Many of us have an idea of morality and virtue, but if pressed to define it, I imagine we might struggle. Many of us have become disentangled from religion in the empirical modern world, and ethics can become fuzzy without the moral authority of religion to shape it for us. One should be wary of a nihilistic rejection of ethics, however – whether there is a God to set the standard or whether the standards are our own, without any moral standards, how can we live together? Hell, how can we live with ourselves?
The ancients have much to offer if you’re in search for a moral compass. Aristotle, one of the finest and most influential ancient philosophers, had much to say about ethics, morality, and virtue. To the Greeks virtue was called Arete, and it can be well translated as excellence. We often use the word virtue this way too: What are the virtues of this plan, or this car, or this keyboard? But what are the virtues of a human? To Aristotle we are inherently social creatures, belonging at a fundamental level to a city – “At his best, man is the noblest of all animals; separated from law and justice, he is the worst.” To be lawful and just is a fundamental part of being an excellent human being, according to Aristotle, so let’s explore some values we can measure our lives by. Because without anything to measure by, how can we know what is just?
Before I dive into the virtues Aristotle explores in his Nicomachean Ethics, I want to broach a couple of his important ideas, firstly the Golden Mean. To Aristotle, virtue occupies a place between two extremes, one extreme of excess and one of deficiency. This ideal does not necessarily sit squarely in the center of all decisions – the middle path is not always the virtuous one. The lesson we should take is not to simply take an average of the choices whenever we need to make a decision, but consider the potential consequences of excess and deficiency in any undertaking. I think the extremes Aristotle describes are sometimes as interesting as the virtue itself, and provides us a better gauge for how to pursue that virtue.
Second is his conception Energia. Energia can be translated to ‘activity’ or ‘habit’, but another way of putting it is ‘being at work’. Aristotle considered the best goods as those which were good for their own sake, and human virtue came from being at work in accordance with virtue, towards good ends. It’s important to emphasize this – virtue is an activity, a habit, it’s work, it’s something we do, not something we are. Virtues are practiced, like a skill, and over time we become better at them – if they are neglected, we get rusty. To do bad acts but excuse your bad behavior because you are a ‘good person’ or have good intentions is a lie – doubly so if you are actually incapable of the virtuous act! Virtue is only virtue in practice – to do the right thing, not merely to recognize it or declare it to others. To call another immoral does not make you moral. Excellence is a habit.
I’ll begin with 4 virtues that are often called out as the ‘cardinal virtues’ of ethics – courage, temperance, justice, and wisdom. Then I’ll dive into the other virtues mentioned by Aristotle.
The Cardinal Virtues
Courage
Courage can be defined as the disdain of frightening things. Aristotle contrasts these with the excess of ‘Rashness’ and the deficiency of ‘Cowardice’. The excess is interesting, especially if you are prone to view courage as the end of of the spectrum and cowardice as its opposite – but it’s easy to recognize that many rash people do incredibly stupid, pointless and dangerous things very bravely. We ought not consider a thoughtless disregard for fear as a virtue, courage is instead tempered by reason and right action – acting bravely at the right time, and for the right reason. Jumping on a handgrenade to save a comrade is courage, jumping on one to impress a girl is stupidity.
Temperance
Temperance falls between the extremes of licentiousness and what Aristotle declares ‘insensibility’. In this regard he notes that licentiousness, the excess of pleasure, if by far the more common than its lack. Temperance is almost a dirty word in our day and age, associated in part with prudishness, moral authoritarianism, and prohibitionism. Yet of all the virtues it is perhaps one of the most important for us moderns, faced with a near limitless font of pleasures to choose from, and an increasing awareness of their dangers to our health, both physically and mentally. Addiction is a pernicious problem of the modern era, where access to more of everything is becoming increasingly available, convenient, and potent.
Justice
Aristotle notes “In justice all virtue is together in one.” Justice is a virtue both terribly controversial and widely agreed upon – most of us recognize the importance of justice, yet as our society continues to polarize it becomes horrifically clear that we do not all share a definition. In book V of Ethics, Aristotle first offers this unsatisfying description of justice, “what is just is what is lawful and equitable, and what is unjust is what is unlawful and inequitable.” Equitable, however, does not mean outright equity of all things to Aristotle, but a matter of proper ratios, “For if the people are not equal they will not have equal things.” Fairness, giving to each what they deserve, using proper judgment. Aristotle, in his characteristically dry style, explains further: “Also, this is clear from what is in accord with merit, for all people agree that what is just in distributions must be in accord with some sort of merit, although not all people mean the same thing by merit, but those who favor democracy mean freedom, those who favor oligarchy mean wealth, others mean being well born, and those who favor aristocracy mean virtue. Justice, therefore, is a certain kind of proportion…”
Wisdom
I think we can agree that only a fool doesn’t consider wisdom a virtue. Wisdom has a place quite distinct from intelligence, and many intelligent people have proven themselves incredibly unwise. The Stoic philosopher Musonius Rufus observed that virtue was the practical application of both wisdom and knowledge. “Virtue, he said, is not simply theoretical knowledge, but it is practical application as well, just like the arts of medicine and music.” An intelligent person may be able to come up with useful knowledge, but without wisdom, this knowledge can be misguided. An intelligent man might know how to synthesize an excellent drain cleaner, but it’s the wise man who knows not to drink it. As Aristotle put it: “Wisdom consists of both knowledge and intellect directed at the things that are most honorable in their nature.”
