The Understanding And Analysis Of The Proposition"virtue Is Knowledge"

Throughout the whole history of Western philosophy, we can see that therelationship between knowledge and morality has always been of great concern toWestern philosophers. Aiming at this issue, Socrates who is the first strictly moralphilosopher in the history of Western philosophy, first proposes the famous propositionof moral philosophy:"Virtue is knowledge". The proposition is far-reachingsignificance and tremendous influence in the history of philosophy, so, it is worth us tostudy thoroughly.This article bases on the background and related literature of the proposition"Virtue is knowledge" to comb Socrates’ proposition, then understand and discriminatethis proposition. In the first three chapters of the thesis, we detailed analysis thebackground of the proposition、 the understanding of the proposition and thecontradiction of the proposition form later generations. Thus, Socrates’ proposition of"Virtue is knowledge" not only beyond the school of wise men’s relativism、skepticism,but also unifies the practical reason and speculative reason, moral philosophy andepistemology;At the same time, the proposition finds a solid foundation for moralbasing on the moral philosophy of practical reason, realizes the ethical breakthrough,also makes the direction of philosophy change. Despite the proposition of "Virtue isknowledge" has been refuted by descendants, we should not overlook its significanceand impact in the history of philosophy.At the same time, we should also pay attention to that Socrates’ proposition is stillconfined to the abstract understanding of human nature, and it is a formal ethics. In thenew trend of the modern ethics, only Marx’s substantial ethics as moral practice goesbeyond Socrates’ proposition of "virtue is knowledge". Although Marx’s ethics inheritsthe view that the factual judgments and the value judgments are unitized fromSocrates’ proposition, However, in the criticism of Marx’s historical materialism,Marx’s ethics not only bases on the realistic person to criticize the capitalist society’sabstract theory of human nature, but also is a type of moral practice that changes the world to achieve the liberation of the human basing on the scientific analysis ofhistorical fact, so, it is a kind of substantial ethics that goes beyond formal ethics.Therefore, when we understand and grasp Socrates’ proposition of "Virtue isknowledge", we should not be confined to the perspective of traditional ethics, andblindly believe in it; we should inspect it from the perspective of Marx’s substantialethics and critically inherit it.