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Aristotle 's Virtue Ethics And Ethics

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Engineers are many times assessed only by their technical knowledge. However, virtues are a fundamental to engineering. Virtues create a purpose for an engineer to design and invent as well as push them to excel in their field. Aristotle’s virtue ethics gives us a framework of how we can define and classify these virtues. In this paper I will explain some key concept of Aristotle’s virtue ethics, as well as share the virtues I have learned as a student of engineering and how they will impact my future career.
Aristotle’s virtue ethics attempt to answer the question of how to live a good life. Three key concepts of Aristotle’s virtue ethics are Eudaimonia, arête, and telos. Eudaimonia is described as happiness or flourishing. Aristotle believed that humans have the unique ability to govern their action with reason. The ideal practice of reason is exemplified through one’s work. People are able to experience the good life through excelling in fulfilling work. The idea of excelling is described by Aristotle’s concept of arête. Arête is best defined as virtue or being an outstanding example of its kind. It is the idea of achieving excellence based on your end purpose or telos. Aristotle believed that virtues become perfected as our potential of reaching our unique telos are actualized.
Along with these key concepts Aristotle presented two types of virtues. The virtues of thought consist of traits such as wisdom and intelligence, and virtues of character. A young man going to a

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