LESSON 10

Frameworks and Principles Behind Moral Frameworks: Aristotle’s Virtue Ethics

Learning Outcomes
At the end of this unit, you should be able to:
(1) Understand and explain ethical framework
(2) Distinguish among five ethical frameworks
(3) Articulate what virtue ethics is.
(4) Differentiate the ethical frameworks of Plato and Aristotle.

 
Ethical Framework
An ethical framework is a set of rules that a person uses to guide his or her actions. It is simply
another term for "moral standards," as discussed earlier in this text. It is what people use to
distinguish between right and wrong in their interactions with the world. It is used to ascertain the
moral purpose of an action. An ethical framework helps an individual answer the questions, "What
should I do?" and "Why should I do so?" Ethical frameworks serve as guideposts in moral life.
The various dominant mental frames are as follows: 1) Aristotle's virtue or character ethics, 2)
natural law or commandment ethics of St. Thomas and others, 3) Immanuel Kant's deontological and
duty framework, 4) utilitarianist, teleological, and consequentialist approach, and 5) Love and justice
framework. They will be introduced here, but will be discussed in greater depth in subsequent
lessons.
Virtue or Character Ethics of Aristotle
Who is the ethical person, according to virtue ethics? According to Aristotle, an ethical person is one
who has developed good character or virtues. When a person realizes his or her potentials or
possibilities, the highest of which is happiness, he or she attains virtues. Happiness is the joy of
realizing one's own potential.
NaturalLaworCommandment Ethics of St. Thomas
What is right, according to St. Thomas, is what follows natural law, the rule that says, "do good and
avoid evil." Knowing the good as distinct from evil is guided by the Ten Commandments, which are
summarized as loving God and one's fellowmen.
Deontological and Duty Framework of Immanuel Kant
Kant's framework is referred to as deon, duty, or deontological framework. Deontology focuses on
"individual rights and the intentions associated with specific behavior... equal respect... given to all
persons." It is based on the categorical imperative, which states that one must act in such a way that
his or her maxim becomes the maxim of all. Acting on a maxim that can be the maxim of all is a duty
and an obligation of every man and woman. Acting out of duty (deon) means acting with good
intentions. Treating man as an end in itself, rather than a means to an end, is acting with good
intentions.
Utilitarianist, Teleological and Consequentialist Framework
The utilitarianist teleological approach is concerned with outcomes. "The decision maker is
concerned with the utility of the decision; what really matters is the net balance of good
consequences over bad." The correctness of an action is determined by the net balance of good
consequences.
Love and Justice Framework
That which is just and loving is considered ethical. Justice is giving what is due to others while also
giving more than what is due to others.

