VE - AO1

What do VE focus on? What is Greek for virtue?

The individual qualities/virtues of a person

Arête - translates literally to ‘excellence’

What is VE centered on? Compare? Example?

The Agent - not what makes an action good, what makes a person good

Opposite to e.g. Natural Law and Utilitarianism (Utilitarian/Consequentialist)

‘Do not lie’ → ‘Be an honest person’

What is VE rooted in?

An ancient Greek philosophy - specifically the works of Plato and Aristotle, defining good people and the qualities that make them so

What did Aristotle write in 350 BCE? What is our end goal? How is it attained?

Nichomachean Ethics

‘Eudaimonia’ (human flourishing)

We must practice our virtues just as archers practice to hit a target

According to Aristotle, what is our ability to reflect on our experiences called? Why is it important?

‘Phronesis’ (Practical wisdom)

We need to combine reason and experience e.g. Its not enough to think about what is Just - go out and do good things

According to Aristotle, what are moral virtues? What are intellectual virtues?

Moral Virtues - to do with feeling and acting well. Associated with our character and relationships

Intellectual Virtues - a wisdom acquired by teaching. Associated with the mind.

How are moral virtues acquired? What is this process known as?

Habit - repeatedly practice our courage - not just “the study of being courageous”.

‘Habituation’

Example of strong intellectual virtues but lack of moral virtues? What does this imply?

HITLER

Eudaimonia calls for both types of virtues to be developed

What did Aristotle say about excellence?

“We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit”

What are the cardinal virtues? Why are they significant?

Temperance - restraint against temptation
Courage - mental fortitude
Justice - a sense of fairness and rightness
Wisdom - Phronesis (practical wisdom)

They are the most important we can develop. It is a struggle to develop other virtues without these.

Give examples for 3 of the 12 moral virtues (vice of deficiency and excess)

Courage
deficiency: cowardice
excess: rashness

Modesty
deficiency: shamelessness
excess: shyness

Truthfulness
deficiency: self depreciation
excess: boastfulness

What is the Doctrine of the Golden Mean?

The idea there is a right balance between extremes (between deficiency and excess)
Only the mean (middle) is considered a virtue, only applies to moral virtues

Does everyone have the same Golden mean? Example?

No.

A strong swimmer would be courageous to jump into water to save a life, a sick man would be rash to do the same

What 3 kinds of people are produced by the Doctrine of the mean?

Sophron - people that follow the golden mean without effort
Enkrates - people who are tempted to do otherwise but have the will to live in the mean
Akrates - people who are weak willed and give in to their vices

What are the beatitudes?

Found in Matthew 5 - they are part of Jesus’ primary teachings on the moral talk he gave on the ‘Sermon on the mount’.
‘Beatitude’ translates to blessed or happy

Give 3 examples of the beatitudes?

“blessed are the pure in heart for they will see God”
“blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God”
“blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy”

What kind of approach can Jesus be seen to be taking with the beatitudes? Why is this significant? How are they similar to Aristotelian VE?

Agent centred approach - focusing on the characteristics/virtues rather than actions taken

Jesus = Jewish, Jewish teaching = largely based on Torah laws. Jesus moving away from this is significant.

He shows the virtues are towards a good end, similar to Eudaimonia

How does Jesus reinforce the person centred approach?

Matthew 5:27 - “I tell you, anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart” - the intent/inner virtue is just as significant as the act

What does Robert Louden say about VE? About evil acts?

He criticises it - too vague when used in a specific moral dilemma - e.g. unwanted pregnancy → Courage by having an abortion and facing possible backlash from her family or by having the baby despite not wanting to.

Also may allow evil acts as there are no rules against them.

How can virtues be used for immoral acts? Examples of improvements?

Courage required for an armed robbery, intellectual virtues required to plan and execute the holocaust.
Virtues aren’t intrinsically good.

Aquinas’ Natural Law = absolute moral values → clear answers to ethical dilemmas where VE fails.

Who is Alasdair MacIntyre? What potential problem does he highlight in VE?

Modern (1929) supporter of VE.

Virtues can be culturally relative - we don’t know which to develop if they change culture to culture

Examples of cultural relativism?

Homeric virtues (ancient Greece) - physical strength, courage, ruthlessness etc. (beneficial in a small village that were vulnerable to attack)
These changed into Athenian virtues when civilisation grew - Justice, temperance, wisdom etc.

What does MacIntyre say we should do?

Develop virtues relative to ourselves - here and now