Aristotle on the Human Good

396 Pages·1989·30.527 MB·English

by  Richard Kraut

Aristotle on the Human Good

Aristotle on
the Human Good
Richard Kraut
PRINCETON UNIVERSITY PRESS
PRINCETON, NEW JERSEY
Copyright © 1989 by Princeton University Press
Published by Princeton University Press, 41 William Street,
Princeton, New Jersey 08540
In the United Kingdom: Princeton University Press, Chichester, West Sussex
All Rights Reserved
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Kraut, Richard, 1944-
Aristotle on the human good / Richard Kraut.
p. cm. Bibliography: p. Includes index.
ISBN 0-691-07349-X
ISBN 0-691-02071-X (pbk.)
1. Aristotle. Nicomachean ethics. 2. Aristotle—Ethics.
3. Good and evil—History. 4. Happiness—History. I. Title.
B430.K731990 171'.3—dc20 89-32443
First Princeton Paperback printing, 1991
This book has been composed in Linotron Bembo
Princeton University Press books are printed on acid-free paper
and meet the guidelines for permanence and durability of the
Committee on Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of the
Council on Library Resources
Printed in the United States of America
9 8 7 6 5 4
For Anthea, Naomi, andjonah

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Abbreviations xi
INTRODUCTION 3
1. Consistency, Hierarchy, Inclusivism, 3. 2. Egoism, 9. 3. An
Overview, 11.
CHAPTER ONE
Two Lives 15
1.1. The Philosophical Life and the Political Life, 15. 1.2. Choosing
Ethical Activity, 20. 1.3. The Philosophical-Political Life, 23.
1.4. The Primacy of Contemplation, 28. 1.5. Upper and Lower Bounds,
31. 1.6. Minimal Priority, 35. 1.7. Intuitionism, 36. 1.8. The Argument
from Divinity: A First Look, 39. 1.9. Perfect Happiness, 41. 1.10. An
Alternative Reading, 44. 1.11. Individuating Lives, 47. 1.12. The
Political Life, 49. 1.13. Perfect Happiness Again, 54. 1.14. Gods,
Philosophers, Statesmen, 55. 1.15. More on 1178b28-32, 62. 1.16. The
Argument from Divinity: A Second Look, 64. 1.17. Length of Time, 67.
1.18. A Second Indeterminacy, 71. 1.19. More on Contemplation, 73.
1.20. Further Problems, 76.
CHAPTER TWO
Self and Others 78
2.1. Varieties of Egoism, 78. 2.2. Egoism and Intellectualism, 86.
2.3. Ostracism, 90. 2.4. Sharing Power, 97. 2.5. X.7-8 and the Priority
of the Community, 103. 2.6. Slavery, 104. 2.7. The Variety of
Relationships, 109. 2.8. Comforting a Friend, 113. 2.9. Moral
Competition, 115. 2.10. Heroism, 119. 2.11. Enlarging the Pie, 123.
2.12. Harmony of Interests, 125. 2.13. The Real Self, 128. 2.14. From
Self-love to Friendship, 131. 2.15. Self-interest and Friendship in IX.9,
134. 2.16. The Other Self, 139. 2.17. Contemplating Others, 142.
2.18. Egoism in NE I? 144. 2.19. Shared Goods, 148.
2.20. Conclusion, 153.
CHAPTER THREE
Philosophy and Other Goods 155
3.1. An Overview, 155. 3.2. Too Much and Too Little, 158. 3.3. The
Problem of Intrinsic Goods, 162. 3.4. Amusement, 164. 3.5. How Many
Friends? 167. 3.6. Self-sufficiency, 170. 3.7. Philosophical Friendship,
175. 3.8. Moral Equipment, 178. 3.9. Unphilosophical Friendship, 182.
3.10. Living a Human Life, 184. 3.11. Useless Theorizing, 189.
3.12. Uselessness and Happiness, 192.
viii Contents
CHAPTER FOUR
The Hierarchy of Ends 197
4.1. An Overview, 197. 4.2. For the Sake Of, 200. 4.3. The Terminus,
203. 4.4. The Target of Politics, 207. 4.5. Part and Whole, 210. 4.6. Two
Kinds of Ends, 213. 4.7. An Alleged Fallacy, 217. 4.8. The All-
embracing Science, 220. 4.9. The Strategy of 1.5, 225. 4.10. Some
Preliminaries in 1.7, 227. 4.11. Three Kinds of Ends, 228.
4.12. Ackrill's Reading, 230. 4.13. Ackrill's Objection, 233. 4.14. The
Conclusion of the Function Argument, 237. 4.15. The Most Perfect
Virtue, 241. 4.16. Complete Virtue, 244. 4.17. Imperfect Virtue, 247.
4.18. Confirming the Function Argument, 251. 4.19. Two Kinds of
Resources, 253. 4.20. The Death of Friends, 255. 4.21. Adornment and
Pain, 257. 4.22. Avoiding Misery, 260. 4.23. The Controlling Good,
262. 4.24. Sufficient Equipment, 264.
CHAPTER FIVE
Inclusivism 267
5.1. Introduction, 267. 5.2. The Reductio, 269. 5.3. The Concept of
Eudaimonia, 272. 5.4. The Pinnacle, 274. 5.5. The Least of Goods, 277.
5.6. Plato against Eudoxus, 279. 5.7. Topics III.2, 283.
5.8. Rhetoric 1.7, 286. 5.9. Magna Moralia 1.2, 287. 5.10. Variety, 291.
5.11. Self-sufficiency Again, 294. 5.12. Two Kinds of Intrinsic
Goodness, 300. 5.13. All the Intrinsic Goods, 305. 5.14. Saving the
Appearances, 309.
CHAPTER SIX
Function, Virtue, and Mean 312
6.1. Looking for Peculiarity, 312. 6.2. From Reason to Virtue, 320.
6.3. The Defense of the Practical Virtues, 322. 6.4. The Mean and the
Hows, 327. 6.5. The Right Reason, 335. 6.6. Moderation, 339. 6.7. The
Ethical Virtues Again, 341. 6.8. The Political Life, 345. 6.9. The
Philosophical Life, 347. 6.10. Final Thoughts, 353.
Bibliography 359
General Index 365
Index of Passages 369