Aristotle: Happiness as the Ultimate Purpose of Man

Virtue ethics is one theory that may provide a comprehensive understanding of how an individual
can develop moral character. Plato and Aristotle, two of Ancient Greece's major thinkers, are
thought to have written discourses on virtue. However, the first comprehensive and programmatic
study of this type of ethics can be found in Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics.
Aristotle's ethical discourse clearly departs from the Platonic understanding of reality and
conception of the good. Both Plato and Aristotle acknowledge rationality as a person's highest
faculty, and having such a characteristic allows a person to realize the very purpose of her existence.
However, they differ in their perceptions of reality and nature, which leads to their opposing views
on what the ethical principle should be.
Plato believes that the real exists outside of any human sensory experience but can be grasped by
our intellect. The truth, and ultimately the good, exist in the realm of forms or ideas that transcend
our everyday human condition. Aristotle, on the other hand, finds the real in our everyday
encounters with objects in the world. Nature's ability to have both form and matter is what makes it
understandable. As a result, truth and goodness cannot exist apart from the object and are not
independent of our experience.
When one speaks of the truth, such as how lovely Juan Luna's Spoliarium is, one cannot discuss its
beauty apart from the painting itself. The same is true for comprehending the good: the specific act
of goodness that one performs in the world is more important than any conception of the good that
is outside and beyond the realm of experience. Aristotle's ethical theory is seen as engaging the
good in our daily lives.
Aristotle begins his discussion of ethics by demonstrating that every action a person takes is directed
toward a specific goal, or what the Greeks call telos. There is a reason why one does something, and
Aristotle believes that a person's action manifests a type of good that she aspires for. Every person's
goal in life is to do good. One eats for the sake of a good, which is to provide sustenance for the
body. A person pursues a chosen career with the goal of providing a comfortable future for her
family. A person will not do anything that is thought to be harmful to her.Even a drug addict
"believes" that using dangerous drugs will benefit her in some way. This does not necessarily imply
that drug use is good, but an addict would prefer to believe that it is. As a result, Aristotle considers
the good to be the telos or purpose for which all acts strive.
One must understand that an individual engages in numerous actions and pursuits throughout his or
her life, and that each of these activities has a distinct goal. Aristotle recognizes that an act is
performed not only to achieve a specific goal, but also because it can be used to achieve a higher
goal or activity, which can then be used to achieve an even higher goal, and so on. In other words,
the various goods that one pursues form a teloi hierarchy (plural form of telos).
When a student diligently takes notes while listening to a lecture given by the teacher, she is doing
so in order to remember the course's lessons. This purpose of remembering becomes an act to
achieve a higher goal, which is to pass the teacher's examinations, which then becomes a product
that can help the person achieve the goal of having a passing grade in the course. Aristotle believes
that it is critical to understand the hierarchy of goals that different acts produce in order to
distinguish which actions are more important than others.
If there is a telos hierarchy, Aristotle then asks what the highest purpose, which is also the ultimate
good of a human being, is. Aristotle discusses the general criteria for determining the highest good
of man. First, Aristotle asserts that man's highest good must be something final. It is no longer used
as a final goal in order to reach a much higher goal. In our example, the goal of remembering the
course lessons, which is why one takes notes, is not the ultimate goal because it is clear that such a
goal is aimed at in order to achieve a much higher goal.Second, man's ultimate telos must be
something self-sufficient. Once this highest good is obtained, happiness in life follows. Nothing else
is sought or desired once this self-sufficient goal is attained because it is already regarded as the best
possible good in life. Again, in the given example, remembering the course lessons is not the best
possible good because a person can still pursue other more satisfying goals in her life.
So, what is Aristotle's ultimate goal? What is the ultimate and self-sufficient goal? It is worth noting
that, according to Aristotle, the question can only be adequately answered by older people because
they have gone through enormous and challenging life experiences that have helped them gain a
wealth of knowledge on what a person's ultimate purpose is. Older people would agree with
Aristotle that the highest purpose and ultimate good of man is happiness, or eudaimonia for the
Greeks.Aristotle says: Now such a thing happiness, above all else, is held to be; for this we choose
always for itself and never for the sake of something else, but honor, pleasure, reason, and every
virtue we choose indeed for themselves (for if nothing resulted from them we should still choose
each of them), but we choose them also for the sake of happiness, judging that by means of them
we shall be happy. Happiness, on the other hand, no one chooses for the sake of these, nor, in
general, for anything other than itself.
As a result, happiness appears to fit the first criterion of being a human being's ultimate end. For it is
clear that conditions such as wealth, power, and pleasurable feelings are chosen not for their own
sake but as a means to achieve happiness. If a person accumulates wealth, she would want not only
wealth but also power and other desirable things such as honor and pleasurable feelings. But all of
these goals are ultimately for the sake of the ultimate goal, happiness. Happiness appears to be the
ultimate goal and highest good of man because no other superior goal is still sought after.
Happiness, according to Aristotle, is the only self-sufficient goal that one can pursue. No amount of
wealth or power, for example, can be more satisfying than achieving the state of happiness. One can
imagine a life in which one is wealthy, powerful, and experiencing pleasurable feelings, but such a
life is still unsatisfying in the absence of happiness. Once happiness is attained, things like wealth,
power, and pleasurable feelings are just added bonuses in life. For Aristotle, the true measure of
happiness is not wealth or fame, but the state of having lived a happy life.

