The Rejection of Hedonism,
Power-Seeking and Injustice
Plato and Aristotle
Recap
• For Plato and Aristotle the ultimate aim is
eudemonia.
• What is eudemonia?
• How does it differ from our modern day
conception of happiness?
Plato and Aristotle
• Although their perspectives differ in some very important
respects, Plato and Aristotle both share the view that we are
all striving to live the best possible lives for ourselves, trying
to secure what is in our best interests.
• The 4 key points they agree on are:
1.
2.
3.
4.
The rejection of the view that our self-interests are best served
by seeking pleasure or power or injustice
The belief that in order to know what the best life is for us we
need to understand who we are (what our soul consists of)
The claim that developing our virtues enables us to live the best
possible life
The claim that the best possible life is determined by the
ultimate good
• The conclusions drawn by both is that the best possible life
involves behaving morally and justly.