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For Aristotle, therefore, VIRTUE IS A STATE OF ONE’S CHARACTER THAT IS THE RESULT OF CHOICE.
Moral Virtue
none of the moral virtues are present in us by nature, since nothing that exists by nature is
habituated to be other than it is
Aristotle declares that we become morally virtuous by doing morally virtuous acts
to be morally virtuous, one must be able to respond to situations not just with the correct
feeling or action but in the proper degree, at the right time, towards the right people, and
for the right reasons
according to Aristotle, are the states of character that enable a person to fulfill his/her
proper function as a human being
-Aristotle emphasizes a certain consistency or constancy in one’s character in facing different situations
-this does not mean that a virtuous person is incapable of adjusting to various situations because it is the
person’s capacity to read situations that makes him/her virtuous
Mean (mesotes)
-not a mathematical mean but an intermediary point between excess and deficiency
Intellectual Virtue
both the coming-into-being and increase of intellectual virtue result mostly from teaching,
hence it requires experience and time
knowledge that deals with practical matters and not just with ideas or concepts
intellectual virtue responsible for bringing the human person closer to his/her chief good in
the realm or morality
guides the human person in choosing the mean between extremes of excess and deficiency
Since the mean is a moving target, phronesis is necessary in skillfully making the right decision. To
choose either an excess or deficiency constitutes a vice for Aristotle.
Hence, it may be said that if mesotes is a moving target, phrónēsis would correspond to the excellence
of an archer in hitting this target in various situations.
A truly virtuous action is performed by someone who is not simply compelled to do so. A person does a
virtuous act and chooses to act in such a way for the sake of being virtuous. This choice comes from a
certain firmness of character that is not easily swayed by one’s passions or influenced by certain factors
in a given situation. To a certain degree vices are no longer an option for a truly virtuous person.
It should be noted that certain actions admit no middle-point or mesotes. Some actions are simply bad,
and so there is no “virtuous” way of performing them.