Virtue Ethics

Virtue

Specific character traits that are morally good values, such as honesty and courage.

Vices

Specific character traits that are the opposite of virtues and thus morally bad, like dishonesty and selfishness.

Eudaimonia

Aristotle’s concept of human flourishing or happiness achieved by living in accordance with reason.

Mean

A virtuous act or feeling that achieves the proper balance between excess and deficiency, known as the 'golden mean'.

Moral saint

A person who perfectly fulfills the requirements of a given moral theory.

Impartiality

The objective moral perspective that requires detaching from personal feelings to evaluate what is right.

Obligation virtues

Virtues that fulfill our moral duties to act in certain ways, such as promise keeping and justice.

Good-promoting virtues

Virtues that promote specific values or goods, like sociability and generosity.

Limiting virtues

Virtues that control or manage our inclinations and feelings, such as courage and self-control.

Intellectual virtue

A virtue developed through teaching.

Moral virtue

A virtue that requires practice.

Primacy of character

Virtue theory asserts that our essential moral responsibility is to develop a virtuous personal character.

Character motivation

In virtue theory, a person’s moral actions are motivated by their character rather than by duty or principle.

Several right choices

Virtue theory allows for different virtuous choices in the same situation due to differing character traits.

Critique of principle-based ethics

Principle-based ethics are critiqued for being incomplete, overemphasizing impartiality, and for lacking motivational power.

Problems with virtue ethics

Challenges include the assumption of a neutral moral character at birth and the theory’s explanatory power and incompleteness.

Character traits

Enduring qualities that define a person's ethical stance and behavior.

Specific character traits that are morally good values, such as honesty and courage.

What are virtues?

Specific character traits that are the opposite of virtues and thus morally bad, like dishonesty and selfishness.

What are vices?

Aristotle’s concept of human flourishing or happiness achieved by living in accordance with reason.

What is eudaimonia?

A virtuous act or feeling that achieves the proper balance between excess and deficiency, known as the 'golden mean.'

What is the mean in virtue ethics?

A person who perfectly fulfills the requirements of a given moral theory.

What is a moral saint?

The objective moral perspective that requires detaching from personal feelings to evaluate what is right.

What is impartiality in ethics?

Virtues that fulfill our moral duties to act in certain ways, such as promise keeping and justice.

What are obligation virtues?

Virtues that promote specific values or goods, like sociability and generosity.

What are good-promoting virtues?

Virtues that control or manage our inclinations and feelings, such as courage and self-control.

What are limiting virtues?

A virtue developed through teaching.

What is an intellectual virtue?

A virtue that requires practice.

What is a moral virtue?

Virtue theory asserts that our essential moral responsibility is to develop a virtuous personal character.

What does the primacy of character refer to in virtue theory?

In virtue theory, a person’s moral actions are motivated by their character rather than by duty or principle.

What motivates a person's moral actions in virtue theory?