The Nichomachean Conception of Happiness Essay - 1317 Words

Happiness, to Aristotle, is a term for which much exactitude must be made. He understands that, Happiness both the refined and the few call it, but about the nature of this Happiness, men dispute. As such, he goes to great lengths to attain a fairly accurate accounting of what he sees as Happiness. He begins by illustrating that Happiness is an End, establishes what he finds the work of Man to be, sets conditions on being happy, and then explains where in Man the cultivation of Happiness is to be sought. The result of all these ideas is his fully developed sense of Happiness, an understanding vital to his conception of Ethics. Happiness, for Aristotle, is an End in and of itself. For (Happiness) we choose always for its own sake,†¦show more content†¦Aristotle sets many limits on attaining Happiness, due do his understanding of what Happiness is derived from. He sees participation in life as crucial, as, at the Olympic games it is not the finest and strongest men that are cr owned, but those that enter the lists, i.e., one must be a part of life in order to be judged by the standards of living. Aristotle also finds various external goods to be of absolute necessity, including friends, money, and political influence, as they are instruments by which many things are done. In the same case and kind he lists fortunate birth, valued children, and personal appearance. These, too, he thinks are necessary to a complete realization of Happiness. Even the stability of these things#8212;and a persons reputation#8212;after death is considered part of Happiness. Important, I think, is the understanding that these things are not Happiness, but as we see later, the excess or deficiency of these things hinders the fulfillment of Happiness. The last two limitations on Happiness have to do with reason itself. Aristotle finds that it is inconceivable that either animals or children might know Happiness, as their limited faculties prevent them from knowing Happiness fully. Likewise, a balanced personality is necessary to realizing Happiness since, this stability which is sought will be in the happy man, and he will be such through life, since always#8230;he will be doing and contemplating the thingsShow MoreRelatedHappiness Is an Activity Essay1287 Words   |  6 PagesIn this paper I will discuss Aristotle’s claim that happiness is a kind of activity and not a momentary pleasure. Some people might worry that Aristotle is wrong in making this claim by presuming that happiness is a state of mind rather than a constant pursuit in which a person must actively strive for throughout the entirety of ones life. I will argue that Aristotle is correct when he declares that happiness is a kind of activity that we strive for and ultimately attain throughout the entirety ofRead MorePositve Psychology and Aristotles Virtue Ethics Converge Essay1569 Words   |  7 Pagesthrough the promotion of positive emotions, individual character strengths, as well as , eudemonic happiness, as key components to optimal mental health. Like many other contemporary theories, positive psychology borrows principles and tenets of philosophies, which preceded its formal conception. The purpose of this paper is to compare and contrast virtue, character strengths, relationships, and happiness as presented by positive psychology with Aristotle’s virtue ethics theory. Positive psychologyRead MoreAristotle and Kant on Happiness, Morality, and Normative Force3957 Words   |  16 PagesAristotle and Kant on Happiness, Morality and Normative Force 1. Do you think Happiness no matter how formulated is the purpose of our lives? 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That is, everything we do is aiming at some end: every art and every investigationRead MorePhilosophies Of The Origin, Application And The Philosophy Of Virtue1865 Words   |  8 Pagesenergy and vigor, deep concentration, and wisdom. â€Å"†¦the virtues of the Buddhahood which are beyond the conception of the intellectual mind, and they encourage and strengthen the Boddhisattvas not to give in to the enchantment of the bliss of the Samadhis, but to press on to further advancement along the stages† (The Lankavatara Sutra, 28). The aforementioned virtues are s aid to be beyond the conception of the mind, meaning they stem from true nature. It is mentioned that all Buddhas, Mahayana or notRead More Does Life Have a Meaning? Essay3084 Words   |  13 Pagesclearly unsound to argue that there is some proposition to do with meaning, either different in each case or uniquely common to all, the existence of which may be presupposed in every investigation. 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Which Is a More Plausible Theory of Happiness?2995 Words   |  12 Pagesnarrow and preference hedonism. Which is a more plausible theory of happiness? 1. Introduction (250) Happiness belongs to Hedonism. If one experience more happiness during life, his life will be better. The more happiness you experience, the better your life is. There are actually two schools of thought here, Narrow Hedonism and Preference Hedonism, each with its own definition of happiness. Narrow Hedonism deems happiness a homogeneous state of pleasure, while Preference Hedonism expands theRead MoreAristotle And Aristotle s Moral Theory3135 Words   |  13 Pagesdeliberate and free conduct of the proper sort. In providing the central concept of a morally adequate lifestyle, such concept of a state of character or virtue is essential in the fulfillment of morality. 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A Comparison Of Toughets And A Pair Of Tickets - 1139 Words

