[GLT Thinking Corner] What is Good Character?
【What enables humans to flourish is virtue.】
With Aristotle, it is the "practical wisdom" (i.e., phronesis) that you need when it comes to the way to flourishing. That is, you know what to do and how to act in one particular circumstance. A virtuous action or thought is neither deficiency nor excess, or the Golden Mean (中道). For example, consider the virtue of bravery: the excess of bravery is foolhardiness; the deficiency is cowardice. It is actually similar to a certain extent to the idea of the Mean/Moderation (中庸) in Confucianism (no further detail is provided here though).
In short, next time when you struggle deciding whether an act or thought can be a virtuous one, think of this:
Does it enable humans to flourish?
If your answer is "yes", Do it!
Reference Reading:
☆ 淺論亞裏士多德與孔子倫理思想的比較分析：
With Aristotle, it is the "practical wisdom" (i.e., phronesis) that you need when it comes to the way to flourishing. That is, you know what to do and how to act in one particular circumstance. A virtuous action or thought is neither deficiency nor excess, or the Golden Mean (中道). For example, consider the virtue of bravery: the excess of bravery is foolhardiness; the deficiency is cowardice. It is actually similar to a certain extent to the idea of the Mean/Moderation (中庸) in Confucianism (no further detail is provided here though).
In short, next time when you struggle deciding whether an act or thought can be a virtuous one, think of this:
Does it enable humans to flourish?
If your answer is "yes", Do it!
Reference Reading:
☆ 淺論亞裏士多德與孔子倫理思想的比較分析：
☆ The 3 Key Ideas from Aristotle That Will Help You Flourish
☆ 同場加映(可設定中文字幕)TED Talk: [Barry Schwartz: Using our practical wisdom]
☆ 同場加映(可設定中文字幕)TED Talk: [Barry Schwartz: Using our practical wisdom]
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