Formal definition of happiness or flourishing eudaimonia Happiness or flourishing or living well is a complete and sufficient good. This implies a that it is desired for itself, b that it is not desired for the sake of anything else, c that it satisfies all desire and has no evil mixed in with it, and d that it is stable.
Definition[ edit ] The Definitionsa dictionary of Greek philosophical terms attributed to Plato himself but believed by modern scholars to have been written by his immediate followers in the Academyprovides the following definition of the word eudaimonia: Verbally there is a very general agreement; for both the general run of men and people of superior refinement say that it is [eudaimonia], and identify living well and faring well with being happy; but with regard to what [eudaimonia] is they differ, and the many do not give the same account as the wise.
For the former think it is some plain and obvious thing like pleasure, wealth or honour… [a17]  So, as Aristotle points out, saying that eudaimon life is a life which is objectively desirable, and means living well, is not saying very much. The really difficult question is to specify just what sort of activities enable one to live well.
Aristotle presents various popular conceptions of the best life for human beings. The candidates that he mentions are a 1 life of pleasure, 2 a life of political activity and 3 a philosophical life. One important move in Greek philosophy to answer the question of how to achieve eudaimonia is to bring in another important concept in ancient philosophy, "arete" " virtue ".
Aristotle says that the eudaimon life is one of "virtuous activity in accordance with reason" [b22—a20].
And even Epicurus who argues that the eudaimon life is the life of pleasure maintains that the life of pleasure coincides with the life of virtue.
However, they disagree on the way in which this is so. One problem with this is that we are inclined to understand virtue in a moral sense, which is not always what the ancients had in mind.
Doing anything well requires virtue, and each characteristic activity such as carpentry, flute playing, etc. The alternative translation "excellence" or "a desirable quality" might be helpful in conveying this general meaning of the term. The moral virtues are simply a subset of the general sense in which a human being is capable of functioning well or excellently.
A literal view of eudaimonia means achieving a state of being similar to benevolent deity, or being protected and looked after by a benevolent deity. Despite this etymology, however, discussions of eudaimonia in ancient Greek ethics are often conducted independently of any super-natural significance.
It is significant that synonyms for eudaimonia are living well and doing well. One important difference is that happiness often connotes being or tending to be in a certain pleasant state of mind. For example, when we say that someone is "a very happy person", we usually mean that they seem subjectively contented with the way things are going in their life.
We mean to imply that they feel good about the way things are going for them. Eudaimonia depends on all the things that would make us happy if we knew of their existence, but quite independently of whether we do know about them. Ascribing eudaimonia to a person, then, may include ascribing such things as being virtuous, being loved and having good friends.Aristotle closes the Nicomachean Ethics therefore by announcing a programme of study in politics, including the collecting of studies of different constitutions, and the results of this programme are generally assumed to be contained in the work that exists today and is known as the Politics.
Notes on Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics A. Formal definition of happiness or flourishing (eudaimonia) Happiness (or flourishing or living well) is a complete and sufficient good.
Aristotle uses the term eudaimonia to talk about happiness in the Ethics. While the word often translates as "happiness," it really means something closer to "flourishing" or "thriving" as human beings. Nicomachean Ethics is a philosophical inquiry into the nature of the good life for a human being.
Aristotle begins the work by positing that there exists some ultimate good toward which, in the final analysis, all human actions ultimately aim. The necessary characteristics of the ultimate good are.
In his Nicomachean Ethics, the philosopher Aristotle tries to discover what is ‘the supreme good for man’, that is, what is the best way to lead our life and give it lausannecongress2018.com Aristotle, a. Notes on Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics A. Formal definition of happiness or flourishing (eudaimonia) Happiness (or flourishing or living well) is a complete and sufficient good.