show more content…

He identifies things that do not change. We can see right and wrong, and what is living well and living poorly. Aristotle on decision making states that the moral virtue is a state of character in which we feel things in accordance with the cause. This means we feel them in the right way, to the right person, at the right time, for the right reason. We also need practical knowledge, which for Aristotle means knowing the right thing to do in a particular circumstance through understanding the context, knowing what matters, and effective reasoning to bring about what matters. One can know the right thing to do in general, and what is required, but this is of little use if one fails to apply knowledge to the

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