Section 3

Nov. 19, 2020

THE GOOD LIFE

aims to answer: Are we living the good life?

Are we living the good life?

◦ Everyone aims to lead a ◦What constitutes a happy

good life. and contented life varies
◦ true or false ??? from one person to
person.

Factors: experiences, social contexts,

personal preferences,
unique backgrounds
The Magician’s Twin by C.S. Lewis
(documentary film)

◦ Lewis posited that ◦One such ethical

“science must be guided basis is Aristotle’s
by some ethical basis Nichomachean Ethics
that is not dictated by
science itself.”
Aristotle
- most important ancient Greek philosopher
- student of Plato, who was then a
student of Socrates
= together, they were considered the
“BIG Three of Greek Philosophy”
 reading assignment
◦ https://www.ancientgreekphilosopher.com/2015/07/20/
10-things-you-need-to-know-about-aristotles-
nicomachean-ethics/
◦10 Things You Need To Know About
Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics
 Nichomachean Ethics

treatise on the nature of moral life and

human happiness based on the unique
essence of human nature

useful in defining
what the good life is
 Everyone is moving
towards the good.

completing one’s studies

taking a rest
Everyone is moving
towards the good.
training
for a sport
or a dance

The good is expressed &

manifested in various ways
for different persons and
circumstances.
Nicomachean ethics is a philosophical inquiry into the
nature of the good life for a human being.
Aristotle said:
Every art & human inquiry, and
similarly every action & pursuit,
is thought to aim at some good,
and for this reason the good
has been rightly declared as
that at which all things aim.

All human activities aim at some good.

Eudaimonia: The Ultimate Good

◦Aristotle explained that every action aims at

some good.
◦However, some actions aim at an instrumental
good while some aim at an intrinsic good.
Refer to page 97 of the textbook

 Pleasure  fame and honor

 Wealth
 SOME POTENTIAL CANDIDATES FOR THE
ULTIMATE GOOD…

pleasure cannot be the

= it is transitory – it passes ultimate good

= does not encompasses all

aspects of life
One may have been pleased with the food they had for lunch,
but she/he will be hungry again or will want something else
after a while.
SOME POTENTIAL CANDIDATES FOR THE
ULTIMATE GOOD…

wealth
= an intermediate good
= only instrumental cannot be the
= not self-sufficient ultimate good
= does not stop from
aiming for some other very wealthy,
‘greater’ good and yet unhappy…
 SOME POTENTIAL CANDIDATES FOR THE
ULTIMATE GOOD…

fame and honor

= based on the perception
of others cannot be the
ultimate good
= based on the subjective
views of others
Many people act according to how they think they will be
admired and appreciated by other people.
The good life, however, is more than these
countless expressions of what is good.

