What is the highest of all goods achievable by action… People say that it is happiness, and identify living well and doing well with being happy.

Aristotle

Happiness Is

Topic: Joy & Happiness

If then, there is some end of the things we do, which we desire for its own sake… Clearly, this must be the good and the chief good… What is the highest of all goods achievable by action. Verbally there is very general agreement… People say that it is happiness, and identify living well and doing well with being happy.

Aristotle

Aristotle was a prominent Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Born in 384 BC in Stagira, a small town in northern Greece, he was the student of Plato and later became the tutor of Alexander the Great. Aristotle's works cover a wide range of topics, including logic, metaphysics, ethics, politics, rhetoric, poetry, biology, and zoology. His ideas have profoundly influenced Western thought and various branches of knowledge, such as philosophy, natural sciences, and political theory.

Aristotle's scientific and philosophical ideas were based on empiricism, the belief that knowledge is gained through sensory experience. He is credited with establishing the foundations of formal logic and the scientific method, concepts that have shaped the course of Western intellectual history. Aristotle’s ethical philosophy, especially his concept of virtue ethics, has been influential as well, introducing the idea of moral virtues as a middle path between extremes. Additionally, his work in political philosophy, particularly his assertion that 'man is a political animal,' has been foundational in political science.

In the Middle Ages, Aristotle's works were rediscovered by Islamic scholars and later transmitted to the West. This reintroduction played a significant role in the development of Scholasticism, a method of learning that dominated medieval universities. One of the most important figures in this period was St. Thomas Aquinas, a theologian and philosopher who integrated Aristotle's philosophy with Christian doctrine. Aquinas, often considered the greatest of the Scholastic philosophers, adopted and adapted Aristotle's ideas, particularly his views on metaphysics, ethics, and the nature of the soul, creating a synthesis that has shaped Catholic thought for centuries. This enduring influence testifies to Aristotle's profound impact on a wide range of academic disciplines and intellectual traditions.

(384-322 BC ) Hellenism
Nicomachean Ethics

Aristotle. "Nicomachean Ethics." Trans. Robert C. Bartlett and Susan D. Collins. Oxford University Press, 2011. Print.

Aristotle

Theme: Happiness and Well-being

About Aristotle’s Quote About Happiness [Commentary]

In this passage, Aristotle explores the highest good that humans can achieve through their actions. He identifies this goal as happiness, which he connects with living well and doing well. For Aristotle, happiness, or “eudaimonia,” is not a fleeting emotion but a state of flourishing, where life has purpose and meaning. It is achieved by living in line with virtues and engaging in actions that fulfill one’s potential.

Aristotle notes that happiness is the “chief good” because it is sought for its own sake, unlike wealth or success, which are pursued as a means to an end. He argues that true happiness comes from living a virtuous life. Living well involves cultivating virtues, while doing well reflects the actions that express them, and together, they lead to genuine happiness.

This concept of happiness extends beyond pleasure or material success. It is deeply tied to virtue and moral action. For Aristotle, happiness is an active engagement with life, where fulfillment comes from aligning actions with values and principles. Happiness, then, is a lifelong pursuit that leads to a sense of well-being grounded in the practice of virtue.

The Pursuit of Happiness as the Exercise of Virtue

“… The function of man is to live a certain kind of life, and this activity implies a rational principle, and the function of a good man is the good and noble performance of these, and if any action is well performed it is performed in accord with the appropriate excellence: if this is the case, then happiness turns out to be an activity of the soul in accordance with virtue.”

—Aristotle [Nicomachean Ethics (1098a13)].

“He is happy who lives in accordance with complete virtue and is sufficiently equipped with external goods, not for some chance period but throughout a complete life.”

—Aristotle [Nicomachean Ethics (1101a10)].

In these two quotes we can see another important feature of Aristotle’s theory: the link between the concepts of happiness and virtue. Aristotle tells us that the most important factor in the effort to achieve happiness is to have a good moral character—what he calls “complete virtue.” But being virtuous is not a passive state: one must act in accordance with virtue. Nor is it enough to have a few virtues; rather one must strive to possess all of them.

Additional Quotes from Aristotle

“To live happily is an inward power of the soul.”

—Aristotle.

“Happiness, whether consisting in pleasure or virtue, or both, is more often found with those who are highly cultivated in their minds and in their character, and have only a moderate share of external goods, than among those who possess external goods to a useless extent but are deficient in higher qualities.”

—Aristotle [Politics (Book VII, 1323b.1)].

A Definition of Happiness often Incorrectly Attributed to Aristotle

This cherished quote, “Happiness is the meaning and the purpose of life, the whole aim and end of human existence,” is often attributed to Aristotle. Tracing it back to its roots, however, proves to be a bit elusive as it doesn’t align word for word with Aristotle’s known texts. It is likely a paraphrasing or a modern rendition of his thoughts. Aristotle’s deliberations on happiness are mainly found in his work “Nicomachean Ethics,” where he explores eudaimonia, often translated as “happiness” or “flourishing.”

Happiness Is

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