Main Elements of Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics

Aristotle was a philosopher who lived from 384-322 B.C.E. He was a student of Plato as well as the teacher of Alexander the Great. Aristotle thought differently than the other philosophers of his time. 2500 years ago, he wrote Nichomachean Ethics, which was named after his son, Nicomachus.

Aristotle did not agree with the other theories of ethics. He did not believe that, in order to be a good person, there was a set of rules to be followed exactly. He also did not believe that in order to be good, you simply had to do good. He believed that everyone was born with the potential to be good. He believed that if you consistently met your potential to be a good person, then good acts will follow.

In shorter terms, he thought if you were a good person, you will do good instead of other philosophers who thought that if you do good, you will be a good person. His version of ethics states that a habit of doing good should be formed and that will result in the person becoming good. “…one becomes good by doing good. Repeated acts of justice and self-control result in a just, self-controlled person who not only performs just and self-controlled actions but does so from a fixed character” (Cahn).

Aristotle stated that to live a life of happiness one must live with virtue. He believed that to live with virtue is to live in the middle of two extremes. He called this The Mean. To live in The Mean is to know the right balance of action. To tell the truth, but not reveal too much or too little. To be brave, but not to the point of recklessness or cowardice. This involves a high level of knowing your potential as a person. To have a sense of what you are capable of.

This means that you do not sell yourself short or be conceited to the point of believing you are capable of more than you are. This also has a lot to do with being able to read a situation correctly to know when something is beyond your ability and turning the situation over to a higher authority who has the means to handle it.

This theory of ethics requires a lot of self-realization. With this theory it is very important to know what your strengths and weaknesses are and being truthful about the things about yourself that need improvement. It is all about flourishing into a good human being who ultimately puts good out into the world.