A Study Of The Unity Of The Virtues

For virtue ethics, the unity of the virtues is a tough issue, but it can not be evaded. The discontent of the classical doctrine of the unity of the virtues does not imply there is unworthy of inquiring into the issue of the unity of the virtues. The unity of the virtues is a multiple conception, it needs to be distinguished and clarified.Generally speaking, the classical doctrine of the unity of the virtues corresponding with a strong unity thesis, but each ancient philosopher has his unique doctrine on the issue, so the historical retrospection of the inquiry of the unity of the virtues is needed—for one thing, it can be propitious to reveal the multi-appearance of the issue; For another thing, it also can be propitious to unveil the rational factor of the issue, and good for our inquiring on the issue.The doctrine of the unity of the virtues be critiqued or rejected by the most theorists since modern era, and they adopt a position of fragmental understanding of the virtues. The fragmental understanding of the virtues has its sources and they needs to be analyzed. Without the context of the unity of the virtues, the inquiry of the virtue ethics inevitably meets its dilemma. For example, without the context of the unity of the virtues, we can’t make the fully-understanding on the latter issues, such as the structure of Virtue itself, the whole state of one’s personality and the narrative method of the virtue education.Before the positive argument for the unity of the virtues, we have to probe into the preliminary questions of the argument for the unity of the virtues. In my opinion, the preliminary questions including the differentiation of the natural virtues and the full virtues, whether we can bad use of the virtues, the compatibility of the virtues and the commensurability of the virtues. The inquiry of the preliminary questions is the premise argument for the unity of the virtues. We adopt three dimensions of analysis in proving the unity of the virtues. First, through the analysis of the structure of Virtue itself, it unveil that there is a certain unity of the virtues. Second, through the analysis of the personality, it indicate that the personality is the existing form of the unity of the virtues, one’s character state will be more and more perfect in the process of pursuing the beauty of his personality. Third, through the analysis of struggling for happiness of people, it indicate that happiness is the overall orientation of the virtues, the motive force of pursuing happiness causing one’s character state head for the perfect state. But we should know that, the three dimensions of argument for the unity of the virtues only justify that there is some degree of unity among the virtues and there is a tendency for the unity of the virtues, it does not involve a specific doctrine of the unity of the virtues. The traditional strong unity thesis infer some offensive moral implication, furthermore, its argument is not enough for the thesis. The strong unity thesis holds that the virtues form a inseparable holistic relation among themselves. It means that someone have any virtue will have all the other virtues. The basis of argument for the strong thesis is the shared intellectual factor—practical wisdom, in my opinion, practical wisdom is not enough for the strong thesis. The strong unity thesis is conflict with people’s moral intuition drastically, and it made the unity of the virtues misunderstood and unfair criticized.We propose a weak unity thesis, and its final formation is:if someone have any one cardinal virtue, he will have the other cardinal virtues to a great extent, in the meantime, he will have the secondary virtues which corresponding to the cardinal virtues to some extent, besides, he may have some character of continence and a few of character of incontinence to a lesser degree, it is possible for some virtuous person have few serious character of incontinence, but if a person have a vice in strict sense, he will not have any virtue. It should be mentioned that, the specific unity thesis just one part but not the all of the issue of the unity of the virtues, even not the key of it. The weak unity thesis can reconcile well with the reality, and it can unfold the sense for inquiring into the issue of the unity of the virtues. Our moral life and moral practice cannot separate itself from the deliberation of the unity of the virtues. So, the inquiry of the unity of the virtues also has its important practical value.