Aristotle’s Other Virtues:
Now that we’ve touched on the big ones, lets examine some of Aristotle’s other virtues named in Nicomachean Ethics. Some come as no surprise, but some I found quite interesting.
Kindness, and Friendship, Generosity, and Magnificence
An excess of generosity is wastefulness, while its deficiency is stinginess. An excess of kindness is flattery, and its deficiency contrariness. I think both of these extremes are helpful for identifying the ideal state – I think most people can appreciate the value of generosity and kindness, but their extremes can be unpalatable as well. Some people are too nice, and many of us have an instinctive distrust of people who seem to flatter us, and suspect they are being disingenuous. Likewise, we can see that some people can be too generous with their time or resources, giving it away sometimes needlessly, or to unworthy things. Generosity tempered by wisdom means giving to the right causes, and in the right amount. Rendering yourself and your family destitute by giving away all of your money to a charity is particularly foolish if you are giving it to a charity that will waste it.
Magnificence, as explained by Aristotle, is an extension of generosity but more appropriately applied to the wealthy – after all, as he says, “It is foolish to spend magnificently if you are poor, and what comes from a virtue is done rightly.”. Its excess is vulgarity, and its deficiency is chitziness. It pertains to how the wealthy make use of their wealth, particularly in the pursuit of beautiful things. Many of us can make intuitive moral judgments on how ‘worthy’ or ‘unworthy’ the spending of billionaires can be – such as the difference between philanthropy and a third yacht.
What about friendship? The ancient view of friendship was quite wholesome. Aristotle considered it beautiful and praiseworthy – the act of wishing for the good will of something, and offering good will. While affection was a feeling, Aristotle defined friendship as an active condition, much like the other virtues, which needed to be actively maintained.
Aristotle reminds us: “When people are friends there is no need for justice, but when they are just there is still need for friendship.”
The best sort of friendship, to Aristotle, was between two individuals who are alike in virtue. Friendships between good, virtuous people are harder to slander, as you have faith and trust in your friend’s good character, and can rely on that character. Whereas friendships built on things outside of character – circumstances such as work, common interests, or advancement – may disintegrate once that uniting factor has gone away.
Pride, Charm, Righteous Indignation, and Patience
These virtues don’t always make modern lists of virtues – indeed, pride is often understood as a cardinal sin. Yet I think most of us can acknowledge that there is a wholesome aspect to pride as well. Its extreme could be easily identified as arrogance and vanity, but its deficiency, self-effacement and excessive modesty, can also be destructive. Indeed, a lack of pride in anything you do means constant self-doubt, a feeling of never measuring up.
Charm in excess is buffoonery, and its deficiency is boorishness. We have all met characters along this spectrum – some people are loud, annoying and crass. Others are needlessly stern, humorless, and chiding. A buffoon can’t resist a joke, even when it’s inappropriate, while a boor can’t take or appreciate a joke, even when it’s good. In between is a sweet spot of charm, someone who can be playful, who can joke and lighten the mood, who is a pleasure to be around.
Righteous indignation as a virtue surprised me, but Aristotle did not reject that sometimes one can be rightfully angry at injustice. Its extreme was joy at the misfortunes of others and its deficiency was envy, and within this context one can understand it better as a virtue. Many people who believe they are righteously indignant are in fact either envious or taking joy in the suffering of others – or as often as not, taking joy in the suffering of those they envy, even if it’s not warranted. Being outraged to the point of anger and action if your government is unlawfully interning people is distinct from being outraged on Twitter and mobbing somebody just because they are rich, successful or attractive, and need to be ‘brought down a notch’.
Truth
I saved the best for last. Truth often proves to be one of the most difficult virtues to practice – even if we do not openly lie often, our lives are replete with little dishonesties to ourselves and others, and we often unknowingly speak or believe untruths out of ignorance. Being able to determine the truth is a domain of reason and wisdom, and Aristotle considers there are several powers with which we affirm truth – Art, knowledge, practical judgment, wisdom, and intellect. Virtue and philosophy is, in large part, a study of and quest for the truth, and then proper conduct towards good ends.
Works Cited
Aristotle, “Nicomachean Ethics” – Amazon URL
Musonius Rufus – “That One Should Disdain Hardships: The Teachings of a Roman Stoic” – Amazon URL