 
Virtue or Character Ethics
An ethical act is what a virtuous person would do in the same situation. Virtue ethics is concerned
with people rather than actions. It considers the virtue or moral character of the person performing
an action rather than ethical duties and rules or the consequences of specificactions.
Virtue ethics is concerned with more than just the rightness or wrongness of individual actions. It
indicates the kinds of characteristics and behaviors that a good person will strive for. In this sense,
virtue ethics is concerned with the entire course of a person's life, rather than specific episodes or
actions. A good person is someone who lives virtuously - someone who has and practices the virtues.
Furthermore, virtue ethics is "the ethics of behavior" that "focuses on the character of the persons
involved in the decision or action; if the person in question has good character, as well as genuine
motivation and intentions, he or she is behaving ethically."
Virtue ethics is defined as "an ethics whose goal is to determine what is essential to being a well-
functioning or flourishing human person. Virtue ethics emphasizes an ideal for humans or persons. It
is an optimistic and positive type of ethics."
Basic Types of Virtue (Excellence)
Aristotle distinguished two kinds of virtue. There are two types of virtues: 1) intellectual virtues and
2) moral virtues. Intellectual virtues refer to mental excellence, whereas moral virtues refer to a
person's proclivity to act well. Intellectual virtues include the ability to comprehend, reason, and
judge correctly, whereas moral virtues predispose a person to act correctly.
Aristotle defines virtue as an attained, actualized, or self-realized potential or possibility. It can
function as a moral framework. When a person has the potential or possibility of becoming a
musician, he attempts to train and study to become a musician using the virtue of a musician as a
framework.
Aristotle (384-323 BC) proposed an ethical system known as "self-actualization." According to
Aristotle, when a person acts in accordance with his nature and realizes his full potential, he will do
good and be content. A baby is not a person at birth, but rather a potential person. The child's
inherent potential must be realized in order for him or her to become a "real" person. Unhappiness
and frustration are caused by a person's unrealized potential, which leads to failed goals and a bad
life. According to Aristotle, "Nature does nothing in vain." As a result, in order to be content and
complete, people must act in accordance with their nature and develop their latent talents.
Happiness was regarded as the ultimate goal. Everything else, such as civic life or wealth, is merely a
means to an end. Self-realization, or becoming aware of one's own nature and developing one's
talents, is the surest path to happiness.
The material world is in the process of actualizing its potential. Everything has a nature and a
potential for something. Nature unfolds naturally, and it is under no obligation to do so. It lacks both
intelligence and will. However, a person has an obligation to be who he or she is meant to be. It is
his/her responsibility to cultivate his/her talent and virtues. A person's highest good or end, telos, is
the completion of his or her self-development or actualization. Happiness or the experience of
happiness is the concomitant result of this development or actualization of his/her potentials, as
defined by Aristotle.In short, virtue means excellence and virtue ethics is excellence ethics.
Virtue as a Mean
For Aristotle, virtue is the Golden Mean between two extremes. The virtue of courage is a mean
between two extremes of deficiency andextreme, namely, cowardice and foolhardiness,
respectively.Too little courage is cowardice and too much courage is foolhardiness (Mackinnon, et al
2015)
Virtue Ethics in Other Traditions
Confucius emphasized two virtues, jen (or ren) and li Jen means humaneness, human-heartedness
and compassion. Li means propriety, manners or culture.
Hinduism emphasizes five basic moral virtues: non-violence, truthfulness, honesty, chastity, freedom
from greed. It also emphasizes mental virtues: calmness, self-control, self-settledness, forbearance,
faith and complete concentration, hunger for spiritual liberation. (George, V,2008)
Buddhism also has its intellectual and moral virtues. From the eightfold path are the intellectual
virtues of right understanding and right mindfulness and the moral virtues of right speech, right
action and rightlivelihood.
Jesus Christ preached the virtues of love, mercy and compassion, hunger for justice, patience,
kindness, gentleness, self-control. St. Thomas Aquinas taught the theological virtues - faith, hope
and love. Christian tradition teaches four cardinal moral virtues, namely: prudence, justice,
temperance and fortitude.
St. Thomas being an eclectic philosopher, integrated into his own philosophy anything that is good
conceived by his predecessors like Aristotle. But he enriched their thoughts with his own insights or
learning. The attainment of the highest good, which is happiness, includes its diffusion.
"Bonumdifusivum est." Goodness as goodness necessarily diffuses itself. A person's virtue diffuses
itself in a right action. Goodness shares itself, like a light that shines before all men.
One more point regarding various potentials of man which when actualized becomes virtues is Hans
George Gadamer's re-interpretation of Aristotle definition of man as a "homo logos," a speaking
animal. In other words, in the light Aristotle's wisdom, the virtue of being man is being a speaking
animal, meaning, his attainment of a meaningful, refined, and civilized language. Gutter language is
vice; beautiful, meaningful and refined language is virtue. One who has a virtue of a refined language
speaks rightfully.
The virtuous person did not inherit his/her virtues. Neither were these virtues simply passed on to
him automatically. His being a person of virtue is a product of deliberate, consistent, continuous
choice and practice of living the virtue or virtues.
 WEEK 10

ACTIVITY SHEET NO. 10

Frameworks and Principles Behind Moral Frameworks: Aristotle’s Virtue Ethics

Name: __________________________________ Date: ______________________

Year and Section: _________________________ Instructor: _________________

I. Match the items in Column A with Column B. You may repeat an answer.

Column A Column B
_____ 1. The ethical person develops good character. a. Virtue on Character Ethics of
Aristotle
_____ 2. An act is ethical if one gives the other what he/she is due. b. Natural Law or
Commandment Ethics of St. Thomas
_____ 3. An act is ethical if it is an obligation expected of every man or woman. c.
Deontological and Duty Framework of Immanuel Kant
_____ 4. That which is right follows the rule “do good and avoid evil.” d. Utilitarian,
Teleological and Consequentialist
_____ 5. That which is ethical is that which has good consequences. e. Love and Justice
Framework
_____ 6. An act is ethical if one gives the other more than what he is due.
_____ 7. To act ethically, one must act in a way that he wishes others to act in the same way.
_____ 8. An act is ethical if it brings about the greatest good for the greatest number of those
affected by the act.
_____ 9. What is good is written in a person’s very being.
_____ 10. No amount of wealth or power, for example, can be more satisfying than achieving the
state of happiness.

 
II. Read each items and answer the following questions.
1. Give examples of virtuous persons you admire.
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2. Why do you consider them virtuous persons? What virtues do they possess?
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3. How did this virtuous person become one? Was he/she born already virtuous or did he
inherit his virtuous life?
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4. What is ethical or who is an ethical person according to Aristotle’s virtue ethics?

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