VIRTUE ETHICS

 Philosophy developed by Aristotle and other ancient Greeks

 Quest to understand and live a life of moral character
 This character-based approach to morality assumes that we acquire virtue
through practice. By practicing being honest, brave, just, generous, and so on, a
person develops an honorable and moral character.
o According to Aristotle, by honing virtuous habits, people will likely make
the right choice when faced with ethical challenges.
 Helps us understand what it means to be a virtuous human being. And, it gives
us a guide for living life without giving us specific rules for resolving ethical
dilemmas.
 Approach to Ethics that emphasizes an individual's character as the key element
of ethical thinking, rather than rules about the acts themselves (Deontology) or
their consequences (Consequentialism).

 To illustrate the difference among three key moral philosophies, ethicists Mark
White and Robert Arp refer to the film The Dark Knight where Batman has the
opportunity to kill the Joker. Utilitarians, White and Arp suggest, would endorse
killing the Joker. By taking this one life, Batman could save multitudes.
Deontologists, on the other hand, would reject killing the Joker simply because
it‟s wrong to kill. But a virtue ethicist “would highlight the character of the person
who kills the Joker. Does Batman want to be the kind of person who takes his
enemies‟ lives?” No, in fact, he doesn‟t.

THREE MAIN STRANDS OF VIRTUE ETHICS:

EUDAIMONISM

 Classical formulation of Virtue Ethics

 Holds that the proper goal of human life is eudaimonia (which can be variously
translated as "happiness", "well-being" or the "good life"), and that this goal can
be achieved by a lifetime of practicing "arête" (the virtues) in one's everyday
 activities, subject to the exercise of "phronesis" (practical wisdom) to resolve any
conflicts or dilemmas which might arise
 A virtuous life would in itself constitute eudaimonia, which should be seen as an
objective, not a subjective, state, characterized by the well-lived life, irrespective
of the emotional state of the person experiencing it.
o A virtue is a habit or quality that allows individuals to succeed at their
purpose. Therefore, Virtue Ethics is only intelligible if it is teleological (i.e.
it includes an account of the purpose or meaning of human life), a matter
of some contention among philosophers since the beginning of time.
o Aristotle, with whom Virtue Ethics is largely identified, categorized the
virtues as moral virtues (including prudence, justice, fortitude and
temperance) and intellectual virtues (including "sophia" or theoretical
wisdom, and "phronesis" or practical wisdom). He further argued that each
of the moral virtues was a golden mean, or desirable middle ground,
between two undesirable extremes (e.g. the virtue of courage is a mean
between the two vices of cowardice and foolhardiness).

ETHICS OF CARE

 Developed mainly by Feminist writers (e.g. Annette Baier) in the second half of
the 20th Century, and was motivated by the idea that men think in masculine
terms such as justice and autonomy, whereas woman think in feminine terms
such as caring
 Calls for a change in how we view morality and the virtues, shifting towards
virtues exemplified by women, such as taking care of others, patience, the ability
to nurture, self-sacrifice, etc, which have been marginalized because society has
not adequately valued the contributions of women.
 Emphasizes the importance of solidarity, community and relationships rather
than universal standards and impartiality
 Argues that instead of doing the right thing even if it requires personal cost or
sacrificing the interest of family or community members (as the traditional
Consequentialist and deontological approaches suggest), we can, and indeed
 should, put the interests of those who are close to us above the interests of
complete strangers.

AGENT-BASED THEORIES

 Developed recently by Michael Slote (1941), give an account of virtue based on

our common-sense intuitions about which character traits are admirable (e.g.
benevolence, kindness, compassion, etc), which we can identify by looking at the
people we admire, our moral exemplars.
 The evaluation of actions is therefore dependent on ethical judgments about the
inner life of the agents who perform those actions.

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 Virtue Ethics, essentially Eudaimonism, was the prevailing approach to ethical

