Explain Aristotle’s account of human virtue. Generally, what are virtues? How are they obtained?

Aristotle addresses the concept of virtue in his written works, the “Nicomachean Ethics” and the “Eudemian Ethics.” For the ancient Greeks, virtue (called “arete”) meant excellence, and could be used to define the behavior of almost anything, say the excellence of a knife at cutting or the excellence of a person at athletics. A “virtuous” person as such, was one who strove to live life to his/her full potential.

In his works, Aristotle describes two...

Aristotle addresses the concept of virtue in his written works, the “Nicomachean Ethics” and the “Eudemian Ethics.” For the ancient Greeks, virtue (called “arete”) meant excellence, and could be used to define the behavior of almost anything, say the excellence of a knife at cutting or the excellence of a person at athletics. A “virtuous” person as such, was one who strove to live life to his/her full potential.

In his works, Aristotle describes two types of virtue: moral and intellectual.

He explains moral virtue as a person’s ability to “behave in the right manner” and “a mean between extreme deficiency and extreme excess.” He describes it as the midpoint or the balance, or even compromise between extreme behaviors which are considered vices. For instance, modesty is the balance between being shy on one end and shameless on the other!

Moral virtues can be obtained by habitually exercising them, that is, through constant practice. Examples of moral virtue are courage, self discipline, modesty, friendliness and justice.

Intellectual virtues on the other hand refer to the methods used by people to reach truths. They include scientific methods or knowledge and calculative methods, such as wisdom. They can be obtained through instruction and practice.

I hope this helps.