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Simply include 2-3 main points about the theory.

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Is there any chance I might be able to persuade you to share a little bit more of the context and motivations behind your question? :) – Joseph Weissman♦ Nov 5 '12 at 22:17
What might you be reading or studying that has made this issue important or urgent for you? What might you have found out so far? – Joseph Weissman♦ Nov 5 '12 at 22:17
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And surely we can isolate a more specific concern than "summarize Aristotle's ethical theory" -- given that it's a topic Aristotle wrote about quite extensively (at several-books'-length) – Joseph Weissman♦ Nov 5 '12 at 22:18

closed as not a real question by Joseph Weissman♦ Nov 6 '12 at 1:20

It's difficult to tell what is being asked here. This question is ambiguous, vague, incomplete, overly broad, or rhetorical and cannot be reasonably answered in its current form. For help clarifying this question so that it can be reopened, see the FAQ.

1 Answer

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Aristotle discusses Ethics in his Nicomachean Ethics, which, as far as I know, is just a set of lecture notes on Ethics which Aristotle compiled himself.

Here are a few points on his theory of Ethics.

  1. Happiness is defined to be the "most final" link in the chain of reasons of why you want to do something. For example, suppose I want to buy a house. Then I would say that I want to buy it to raise a family in that house. Why do I want to raise a family? Because I want to have companionship. Why do I want to have companionship? To be happy.

  2. The right thing to do is what makes you happy, by definition. Hence, if you do something, you necessarily believe it is the right thing to do.

  3. In order to be happy, one must be virtuous (this is partially justified in his Nicomachean Ethics). Being virtuous involves being temperate, among other things. For this point, going over Nicomachean Ethics yourself would be the most helpful. If I just rattle off some points on virtue then it won't really be helpful.

I hope this helps.

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