In Book 10 of Nichomachean Ethics, Eudoxus posits that pleasure could potentially be the supreme good because we often pursue things for pleasure's sake, and it also makes other things more desirable.
Aristotle makes the case that there are many things we value that are not necessarily pleasant. For example, exercising may be good for me, but running definitely does not bring me pleasure.
He also says that pleasure cannot be a process because it does not start out incomplete and then become complete, and it does not take place over time. Thus, it can never fit in with virtue, because he has already established that virtue is a consistent habit.
Because pleasure cannot be the chief end, Aristotle says that happiness is the chief end with contemplation being its highest and most complete form. Today, most people associate pleasure with happiness, and think that they always come as a package deal. However, Aristotle would say that there is a measure of habituation that comes with happiness. Furthermore, most do not see contemplation as a thing that brings pleasure, but Aristotle says that to contemplate like the gods do is to be happy.
Happiness, then, is a step above moral virtue, which Aristotle has spent the previous parts of the book explicating. The key difference between happiness and virtue is that happiness entails the intellect, or rational contemplation. Additionally, the moral virtues are all done for the sake of happiness. Aristotle's definition of happiness is most like philosophical contemplation.
So here I am in the library on a Friday night, working on my research paper, doing a lot of philosophical contemplation, and being "happy," per Aristotle, though not necessarily filled with pleasure :P
or maybe you are engaged in the most pleasant of all activities and just don't realize it yet.
ReplyDeleteAristotle does think that the happy life is the most pleasant and that when virtue is acquired, virtuous activity will be pleasant. But you are right that pleasure is not the goal - more like a bonus!
ReplyDeleteI like to think that pleasure and happiness are the same thing most of the time. There is such a thing as hedonism and that should be avoided. However, it is possible to find pleasure in doing the good. When used correctly, pleasure can be a greater order of happiness. When used incorrectly, pleasure can be an instrument of sin. Fun stuff.
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