I saw S's journal on
happiness and came acrosss this passage, so here it is, Only for
typing practice~~
what aristotle's ethical theroy is
all about this: he's trying to show u how to
be happy——what true happiness is.
why is he interested in human
happiness? it'not just because it's something that people all
want or aim for. it's more than that. but to get there we need
to make a very important distinction.
extrinsic
value:something we aim for or value not for
themselves but for what they bring about,in addition to themselves.
if I value something as a means to something else,then it has
what we'll call intrinsic value.
intrinsic
value: other things we hold valuable
for themselves alone,if we value something not as a means to
something else, but for its own sake.it's an end in
itself.
most things that are enjoyed in
and of themselves vary from person to person.
how does all this relate to
human happiness?
Aristotle asks: is
there somethingthat all human beings value only intrinsically, for
its own sake and only for its own sake? if u could find such a kind
of thing, that will be the universal final good, or truly the
ultimate purpose for all human beings. Aristotle thought the answer
was yes. what is it? Happiness. The
attainment of happiness become the ultimate good for
Aristotle.
The next question that Aristotle
raises is: what is happiness?
He did give us a couple
of criteria or features as we look for what the true human
happiness is:
Complete, complete
in it's all we require, if u had that, nothing else u
need.
Something that can be abttained
on one's own.
The excecise of reason,a life
of intellectual contemplation.
I agree, especially the
second point. Actually, people are alone on earth.
Happiness lies in trifles, for
me.
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