Two sets of families filled with emotions, hopes, and promises to embark on separate journeys. Anticipating the feelings and emotions of meeting up with their loves ones. Different situations cause for different reactions, with similar causes. The short story â€Å"A Pair of Tickets† written by Amy Tan and the story â€Å"Everyday Use† written by Alice Walker both gives insight on the true gut wrenching feelings behind the importance of family and how a mother’s opinion can affect the actions and mindset of her children. Each story has a common foundation, but splits into separate routes. Noting these similarities and differences can truly help us understand how a family’s past can affect each piece of the future. Starting with the setting in each†¦show more content†¦Mama begins with the words â€Å"I will wait for her in the yard that Maggie and I made so clean and wavy yesterday afternoon. A yard like this is more comfortable than most people know.† (Walker 268) Mama feels confident on the feeling of being in a large area waiting on the arrival of her daughter, but you can still hear the nervousness and anxiousness she has when she later starts to compare herself and Maggie to Dee while awaiting her arrival. These stories show us that no matter the space or the setting awaiting the arrival of a close family member will almost always generate the same feelings. When it comes to symbolism, the interesting finding in both short stories is that both stories mention use of a polaroid picture. Although it is included in both stories as a keepsake element they both have very different character reactions. In the short story â€Å"Everyday Use† as the daughter Dee’s arrives to the from yard she takes polaroid pictures of mama and Dee before greeting them. It seemed rushed in Dee’s approach and almost unnoticed by Dee and mama. In retrospect, in the story â€Å"A Pair of Two Tickets† Jin’Mei’s mother stuck a polaroid picture with writing on the back of her address and a message of endearment in her twin daughter’s pocket frantically, in hopes that someone would find them and look at the polaroid to trace them back to her. It carried so much strength throughout the story which led

City Living and Social Interaction Free Essays

City Living and Social Interaction How much are we affected by the environment we live in? Based on the ideas on Georg Simmel the way we think and comprehend the things around as can all be effected by the region we live it. â€Å"The Metropolis and Mental Life† by Georg Simmel is a essay stating how each individuals are effected by where they are positioned in our society. He explains the difference in the lifestyles of people living in urban cities compared to people living in rural cities. We will write a custom essay sample on City Living and Social Interaction or any similar topic only for you Order Now Georg Simmel believes that by living in a urban city we are forced to play a supporting role to the many things going on around us. Because of the busyness of the city we are dominated by the objectivism and we forget subjectivism. Simmel believes that as humans live in urban cities that are forced to only pay attention to the things that are essential to our lives. For example in a rural region one may stop and communicate to the people through out the area, but in a urban city you do not have time to communicate with everyone. Over time we start to view these people who we do not acknowledge less and less until they are seen as objects. Man’s nature, originally good and common to all, should develop unhampered. In addition to more liberty, the nineteenth century demanded the functional specialization of man and his work; this specialization makes one individual incomparable to another, and each of them indispensable to the highest possible extent. † (Georg Simmel, pg 392) â€Å"The Metropolis and Mental Life† states that by living in a city our mind begins to act intellectual, not emotional. This causes us to only focus on the thinks that that important to get through our own life and we lose value in the little things. Simmel describes this as â€Å"blase† means that we become uninterested and unconcerned by the things around us because of over exposure. Simmel believes that although urban life can cause us to unappreciative the smaller element of our lives. Although rural life may allow you to value the smaller details in life,Urban life allows us to have more freedom and to understand ourselves. Simmel’s ideas can play a factor at both a global and a local level it can be the different between if you thank the bus driver or play apart in much bigger global issues. An example of Simmels theory on our society is the way e all grow up. As kids we have very little to worry about and because of this our interactions with others occur frequently. We are friendly and socialize lots with our peers. As we grow older we have more to worry about. We become more absorbed in our own lives and pay less attention to the people and things going on around us. This is the same thing that happen in ur ban cities compared to rural environments. In an urban city we barely communicate with anyone who not directly connected to ourselves, but in rural environments are are constantly chatting and talking to the people around us. This is why it is more common for people in rural cities to know their neighbors where in urban cities neighbor connections are more rare. Overall urban life causes individuals to pay less attention to what is going on around then as they are absorbed in managing their time and money. Works Cited Simmel, Georg. â€Å"The Metropolis and Mental Life. † Seeing Ourselves: Classic, Contemporary, and Cross-cultural Readings in Sociology. By John J. Macionis and Nijole V. Benokraitis. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1998. 392-97. Print. How to cite City Living and Social Interaction, Essay examples