The good life is characterized by N-ethics

happiness …that living
that springs well and
from living doing well
and are the same
doing well.
as being
happy
 In the Aristotelian sense, happiness is
“living well and doing well”
Unlike pleasure, wealth, fame, and
honor, happiness is the ultimate good.
Among the Greeks, this is known as eudaimonia,
from the root words eu, meaning good,
and daimon, meaning spirit.
Eudaimonia means happiness
 EUDAIMONIA
REFERS TO THE GOOD LIFE,
WHICH IS MARKED BY
HAPPINESS AND EXCELLENCE
◦Aristotle ◦Thus, happiness in the
sense of eudaimonia
proposed 2
has to be distinguished
hallmarks of from merely living
eudaimonia: good.
virtue and
excellence Eudaimonia transcends all
aspects of life for it is about
living well & doing well in
whatever one does.
HAPPINESS IS THE
ULTIMATE END OF
HUMAN ACTION.
 eudaimonia
It is a flourishing life filled with meaningful endeavours
that empower the human person to be the best version
of himself/herself.
◦If one is a student
then he/she acts to
be the best version
of a student by
studying well &
fulfilling the
demands of the
school.
Give an example of human actions
that show eudaimonia.
from 2:30 class
◦ Spending time alone and reconnecting
with activities that truly makes us
happy ( Al-Ameen)
◦ Practicing temperance and courage
(Ferl Joy)
◦ Happiness is found when you stop
comparing yourself to other people
(Nikka)
◦ Live life with happiness and be
contented (Donna Faith)
◦ Live life in a full bloom (Joshua)
◦ Live life to the fullest and focus on the
positive sides (Alexa grace)
◦ Stop stressing about the things you
cannot control (Angelie)
◦ Life isn’t fair so just live with it (Jhudiel)
◦ Living healthily (Earl)
◦ Live life with gratitude (John Michael)
◦ Having the ability to help others
effectively because one cannot help
others if he/she cannot help
himself/herself (Barry)
◦ Feeling of happiness and satisfaction
(Trixia)
◦ Helping others without expecting
something in return (Aj)
◦ Be open to change. Even if it doesn’t
feel good, change is the one thing you
can count on. Change will happen, so
make contingencyy plans and
emotionally shore yourself up for the
experience (Eulie)
 from 230 class
◦ Having good relationship with God
(Rozzelie)
◦ Purposeful engagement in life (Aubrey)
◦ Having a positive mindset (Yla Zennia)
◦ Reaching your goals (Gillian)
◦ Being optimistic (Joyce Anne)
◦ Be good to others (Rj)
◦ Give one’s self a personal time (Richard
Bryan)
◦ Finishing tasks given to you (Floyd)
◦ Forgiving and forgetting (Fatmah)
◦ Having good friends and being loved
(Allyza Kate)
◦ Listens attentively in class sessions (Khaye)
◦ Drinking 12 or more glasses of water a day
(Renz)
◦ Sleeping 8 hrs a day (Mark Peter)
◦ Being positive and spreading good
news. Not affected by the negative
opinion of others, living your life freely
(Kimberly)
◦ Respecting yourself and others (Gee
Lysa)
◦ Finding peace within ourselves (Krisette
Anne)
◦ Being good to other people (Ylorgy)
◦ Giving yourself a break from work
(Nelsie Marie)
◦ Sharing love through giving joy to
everyone (Jeremy)
◦ Living a good moral life (Karylle Jane)
◦ Live a purpose-driven life (Nikki)
◦ Helping voluntarily (Joshua)
HAPPINESS IS THE
ULTIMATE END OF
HUMAN ACTION.
 Happiness is the ultimate end of
human action.
◦financial stability for ◦harmony and peace
one’s family as a reward for taking
◦the power achieved for care of the
winning the elections environment, and …

All these are pursued for the sake of happiness

 Happiness defines a good life.
◦not the kind that comes ◦comes from living a
from sensate pleasures life of virtue, a life of
excellence,
virtue = moral manifested from
excellence personal and global
scale
of a person
Virtues need to be cultivated … need to be practiced…
virtuesforlife.com
for example
◦Making sure that one minimizes sugary and
processed foods to keep healthy is an activity
that expresses virtues.
◦The resulting health adds to one’s well-being
and happiness.
moderate intake
Documentary film: That Sugar Film (2014)
another example

◦Taking care of the

environment through
proper waste
management which
results in a clean
environment and adds
to people’s well-being
and happiness. Rethink
Refuse
◦Virtuous actions
require discipline
and practice.
- affect the
individual self and
the greater
community*
?Buen vivir
Can you still remember the defining
characteristic of buen vivir?
In buen vivir, humans are only stewards of the earth and its
resources, and individual rights subjugated to that of communities and
nature.

A defining characteristic of
buen vivir is harmony,
between human beings,
and also between human
beings and nature.

Photograph: Steve Bloom Images/Alamy

◦Virtuous actions ◦Activities contrary
require discipline to virtue are those
and practice. which do not result
in happiness.

