Aristotle's Virtue Ethics And Its Modern Significance

Aristotle's virtue ethics is a typical representative for the virtue thought in western ethics. In Aristotle's mind, "virtue" is not absolute doctrine but practical wisdom with profound connotation. This thesis tries to get some inspiration from Aristotle's virtue ethics and find its significance to modern society through explaining Aristotle's virtue ethics under the current situation of social morality."Virtue" is an interior ethical dimension for human lives, which is able to enrich and prefect the moral world of human beings. Aristotle always closely linked the perfection of personal ethics with the prosperity and stability of the whole states. It is also like this in our modern society, in which we realize the national harmony, stability and prosperity through perfecting personal ethics. So, the thought of Aristotle is still significant to the modern society. This thesis is divided into three parts:The first chapter main analyzes the social background and theoretical foundation for the formation of Aristotle's virtue ethics. The social background of its formation is the characteristic social life and ethos of the ancient Greek states. In ancient Greece, citizens and states were indivisible. Both their physical lives and spiritual lives belonged to the states, and it became the fundamental beliefs of every citizen in ancient Greece to be dedicated to the harmony between citizens and states. So, freedom and rationality naturally turned into the ethos of ancient Greece. The theoretical foundation for the formation of Aristotle's virtue ethics is the virtue ethics thoughts of the ancient Greek before Aristotle, namely, heroic ethics in Homer, "Moral Behavior is Knowledge" of Socrates and Plato's thought for morality. In a word, the formation of Aristotle's virtue ethics was based on the characteristic social environment and ethos of ancient Greece and thinking of virtue ethics thoughts of his predecessors.The second chapter elaborates the content of Aristotle's virtue ethics. Firstly, it is explained that virtue is closely linked with good and happiness. Virtue is a kind of deposition. It is appropriate and the best to deal with these emotions at the right time, toward the right objects, toward the right people, for the right reason, and in the right manner, which is the state of virtue. The aim of virtue is happiness which is the highest good. Secondly, the virtue is divided into ethical virtue and intellectual virtue. The ethical virtue is induced by acquired habits, and the intellectual virtue is cultivated by training. Lastly, rationality, the mean, happiness and friendship are the foundation, soul, objective and supplement for virtue, respectively.The third chapter discusses the modern significance of Aristotle's virtue ethics. Under the current situation of social morality in China, the main problems which currently exist in our society are concretely analyzed, and moral crises as well as their reasons are also discussed. Then, it is concluded that modern society still needs virtue since virtue is necessary to our lives, it is the basis of interpersonal contact, and it makes the spirit of people healthy. Based on this understanding, the significance of the ethics thought of Aristotle to the modern society is illuminated: his thought is good to cultivating right concept of happiness for modern human beings, edifying the cultivation of morality and realizing social harmony.