A Virtuous Mistake

In Rowe’s essay on Ethics in Ancient Greece, the author discusses the meanings, relationships and consequences of virtue and arete and what they mean for philosophical ethics. Although related and seen differently by different philosophers, such as in Socrates’ equation of them and Aristotle and Plato’s differentiation of the two concepts, their connection remains at the core of how a man should lead his life.

Aristotle and Plato’s differentiation of the two concepts dictates the characteristics of a static human life, as it becomes a life in happiness, or eudemonia. For Aristotle virtue lies in a successful life; a human being has a function unique to him, a good life or eudemonia will only come about if a human succeeds at performing that function that has been deemed the human function. In order to perform this function successfully one must posses the arete. (Ancient 124) For Aristotle and Plato the arete lies in performing the function well, whatever that function may be. However, this means that one must first establish what constitutes the human function, and then determine what constitutes the arete. In other words, what constitutes the arete depends on what the human function is. Aristotle and Plato’s distinction between arete and virtue originates from this relation between arete and the human function. Whereas arete depends on the prior notion of human nature, virtue does not. Virtue, for the Greek philosopher, and unlike arete, “mark[s] out […] a well defined area of investigation for the ‘moral philosopher’” (Ancient 124).

However, Rowe finds a flaw in these aforementioned philosophers. He feels that they are so focused on the “need to defend the basis of civilized life that they failed to consider how civilized that life really is”(Ancient 129). In other words, they overlook the clear faults and defects of society and become “prisoners of their culture”(Ancient 130). By becoming so adamant in defending the concept of civilized society, they ignore that society is not as civilized as they make it be. However, Rowe recognizes that his critique is influenced by hindsight bias. For example, in the past, women did not have rights and slavery was common, however today, we live in a world where women have rights and slavery has ended.

Put into context with modern society a question arises. The scope of a man's duties within society have expanded to a larger extent that one might say it is not sufficient to simply fulfill our most immediate duties to become a man of “excellence”. For instance, in Aristotle’s time, a man could fulfill his duty by complying with the simple duties of everyday life, working hard at his job, a responsible man, seeking knowledge, etc. However, in today’s demanding society, is it possible to reach “virtue” without neglecting other facets of life?

I think Aristotle would answer that people in the present need to be more focused and take on less duties in order to achieve a virtuous life, even if it is a short sighted one.