Helps us to define what a good person is. We look at the type of person someone is and compare it to what kind of person we believe they should be. Examines character rather than action In general, the virtues seem to be dispositions that enable people to deal with human life. However, it also seems that what counts as a moral virtue will depend on one's beliefs and the situations one faces. THE MORAL VIRTUE What are the traits of character that make a person a morally good human being? Which traits of character are moral virtues?
Aristotle St. Thomas Aquinas Alasdair Macintyre Edmund L. Pincoffs Aristotle
Most famous proponent of virtue ethics.
A Greek philosopher. He argues that a moral virtue is a habit that enable human being to live according to reason. He stated that • a morally virtuous person always acted the way a human being should act • Moral virtue is the tendency to do the right thing • A good character is an achievement, it is not a natural endowment Aristotle holds the view that moral virtues are states of character lying at the mean between extremes of excess and deficiency. Thomas Aquinas
A Christian Philosopher of middle age,
he followed Aristotle. He argues that moral virtues are the habits that enable the person to live reasonably in this world and united with God in the next. Aquinas added theological factors in Aristotle's classification of moral virtues. • Courage • Temperance • Justice • Prudence Aquinas Added: • Faith • Hope • Charity There is a conflict in the view of both philosophers. Like Aristotle says, humility is a vice and pride is virtue in Greek aristocrats. While Aquinas says humility is a Christian virtue and pride is a Christian vice. Alasdair Macintyre
More recently, An American Philosopher
Alasdair has claimed that a virtue is any human disposition that is praised because it enables person to achieve the good at which human practices aim. Edmund L. Pincoffs
Pincoffs suggests that virtues include all
those dispositions to act, feel, and think in certain ways that we use as the basis for choosing between persons or between potential future selves. He criticizes Macintyre for claiming that virtue include only those traits required by some set of social practices. Examples of Virtues The four fundamental moral virtues: Courage - being brave enough to do the right thing Temperance – showing moderation in action, thought, or feeling as well as moderation in the indulgence of the appetites or passions Justice – the ability to give other people exactly what they deserve, neither more nor less Prudence (wisdom) – gives us the ability to know what is reasonable in different situations Examples of other virtues Trustworthiness Civility Honesty Sincerity Reliability Gentleness Warmth Dependability Kindness Cooperativeness Tolerance Empathy