thinking in the Ancient and Medieval periods. It suffered something of an eclipse
during the Early Modern period, although it is still one of the three dominant
approaches to normative Ethics (the others being Deontology and
Consequentialism).
 The term "virtue ethics" is a relatively recent one, essentially coined during the
20th Century revival of the theory, and it originally defined itself by calling for a
change from the then dominant normative theories of Deontology and
Consequentialism.
 Virtue ethics was derived from or is closely associated to Aristotle‟s
Nichomachean Ethics. The term virtue comes from the Latin word „virtus‟ which
means manhood or perhaps „worth‟. Thus, the worth of any action of man is
based from virtue instead from duty or consequence, it does not posit a question,
„what shall I do or perhaps what rule I ought to follow?‟ Rather, how should I
carry out my life if I am to live well?‟ The emphasis therefore is on what an
individual can do to produce the sort of character that instinctively does the right
thing. Thus, virtue ethics holds that it is not only important to do the right thing but
equally one must have the right disposition, motivation, and traits for being good
and doing right.
 o For example, a head nurse who meets her moral obligations simply
because it is her obligations, the head nurse detest her functions and
hates having to spend time with every patient and with her colleagues who
come through the door of her office. She cared not of being of service to
the people that so demand according to what she sworn before the public
as a public servant. All she wants is simply to follow the rules and duties
that was given to her by virtue of having the position, although the nurse
does not violate the rules and does not act immorally from the point of
view of „duty‟ however, something in her character is defective morally.
What is absent from the nurse is the ideal character of admirable
compassion and dedication guiding the lives of her colleagues and the
many health professionals, who simply merely end to rule-following
behavior.
 Perhaps virtue ethics is a supplement to duty-oriented theory and consequence-
oriented theory. It reminds specifically the health practitioners, like, the nurse to
emphasize the virtue that is found in each and that it is important as in the ability
to reason to a correct answer.

ADVANTAGE OF VIRTUE ETHICS

1. It creates to have a virtuous person who does not only follow rules or achieve
good consequences of actions.
2. It unifies reason and emotion because it attempts to establish a proper
disposition not only to act in certain ways but also to feel in certain ways.
3. Virtue ethics emphasizes „moderation‟, that is, between excess and deficiency.

SUMMARY

 Aristotle virtue ethics starts with recognizing that is the ultimate purpose or telos
of a person. As the ultimate purpose, happiness is deemed as the final and self-
sufficient end of a person. It is by realizing the highest goal of a person that she
achieves happiness that is also considered as the greatest good. Attaining
happiness is arrived at when she performs her function, which is to act in
 accordance to reason in an outstanding manner. It is in doing her function well
that virtue, excellence, or arete is realized.
 To carry out the task of performing her function well, person has to understand
the structure of the soul where her reason will operate. Aristotle shows that
human soul is divided into the irrational and rational faculties. The
vegetative aspect of the irrational part of the soul cannot be directed by reason
because it does the natural processes of the soul that are responsible for the
physical growth. The appetitive aspect of the irrational part of the soul, on the
other hand, is driven by impulses which are, in general, contrary to reason but
can be acted out obeying the dictates of reason. Therefore, reason can manage
the appetitive aspect, and impulses can be handled well by reason.
o The rational faculty of the soul is the part where excellence can be
attained. Part of the rational faculty of the soul is the intellectual aspect
concerned with the act of knowing. Excellence on this faculty is achieved
through learning. One learns well that is why she gains philosophical and
practical wisdom. Philosophical wisdom is the knowledge of the general
principles that constitute reality, while practical wisdom is the knowledge
of determining the appropriates action in a given situation. One can learn
from experience and therefore can gain sufficient understanding on what
to do.
 Aristotle points out that having intellectual excellence does not make one into a
morally good person. Knowing the good and being able to determine the
appropriate action in a given situation do not make her do the good
automatically. Practical wisdom, as such, is still in the realm of the intellectual
aspect of the soul. The moral aspect of the rational faculty concerns itself with
the act of doing the good. She becomes virtuous or excellent in doing the good
by habitual performance. To be a morally virtuous individual is a constant
carrying out of the act of goodness. The unethical person, on the other hand, is
someone who habitually performs bad deeds. This habitual action for Aristotle is
what forms the character of the person. Her identity is associated with
 accomplishing the good or bad action. Virtue ethics is concerned primarily with
the task of developing a good character.
 Aristotle sees the development of one‟s character as the constant interaction
between the faculties of the rational part of the soul. Practical wisdom is deemed
as a necessary ingredient in guiding the moral faculty in doing the appropriate
action. Practical wisdom identifies the right action and the moral faculty aptly
executes it. What practical wisdom identifies as the right action according to
Aristotle is the mesotes or the middle measure of an action, feeling, or passion.
The middle is always in between an action, feeling, or passion that is deficient or
excessive. Nothing is lacking or is too much from an act that is morally good. For
Aristotle, virtue is the good in between vices.

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 To sum up, moral virtue, according to Aristotle, is a “state of character”

which habitually acts according to the middle measure that practical
wisdom identifies as the moral choice that should be acted upon, given the
concrete situation that presents to the person. The goal of virtue ethics is
to promote the maturity of the character of the person. Building a good
character is a task and responsibility of every person.