Compare And Contrast Aristotle And Epicurus

The three different ways of life according to Aristotle are the life of enjoyment/pleasure, the political life, and the contemplative life. The life of enjoyment/pleasure is a life that is purely devoted to pleasure, good, and happiness; when one lives as if they are a slave to sensual pleasure. Aristotle refers to the life of enjoyment as “completely slavish by choosing a life that belongs fatted cattle (Book I pg. 4)”, meaning this way of life does not correspond or consist of the rational nature in which each individual hold. Political life is a life that honor is used to convince one that their life is good and correlates to our rational nature. However, this life, like the life of enjoyment, is dependent on other people. Aristotle states, “for it seems to be in the ones who give honor rather than in the one who is honored. (Book I pg. 4)” In this way of life honor is a virtue, but it is a virtue that anyone can possess but be unfortunate or not good. Since both the life of enjoyment and the political life depend on someone else, Aristotle concludes the contemplative life is the highest or best way of life. This is because contemplative life on the basis means a life of true happiness and can possibly dodge difficulties. With the contemplative life, one is more than capable of engaging or

Over time philosophers have always fought the same moral dilemma, the meaning of life. In 370 B.C. Aristotle lived in an era where war was related to power and the only thing that was an escape to him was his virtues and a ways to be virtuous. On the other hand we have Epictetus from 55 A.D. With centuries of views apart, Aristotle, a well known aristocrat, and Epictetus, a former slave that found philosophy as a way of life. Even though you might expect them to have different points of views, both philosophers coming from different times and different backgrounds still agree that knowledge can overcome any boundary. Both Aristotle and Epictetus fit under Mill’s theory of utilitarianism as they both teach and write books to benefit the greatest amount of people.

In this paper, I will argue that Aristotle view of the 4 kinds of people are accurate. These 4 kinds of people are the virtuous, strong-willed, vicious, and weak-willed. First, I will set out Aristotle’s argument about a strong-willed person who struggles to overcome desires, and does it make them morally wrong. Next, I will show the 4 kinds of persons that Aristotle believes exist, they are the virtuous, strong-willed, weak-willed, and the vicious persons and his arguments concerning them. Finally, I will set out my own position to support Aristotle’s view.

Wealth causes people to ask the question “How much is too much?” Aristotle believed a person could have too much wealth. He believes it is more important to buy leisure time than inanimate objects. Too much wealth leads a person away from happiness according to Aristotle. Honor is something some people have great amounts of, while others have very little. It is good to be honored and respected in life. Some people, such as political leaders and even actors and actresses are honored more than others. Being overly honored can also cause people to be unhappy since most honored people have people who despise and resent them. Aristotle came to the conclusion that it is far better to be honorable than honored. This brings up the final quality of happiness, EXCELLENCE. This quality is key for human’s pursuit of happiness. Aristotle believes in personal happiness and when defining virtue itself, he used the word “excellence.”

While I was analyzing the two Greek heroes Theseus and Oedipus origins, it became obvious that they share quite a few differences and similarities as is common amongst heroes in Greek mythology. The first similarity I found the two heroes shared was the love and honor their subjects regarded their kings with. Theseus was revered for his strategic planning and how he used his power to create an equal ruling between the power of the king and his people. He was acknowledged as one of the first leaders to create a Democracy, allowing his people to have a say into how the kingdom is ruled. “I myself, will be your leader in wars, and at all times the protector of laws, but beyond this all my fellow citizens shall have equal rights with me” (216). By allowing the inhabitants of Attica to access part of the power of the king, Theseus knew that his subjects would abide by this ruling because of the value and gain they would receive from becoming a united community. I feel this peaceful treaty between the two dynamics; the rich and the poor shows that Theseus was an intelligent and courageous king worthy of the equal amounts of love and fear the king instilled in the city of Athens. The way Theseus resolved the issue between the two class systems leads me to believe that Theseus admirers rigid structure and control but since he is willing to give some of his power to the citizens of Athens in order to keep peace, he became known as a peaceful ruler instead of a forceful tyrant.

For example, a soldier is born to be a solider. He has certain characteristics that separate him from being a craftsman or a guardian. He will also be unhappy if he tries to challenge the tasks of the craftsmen and guardians. I disagree with Plato on this point because I think that in present day, many people are capable at doing many jobs and often succeed at more than one field of work. Therefore, I agree with Aristotle’s view of everyday life more than Plato’s. Aristotle speaks of balance and what it means for one to live a balanced life to achieve happiness. Many of us have a subjective view of happiness because certain things can make us happy, but that does not mean they’re good. For example, completing numerous hours of community service work which could make us feel happy and think we are doing good, but that does not mean in itself that we live a life of happiness. Aristotle says we must find the balance. We cannot do too much or too little of certain aspects in our lives. However, he says that happiness is an action. It is something we must do not a feeling or emotion. Therefore, I agree with his view of happiness because of the importance of balance in order to be rational.

