Level 50
1 day < 1 min
LeaderboardGuest · Log in
Ethics and Moral Philosophy

Virtue Ethics: Ancient and Contemporary

The eudaimonist tradition of character-based ethics, from Aristotle's account of virtue as a habituated mean, through its Stoic and Thomistic reworkings, to its twentieth-century revival in Anscombe and MacIntyre and its contemporary debates.

60-Second Review

Express review

A condensed, point-by-point summary of the module, for reviewing right before a test or exam.

  1. Aristotle's Doctrine of the Mean and Moral Virtue. Aristotle grounds moral virtue in habituated dispositions that hit a reasoned mean between vicious extremes.
  2. Eudaimonia and the Function Argument. Aristotle argues human flourishing is rational activity performed well over a complete life.
  3. The Stoic Reworking of Virtue as the Sole Good. The Stoics held virtue alone is good and vice alone is evil; everything else is merely "indifferent."
  4. Aquinas's Synthesis of Aristotelian and Theological Virtue. Aquinas joins Aristotle's acquired virtues to infused theological virtues ordered toward the vision of God.
  5. Anscombe's "Modern Moral Philosophy" and the Revival of Virtue Ethics. Anscombe's 1958 essay urged abandoning "moral obligation" for an Aristotelian ethics of virtue and flourishing.
  6. MacIntyre on Practices, Narrative, and the Virtues. MacIntyre grounds the virtues in social practices, narrative unity of a life, and inherited moral traditions.
  7. Contemporary Debates: Agent-Based versus Target-Based Virtue Ethics. Contemporary virtue ethicists divide over whether right action is defined by agents' motives or an independent target.
  8. Virtue Ethics' Critique of Rule-Based Moral Theories. Virtue ethicists fault deontology and consequentialism for judging acts and rules while neglecting character.

This is the starting point of Ethics and Moral Philosophy: you don't need any prior knowledge of this subject to begin.

Key points

Visual module map

1Aristotle's Doctrine of the Mean and Moral Virtue
2The Stoic Reworking of Virtue as the Sole Good
3Anscombe's "Modern Moral Philosophy" and the Revival of Virtue Ethics
4MacIntyre on Practices, Narrative, and the Virtues
5Virtue Ethics' Critique of Rule-Based Moral Theories

Alternative visual view: a simplified sequence of some of the module's key points, in their order within the syllabus.

Your module mastery

0% (overall measurement)
Approximate breakdown by skill
Understanding of historiographical debate0%

A rough estimate based on the key points reviewed, not an exact measurement of actual mastery.

Final test

You need to review all key points to unlock the final test.

Optional mini-games

Extra practice, with no penalty, to reinforce the module's content.

Review Flashcards

Review each key point with cards that flip to reveal the summary.

Memory

Match each concept with its definition in as few attempts as possible.

Time Attack

Answer true or false statements before time runs out.

Chronological Order

Put the module's key points back in their original order.

Further reading

Bibliography and cited sources used to create this module.

  • Aristotle (2000). Nicomachean Ethics (R. Crisp, Trans.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Long, A.A. and Sedley, D.N. (1987). The Hellenistic Philosophers, Vol. 1: Translations of the Principal Sources with Philosophical Commentary. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
  • Anscombe, G.E.M. (1958). "Modern Moral Philosophy." Philosophy, 33(124), 1-19.
  • Foot, P. (2001). Natural Goodness. Oxford: Clarendon Press.
  • MacIntyre, A. (1981). After Virtue: A Study in Moral Theory. Notre Dame, IN: University of Notre Dame Press.
  • Hursthouse, R. (1999). On Virtue Ethics. Oxford: Oxford University Press.