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We saw that the ancient philosopher Aristotle believes that happiness is the greatest good for human beings. But what is this happiness? Is eating a cookie already happiness? Is watching TV happiness? Meeting with friends? Having a child? Winning the lottery? Sacrificing oneself for a political cause? What is, for Aristotle, the essence of being human?
For Aristotle, happiness is connected to function. Everything in the universe has a function, and a happy human life is one in which we fulfil that function. But what is our function as human beings? What is the purpose of being human?
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Aristotle explains: everything in the universe is good in its own way. A pen is good if it writes well. A car is good if it fulfils its purpose of bringing me where I want to go quickly and safely. Of course, if I want to use the car to transport a piano, then another car will be ‘good’: one that is slow, perhaps, but that can carry a piano. Whether something is ‘good’ depends on a purpose we have. ‘Good’ therefore means ‘suited to a purpose’.
It’s similar with human beings. When is a flute player ‘good’? When he plays the flute well. When is a general ‘good’? When he wins the war. When is a shoemaker good? When he makes the best of the leather he has available and makes a good shoe.
But what of human beings in general? When is man good? What is a good human? If this worked the same way, we’d need to know what the purpose of a human was, so that we could see if a human fulfils this purpose well. For Aristotle, everything has a purpose. Humans too.
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Humans’ purpose is to exercise their virtues in accordance with their reason. In other words, to use their reason in order to act morally right.
Being ‘good’ for Aristotle is the same as being happy. One is happy if one’s life goes well. If all is ‘good’ in it. If one fulfils one’s deepest purpose as a human being. This is the source of true happiness.
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