Ancient Greek Ethics
Moral philosophy began in Ancient Greece, and it began with a virtue-based framework. There are many ancient perspectives on what it means to live the ethical or virtuous life, but the two main thinkers were Plato and Aristotle. For Plato, there are four virtues: Temperance (or Moderation), Courage, Wisdom, and Justice, whereas for Aristotle there are many additional virtues because there are specific character traits corresponding to every type of activity humans beings could engage in. However, both men agree that every trait they identify as a virtue is one that any human being would need in order to live well, and both men agree that wisdom – the virtue that we achieve when we cultivate our natural capacity to reason -- lies at the core of the ethical life.
Plato’s Virtues
Plato’s list of virtues is based on the idea that the human soul can be divided into three main parts, and that each part has a corresponding virtue. Temperance is the virtue of the appetite, Courage the virtue of the spirit, and Wisdom the virtue of reason.
Plato believed that we can only be fully virtuous when we use Wisdom (reason) to control our Spirit (to make it Courageous instead of rash or timid or foolhardy), and to control our appetite (to make us Temperate instead of being driven by unruly desires). He further believed that when someone had achieved those three virtues, they would also be fully Just (his is because he thought no one who has wisdom would choose not to be virtuous, be afraid to take responsibility for his actions, or desire more than he or she deserved).
While Plato emphasizes the interconnectivity of the four virtues, this does not mean that someone is completely vicious if they haven’t achieved perfect wisdom or are sometimes unable to control their spirit or appetite. We can be somewhat wise, courageous, temperate, or just on our way to trying to become perfectly virtuous.
Plato justifies these virtues by saying that the human soul works best when all three of those parts are fulfilling their unique role, thus making the human being perfect, and perfectly happy. When reason, spirit, and appetite are working correctly, the soul conducts itself in a rational manner, and it is this rational manner that allows us to lead the good life. Moreover, only when the soul is ordered well can we achieve the final virtue of justice. Plato says that society (and the world as a whole) is well-ordered through Justice, but this can only happen when the human soul is well-ordered first. Only a just human being can structure a society with just laws.
Aristotle’s Virtues
Aristotle defends a much broader group of virtues, and although he doesn’t think he can give us a perfect list, he does suggest that the virtuous trait (and the virtuous action which is motivated by that trait) in any situation can be determined by following the “Golden Mean.”
For every character trait, there is a vice of excess and a vice of deficiency; the virtuous trait is the one that falls somewhere between the two. For example, Bravery is a virtue for Aristotle because it falls somewhere between Rashness (Bravery in excess) and Cowardice (Bravery in deficiency). When it comes to the use of one’s wealth, Generosity is the virtue, while Stinginess is the vice of deficiency and Wastefulness is the vice of excess. When it comes to Anger, the Virtue is “Justified Anger” (anger for the right amount of time and for the right reasons), while Indifference is the vice of deficiency and Rage is the vice of excess.
However, Aristotle is not saying that we should simply aim for the “average” of all our character traits. Rather, the Golden Mean is different for each person based on his or her character. For example, for a wealthy man to be generous, he must give more than the poor man would be expected to give. Similarly, it takes a different amount and a different type of Bravery for a soldier to face a huge army then it does for a candidate to make a political speech. Each virtue is relative to the individual person, though there is an exact point which is the Golden Mean for that person.
The Ultimate Virtue of Justice
Aristotle, like Plato, is aiming for the ultimate virtue of Justice, which occurs when all the other virtuous traits have been achieved. Unlike Plato, however, Aristotle does not believe that Justice is the ultimate goal of reason; instead he believes our goal it is rational happiness or Eudaimonia. Aristotle says “…every action and decision, seems, to seek some good…” (Aristotle 1).
Eudaimonia is a state (as opposed to a feeling) of happiness that is directed by reason. As such, there is a rational way to act towards our emotions, so as to create a state of Eudaimonia. This rational way is the “Golden Mean” discussed above.
When we act in excess or deficiency with a specific character trait, we are going against reason because reason, naturally, attempts to only experience an emotion in the right way and in the right amount. Interestingly enough, Aristotle says that there is not an “objective” amount of each virtue, rather what is the “right” amount for an emotion for one person, may actually be in excess or deficiency for another. The “right” amount of virtue is dictated by the situation, not by an objective amount.
Cultivating Virtue
The reason that both Aristotle and Plato give as for why we ought to cultivate our virtues is nearly the same, yet the goal is somewhat different. Both Plato and Aristotle say that virtue is the most natural expression of the completely rational soul (and the only way to experience genuine happiness). While we are attempting to cultivate our virtues, we are using our reason, but we only have our “rational happiness” when we have achieved these virtues and ordered our soul correctly. However, the similarity between the two stops here.
For Plato, being rational is the end in itself – there is no other form of happiness. Hence, when we order our soul correctly with the four virtues, we are simply being what we naturally are supposed to be, and have guaranteed for ourselves the most true happiness any human being is capable of.
Aristotle, however, allows that reason has an ultimate goal outside of itself, namely Eudaimonia (which was explained above), and believes that virtue can only carry a person so far. He thinks there is a level of luck that a person must also have in order to achieve full happiness, such as being physically attractive, being born in a high class, and having a pleasant personality. Nonetheless, Aristotle agrees with Plato that by using our reason to order our soul correctly, we have done as much as we can do by ourselves in order to guarantee our own happiness.
Aristotle. Nicomachean Ethics. Trans. Terence Irwin. Indianapolis: Hackett Publishing Company, 1999.