Aristotle's Ethics

An investigation of Aristotle’s ethical views as they are expounded in the Nicomachean Ethics, with an emphasis on the place of virtue and what (if anything) might make Aristotle’s account distinct from others on offer, including consequentialism and deontology. Topics include happiness and human flourishing, moral education, the virtues of character (including details of specific virtues), the nature of human action, the virtues of thought, weakness of will, pleasure, and friendship. Readings from Aristotle will be supplemented with selections from contemporary accounts of virtue ethics and scholarly work on Aristotle’s writings.