Aristotle's virtue morality

The main attraction of Aristotle’s ethics is the way it encourages human flourishing. 

Aristotle’s ethics is largely concerned with what promotes human flourishing and leads to a fuller and happier human life. 

The Greek word for happiness is eudaimonia, which can be translated as ‘‘flourishing’’ or ‘‘well-being.’’

Virtues are excellences of character that promote human flourishing. 
Vices are those weaknesses of character that impede flourishing.

Aristotle tells us that virtue is a disposition or habit. We are not born with virtues. They are not natural or inborn. Virtues are acquired through practice. 

A virtue is an admirable human quality, marked by a disposition to behave in certain ways in certain circumstances. 

Acting, feeling: Virtue is an admirable human quality. Yet, virtue is not simply a matter of acting in a particular way; it is also a question of feeling in certain ways. Virtue includes emotion as well as action. The compassionate person not only acts in certain ways that help alleviate the suffering of others but also has certain kinds of feelings toward their suffering. 

Intellectual and moral virtues: Intellectual virtues are dispositions, such as wisdom and understanding, which help discover truth. Moral virtues are dispositions such as courage, temperance, friendliness, justice, etc.

Intellectual virtues can be thought, moral virtues ARE NOT TAUGHT, they need to be practiced. They help us avoid moral problems but more importantly, they help our moral balance (since generally a poor action is a manifestation of defect or excess).

The highest good, the highest aim of all human practical thinking, is eudaimonia. This is what makes a virtuous character possible. Aristotle describes a sequence of necessary steps: 

1- Righteous actions (under the influence of teachers) allow the development of the right habits. see that a habit is the repetition of an action. 
2- Right habits allow the development of a good character in which the habits are automatic, and this in turn gives a chance of achieving eudaimonia. 

once again: one cannot have good character without good habits. to have good habits one has to repeat individual actions until they become automatic. ONLY THEN ONE CAN FEEL THE HABIT.


Theory of the GOLDEN MEAN (between excess and defect)

                                         defect          golden mean        excess 
fear and confidence     cowardice           courage            rashness
engagement                  apathy                gentleness        short temper
handling wealth            stinginess           generosity         extravagance
social conduct               grouchiness        friendly            flattery
conversation                 boorish                witty                 buffoonery
honesty                       self deprecation   truthfulness         boastful
self-expression              insensibility     self-control         debauchery

click here for my notes on character.