The lack of discipline in eating healthful food

eventually makes one sick.
The lack of concern for the environment
destroys the Earth we live in.
THUS, DISREGARD FOR VIRTUOUS
ACTIONS, ESP. FOR THE SAKE OF
CONVENIENCE & GRATIFICATION,
DOES NOT CONTRIBUTE TO HAPPINESS.
 ARISTOTLE POSITED TWO TYPES OF GOOD

Every  Some actions aim at an

instrumental good while some
action
aim at an intrinsic good.
aims
at He made it clear that the
some ultimate good is better than
the instrumental for the latter is
good.
good as a means to achieving
something else or some other
end while the former is good in
itself.
THE GOOD LIFE IS MARKED BY
HAPPINESS BROUGHT ABOUT
BY VIRTUOUS HUMAN ACTIONS
& DECISIONS THAT AFFECT THE
INDIVIDUAL SELF AND THE
GREATER COMMUNITY.
 TO LIVE A GOOD LIFE IS
TO LIVE A HAPPY LIFE.

For Aristotle, Greek term: arête

eudaimonia
“ excellence of any kind”
is only possible
by living a and can also mean
life of virtue. “moral virtue”
2 kinds of virtue

◦Intellectual virtue ◦Moral virtue

- owes its birth and -= virtue of
growth to teaching character
(for which reason it
-comes about as
requires experience
and time) a result of habit
Virtuous actions require discipline and
practice.

◦It is the constant practice of the good no

matter how difficult the circumstances may
be.

Virtue is the excellence of character that

empowers one to do and be good.
-habit of exercising the good
Some key moral virtues
• Generosity • It is by repeatedly resisting
and foregoing every inviting
• Temperance opportunity that one
• Courage develops the virtue of
temperance.
It is by repeatedly It is by repeatedly exhibiting
being unselfish that the proper action and
one develops the emotional response in the
virtue of generosity. face of danger that one
develops the virtue of
refer to page 100 courage.
Intellectual virtue
= virtue of thought ◦ Key intellectual virtues are
wisdom, which guides
achieved through ethical behaviour, and
education, time, & understanding, which is
experience gained from scientific
endeavors & contemplation.

Intellectual virtues are acquired through self-taught

and learned in formal institutions.
◦Intellectual virtues are qualities of mind and
character that promote intellectual
flourishing, critical thinking, and the pursuit
of truth.
 Intellectual virtues
◦ intellectual responsibility,
◦ perseverance,
◦ open-mindedness, empathy, integrity, intellectual
courage, confidence in reason,
◦ love of truth, intellectual humility,
◦ imaginativeness, curiosity, fair-mindedness, and
autonomy
the capacity to place oneself the ability to make your own
in another's position decisions without being
controlled by anyone else
What is the difference between moral and
intellectual virtue?

◦Intellectual virtue (excellence comes

through teaching).
◦We learn subjects making progress by
studying new things.

Moral virtues come through habits.

We learn them through repetition of the
same things.
Aristotle defines moral virtue as
a disposition to behave in the
right manner and as a mean
between extremes of deficiency
and excess, which are vices.
•We learn moral virtue primarily
through habit and practice
rather than through reasoning
and instruction.
***
What then is the good life?
◦ The good life in As C.S. Lewis proposed,
the sense of not only will scientific advancement
eudaimonia is the and technological development
state of being flourish, but also the human person.
happy, healthy,
and prosperous
in the way one
thinks, lives, and
acts.
◦As C.S. Lewis proposed,
not only will scientific
advancement and
technological
development flourish,
but also the human
person.
Hidden sugar found on the Label

◦Take-home Task
◦ page 109
◦ Follow the instructions
Group with 3 members: Watch the documentary
film, That Sugar Film
Guide Questions:
1. How production & consumption of sugar affect your
journey towards the good life?
2. How does unreflective consumption of sugar affect
human life?
3. Is there a need for industries to regulate the
production of sugar-based products?
Answer the Diagnostics.
1. It is that which all things aim.
2. It is an ancient Greek word which
means living and doing well.
3. It is said to be the ultimate end of
human action.
4. He is the ancient Greek
philosopher known for
Nicomachean Ethics.
5. It is the constant practice of the
good.
For items 6 and 7, give Aristotle’s two
kinds of virtue.
page 95
◦ True or False
8. The good life means that I
make sure I improve without
necessarily taking the others
into consideration.
9. One does not need to eat
healthfully to live the good
life.
10.Excellence of character is
innate.
 WHEN TECHNOLOGY
AND HUMANITY CROSS
Section 4
UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS