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Arnaldo Pérez
Professor Marshall
PHI 2010
22 February, 2017
Highest Human Good, according to Aristotle
Ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, thought that the highest human good is virtue, which
he straightly defines “as a state of character”. A meaningful life according to him, should be able
to fulfill our rational function as human beings. According to Arthur Herman, a historian that wrote
an article in PW Cyber Magazine, he visualizes the world in such a way that “the light of truth is
found here in the material world, and our job is to understand and find our place in it”, with this
said, we need to understand that each one of us has a particular reason or function to be alive,
whatever that may be, we need to make sure to inquire about it and make it happen by cultivating
virtue.
For Aristotle to have some relevancy in his views, he had to make sure to have some
reasons to support his argument which I will discuss along the paper. These will be: Significance
of virtue and rational function. After explaining the reasons, the third paragraph will evaluate how
both reasons rely on each other to establish Aristotle’s relevancy.
Virtue, Aristotle’s main concept of a meaningful life. But what does he mean by virtue? Well,
according to him, and using the handouts that were used for class discussion, he defines it as “…
a state of character concerned with choice, lying in a mean . . . the mean relative to us, this being
determined by a rational principle, and by that principle by which the man of practical wisdom
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would determine it.” (Aristotle, Nichomachean Ethics, Book II, chapter 6). With this said, he
suggests that to achieve Eudaimonia, classic Greek word for “happiness, well-being, or
flourishing…” we should cultivate and propagate virtue by rationalization. But how can virtue
dictate the way we live our life’s, or achieve the highest good? Once we recognize our bond with
existence, virtue will be the base that supports our mind and body to do good for one’s own sake,
making sure that we fit, satisfy and complete our own needs as well as our function.
Rational function needs to be desired by man in order to do “the good and the well”. As
Aristotle explains in one of the passages that was given by Prof. Marshall, citing another book,
(Aristotle, Nichomachean Ethics, Book One, Chapter 7), he says that “For just as for a flute-player,
a sculptor, or an artist, and, in general, for all things that have a function or activity, the good and
