Aristotle s Doctrine Of The Mean Real Quick - 1571 Words

Jonathan Abrams Alptekin Sanli Philosophical Perspectives 8 December 2014 Zero to One-Hundred: Find the Mean Real Quick It is a simple exercise to find the mean between two numbers, it is the midpoint between any two values on the number line. However, when you drift away from the number system, calculating the mean of a set can be quite a different process. If you consider fear and confidence, it is less intuitive that the mean of these two qualities is bravery. And such, it even follows that there is no single variable that defines bravery. In Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle discusses one of his most famous principles in great detail, the ‘Doctrine of the Mean’. It declares that a moral (ethical) action is a mean between two extremes, and that a virtuous person is capable of choosing the mean consistently. Although the first example of means given above is arithmetic in nature, Aristotle’s doctrine applies to a much wider set. Ethical virtue, Aristotle asserts, is a habit, disposed toward action by deliberate choice, being at the mean relative to us, and defined by reason as a prudent man would define it (NE, Book 2, Chapter 7, Line 1107a). Being virtuous and acting virtuously differ markedly. One must not only act virtuously, but also know he is acting virtuously, aim to do what he does for its own sake, and act with certainty and decisiveness, to qualify as virtuous (NE, Book 2, Chapter 4, Line 1105b). Acting virtuously, however, is the first step and primaryShow MoreRelatedBranches of Philosophy8343 Words   |  34 Pagesbeen ascribed to the Greek thinker Pythagoras (see Diogenes Laertius: De vita et moribus philosophorum, I, 12; Cicero: Tusculanae disputationes, V, 8-9). The ascription is based on a passage in a lost work of Herakleides Pontikos, a disciple of Aristotle. It is considered to be part of the widespread legends of Pythagoras of this time. Philosopher replaced the word sophist (from sophoi), which was used to describe wise men, teachers of rhetoric, who were important in Athenian democracy. TheRead MoreFate And Free Will : Oedipus Rex1841 Words   |  8 PagesFate and free will have many meanings towards what they mean in Oedipus Rex it’s all based on fate and free will. When your whole life is planned out for you it’s usually fate something you can’t avoid or run away from. Fate is played out in Oedipus Rex although free will happens to be your choice of action which happens to be played out in the play. Oedipus pursed information to seek certain knowledge that he should ve just left alone about his identity. Fate is responsible for Oedipus’s incestRead MoreJurisprudential Theories on IPR13115 Words   |  53 PagesWilhelm Friedrich Hegel. n4 Part III argues, however, that more familiar civil rights doctrines, specifically rights of expression and privacy, also can provide a foundation for personality theory in intellectual property. This civil rights justification serves, in large part, as a bridge from American legal doctrines to th e more abstract personality justification. When I say justification, I do not mean that every aspect of our system of intellectual property be tortured on some rack of theoreticalRead MoreA Picatrix Miscellany52019 Words   |  209 PagesLondon, The Warburg Institute, University of London, 1962 French B. Bakhouche, F. Fauquier, B. Pà ©rez-Jean: Picatrix Un traità © de magie mà ©dià ©val. 388 p., 130 x 210 mm, 2003, Paperback ISBN 2-503-51068-X, EUR 37.91. Newest critical edition. French S. Matton, La magie arabe traditionelle, Paris, 1977 (incomplete) Latin Picatrix: The Latin Version of the Ghà ¢yat Al-Hakà ®m, ed. David Pingree (London, Warburg Institute, 1986). Spanish Abul-Casim Maslama ben Ahmad: Picatrix (El fin del sabio y el mejorRead MoreFrancis Bacon15624 Words   |  63 Pagesthat of average man’s, yet it was not of the highest order. The matter of good and right was important for him but not if it proved too costly in worldly terms. On one hand, he preached high moral principles and on the other hand, he also expressed a mean capacity by compromising upon those morals for the sake of worldly success. For this reaon, William Blake, a spiritual poet says about his essays:   â€Å"Good advice for Satan’s Kingdom.† Blake considers any utilitarian advice contrary to God’s ways,Read MoreNational Security Outline Essay40741 Words   |  163 Pagesand the Fourth and Fifth Amendments 73 R. J. Rummel, â€Å"Power Kills; Absolute Power Kills Absolutely (Oct. 1991) 77 A. 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SomeRead MoreLogical Reasoning189930 Words   |  760 Pagesthinking, believing what somebody says simply because they raise their voice, and narrowly thinking about a problem without bringing in the most relevant information. This first chapter explains what it means to be logical—to reason logically. It demonstrates the usefulness of logical reasoning as a means to making more effective decisions about your own life—decisions about what to believe and decisions about what to do. The chapter begins a systematic program of study of all the major topics regarding