VIRTUE THEORY FROM EPICURUS TO AQUINAS:
Epicurus:
Philosophical Hedonism
Ataraxia
Anxiety
Knowledge
Simplicity
Pleasure
Problems with Epicurus’ view
Epictetus: (Stoicism)
Indifference & apathy – literal = no feeling.
Apathy
Rationality
Tranquility
Their conception of nature
Internal Inconsistencies – if the universe is a deterministic system, then can people choose whether to conform to it?
“MAN IS A FRAGMENT TORN FROM GOD
Augustine:
Conscience
Morality is a “flight of the soul away from the world.” = moral perfection. (Notice the affinity to the view of Plato in Republic.)
An analogy: God’s love draws the soul to god in the way that the weight of a physical body draws it to the earth. Of course, the direction of the soul is the opposite (up), so the movement of the soul caused by God’s grace is a flight of the soul way from the world.
A negative tone to Augustine’s works. The body is not bad in itself, but it torments us – and in the same way, social life is not bad in itself, but we need stern authority – rulers thus ought to be obeyed because they are ordained by God to rule, and this is better than civil war (akin to internal strife in an individual soul). The body is our punishment for sins, and wicked rulers are our punishment, too – to revolt against them is to revolt against God.
There is no view in Augustine of trying to alter arrangements – this would imply discontent with God’s plan. So ethical value is in motive, not accomplishment.
It is important to discharge one’s social duties, but even these may get in the way of salvation if we are distracted by them from our devotion to God.
Aquinas:
Catholic doctrine and Greek thought combined – Christian theology
Natural Theology
Aquinas’ purpose: to give a true account of virtue compelling to any rational being.
Natural law is discovered by right reason.
Aquinas’s view is a form of consequentialist eudaimonism – right action is conduct tending to promote human flourishing. There is a distinctive and essential human nature and set of values that constitute excellence in the conduct of life.
What does Christian thought generally add to Aristotle’s ethics?
There must be one final good. The highest happiness is knowledge, but supernatural happiness is also knowledge. It is knowledge of God. Fulfilling oneself as an intellectual substance, one becomes more like God.
There is a universal order of reason. The right action is the one conforming to reason, to law, to nature. The good will is in agreement with the divine will – the bad will is the one that goes off on its own, out of harmony with divine will.
Eternal law is God’s decree. All things obey eternal law – but we are more complex, and have the power to know what we are doing. Thus eternal law experienced by us is natural law.
Faith in God perfects our earthly existence and knowledge by giving us absolute and eternal truth that transcends the truth of reason.
VIRTUE THEORY GENERALLY:
Maximalist ethical theory
Provides a strong motivation to morality – not egoistic, not minimal, says more than “do no harm.”
It is more than a legal model, of rule-following only. It is a manner of living life.
Does not overemphasize autonomy, does not underemphasize the effect of community.
Some major problems with virtue theory:
a. epistemological – what is the criterion for values? What counts as moral when conceptions of virtue change?
b. Moral direction – what to do? How to solve moral dilemmas.