Born of different stations, languages and creeds, Epictetus and Seneca are Roman philosophers who externally appear to be very different. Epictetus was born to a slave mother, sold as a slave himself and spent the majority of his youth as a slave in Rome. Seneca was born into money; he became tutor to a boy named Nero who later acquired position of Emperor of Rome in 54 A.D. Though these two men seem to be from very different worlds, they have a shared purpose in studying philosophy. The purpose of their writings was to teach people how to live well. Though they had a shared purpose, they suggested its achievement through different means. Epictetus professed an ‘expect the worst so you wont be disappointed when it happens’

Aristotle is an ancient Greek philosopher who has played a part in subjects such as mathematics and ethics. As a known student of Plato, Aristotle’s knowledge on various topics immensely affected people’s philosophical views. For Aristotle, his definitions of human happiness and a good life consist of being virtuous all throughout life. Happiness comes from being an overall good person; this is “the best way to lead a life and give it meaning” (Psychology Today). According to Aristotle, happiness is a continuing achievement. “Happiness is more a question of behavior and of habit—of ‘virtue’—than of luck; a person who cultivates such behaviors and habits is able to bear his

In the book “All Money in the World” by Laura Vanderkam discusses about ways that people get and spend money in their lives and the relative between money and happiness. Each title, the author shows us different ways to use and earn money like getting, spending and sharing. But in chapter 3, “Rethink Retirement” of getting, Laura Vanderkam shows the creative way to approach retirement. There are three of the ways that the author suggests people can rethink and plan for retirement such as saving, making extra, and using time efficiently.

Philosophy can best be described as an abstract, scholarly discourse. According to the Greek, philosophia refers to ‘love of knowledge’. This is an aspect that has involved a great number of clever minds in the world’s history. They have sought to deal with issues surrounding the character of veracity and significantly exploring the endeavors to respond to these issues. This paper seeks to compare and contrast the philosophy of Aristotle with that of Confucius. This is with a clear concentration on the absolute functions of these philosophies and how they take care of the particular responsibility of a person and the broader society and the resultant effects on societies (Barnes, 1995).

Aristotle begins his exploration into the most outstanding life by attempting to figure what the highest possible good achievable is for human beings. He comes to the conclusion that most people will agree that happiness is the most sought after good. Happiness is self-sufficient and is the complete end of things pursued. However, they cannot seem to agree how to achieve happiness and what happiness is. In order to figure out what happiness is, Aristotle must evaluate the true function of human beings. This true function, as seen by Aristotle, is the key to achieving happiness. Aristotle describes happiness by saying:

To Aristotle, ethics is not an exact science, it’s ruled by broad generalizations that work most of the time and are found with those of experience, the men of practical wisdom (Nicomachean Ethics, 1094b15-1095a10). We don’t need a focused study in the sciences to understand the good, all one needs is a proper understanding of how the external aspects of life: friendship, pleasure, honor, and wealth operate in concert. No aspects of friendship, pleasure, honor, and wealth ought to be practiced too much (excess) or too little (deficient); moral virtue is action performed between two extremes (Nic. Ethics, 1106b5-25). And it is by consultation that one may find the middle ground between excess and deficiency, The Golden Mean (Nic. Ethics, 1097b5-20; Nic. Ethics, 1104a10-25).

Plato was among the most important and creative thinkers of the ancient world. He was born in Athens in 428 BC to an aristocratic and well-off family. Even as a young child Plato was familiar with political life because his father, Ariston was the last king of Athens. Ariston died when Plato was a young boy. However, the excessive Athenian political life, which was under the oligarchical rule of the Thirty Tyrants and the restored democracy, seem to have forced him to give up any ambitions of political life. In 388 BC he journeyed to Italy and Sicily, where he became the friend of Dionysius the ruler of Syracuse, and his brother-in-law Dion. The following year he returned to Athens, where he devoted his

Keeping from having an excess amount of materialistic, unneeded goods and genuinely enjoying a simplistic lifestyle measures a greater happiness. Rather than purchasing an increased amount of “things” to possess, the focus should be on “how these things are used”(Pursuit of Happiness). Socrates’ ideas point that “Happiness should not depend on external things...and a wise person will use money in the right way in order to make his life better.” For example, using currency in such a way to gain life experiences or knowledge results in a greater satisfaction and measure of happiness because it leaves priceless memories and lasting impressions. Through learning and experiencing, we humans can fulfill that natural desire to contribute and participate in the human phenomenon as a whole, precisely making life better.

In the book “Money can buy Happiness” tells about spending money on important and substantial things that bring us long lasting happiness. It provide some helpful information and tips which can be applied in our daily living. If you want to find out how to put together the most of your money in order to get a good and happy life (good return on investment). This book also creates awareness of how we spend our money, investments and savings wisely. For those who wants to analyze whether their spending habits align with their values, this book can be an eye opener for them.