Unit 5: Ethics and Politics of Virtue
Prior to any of the theories we have considered so far, most accounts of what it is for a person to be moral, or for a society to be just, centered on some conception of virtue. The most famous proponent of virtue as the basis for living a good human life and creating a good state is Aristotle. Although recently, Alasdair MacIntyre and a growing number of moral and political theorists have been returning to the concept of virtue as an antidote to what they interpret as an over-emphasis on individual rights and freedoms and a neglect of community and tradition in political thought since the Enlightenment. But can we as a society come to agree about what living virtuously means?
In this unit, we will examine Aristotle's theory of a society organized on the basis of virtue, as well as some modern communitarian extensions of his general line of thought. We will contrast Aristotle's notion of virtue with the existentialist concepts of will to power (as in Friedrich Nietszche) and radical freedom and radical responsibility (as in Jean-Paul Sartre). We will see how these theories bear on certain controversial topics of our day. Upon completing this course you will be able to consider these type of difficult controversies with a much richer and more informed perspective.
Completing this unit should take you approximately 10 hours.
Upon successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
- describe Aristotle's concepts of merit and justice;
- explain Aristotle's connection between virtuous behavior and state policies;
- compare and contrast Aristotle, Immanuel Kant, and Alasdair MacIntyre on the concepts of freedom and community membership;
- describe the philosophical arguments for and against major political issues, like accessibility accommodations for persons with disabilities, patriotism, and same-sex marriage;
- explain the issue of cultural relativism and whether or not there can be an absolute moral standard applied to all cultures; and
- compare and contrast Friedrich Nietzsche and Jean Paul Sartre on the existentialist concepts of freedom and responsibility.
5.1: Aristotle as a Champion of Merit-Based Justice
- This video discusses Aristotle's virtue ethics and how the differences between people affects what can be called good behavior for these people. We each have capacities that may not be under our own control, and we have states that relate to how we react to our circumstances and succeed in life.
- Read this article for an overview of Aristotle's Politics. Aristotle describes how the ethically educated person, who has a proper character has an obligation to participate in their government (city-states in Aristotle's time). The moral health of one's city-state depends on the moral health of all the individuals who live in it and who participate in its political process. Because the city-state has such an interest in the moral health of each citizen, the government does have the right and the obligation to set laws that can be described as "paternalistic", laws that help people to control their own behavior even in private. In this sense Aristotle can be contrasted with modern day libertarian ethics.
- Read Book One of Aristotle's Politics. Notice what Aristotle says about the family and politics in the first few chapters. Beginning with Part V, what does Aristotle say about slavery? Finally, notice Aristotle's comments about property, both in theory and in practice.
5.2: Justice Is Respect for Virtue
Modern and contemporary theories of justice, such as those of John Stuart Mill, Immanuel Kant, and John Rawls, typically divorce the ideas of justice and virtue. The virtues individuals possess should not play a role when deciding how to organize society. Aristotle, on the other hand, makes virtue the basis for his theory of justice. Distributive justice, in Aristotle's account, becomes a way to honor those who display excellence of character.
- This video describes Aristotle's ethical theory, which is based on the theory of each individual person's final cause or purpose. A person who behaves ethically, doing the right thing in the right situation in the right way, is a flourishing person who is enacting specific virtues. Doing this repeatedly brings about a good moral education and good moral character.
5.3: Virtue vs. Disability: The Case of Casey Martin
- Read this ruling by the Supreme Court on the case of PGA Tour, Inc. v. Casey Martin. The Aristotelian conception of justice as honoring an individual's virtues is called into question in the case of Casey Martin, who sued the PGA for refusing to allow him the use of a golf cart during the tour. In this case, the court decides in favor of Martin, or, in other words, against a purely virtue-based policy of distributive justice.
- This video explains the role of moral virtue and intellectual virtue in Aristotle's theory. The role of two kinds of intellectual virtues in creating a flourishing life is explained.
- Read Book Three of Aristotle's Politics. Aristotle begins by defining what the state is and what the conditions for citizenship are. The second half of the book is devoted to the topic of justice, and it is here that Aristotle makes his famous argument about equality. For Aristotle, justice is not simply a matter of respecting the equality of all citizens, but of determining in what specific ways people are said to be equal or unequal.
5.4: Constrained Freedom: Justice within the Bounds of a Community
- In this video Talbot compares the various ethical theories from Aristotle, Kant and Mill. She reviews the concepts that ground their view of good and bad choices and good and bad character, including duty in Kant, consequences in Mill, and virtue in Aristotle.
- Read this article on Alasdair MacIntyre. MacIntyre has been influential in pointing to a retrieval of virtue ethics. What is the central question of virtue ethics as described in the article? What is one of the major points of his book, After Virtue, concerning the failure of the Enlightenment?
- Read this article describing virtue ethics. Define "eudaimonia". What were the four cardinal virtues in Ancient Greek ethical thought? Define "arete". What is meant by the contemporary aretaic turn?
- A specific variety of communitarian theory, African Communitarianism, requires specific obligations and interactions to provide just resolution after members of society have been harmed. In this reading, the justice system of the Igbbo people is described. Before colonialism, the Igbo people of northern Nigeria engaged in a form of governance that used concensus building, and participation (of primarily males) to resolve disputes. The theory also shares a belief in the preservation of human life, and individual rights, similar to the contractarianism of Locke. Consider how the Igbo justice system involves group membership in a way that can be compared and contrasted with other theories of justice we have studied.
5.5: Justice, the Good, and the Problem of Agreement
- In this video, gay marriage rights are analyzed from the point of view of legal rights. The distinction between legal marriage and civil unions is described. One participant is in favor of same-sex marriage rights, and the other participant is against such rights because of the definition of marriage as traditionally between one man and one woman, and as a way to protect women in a patriarchal culture.
- Read the syllabus from the 2003 Supreme Court case Lawrence v. Texas. In this decision, the Supreme Court struck down a previous ruling and affirmed that state laws against sodomy violate the constitutional right to due process. The decision was seen as a major advance for equal rights among the LGBT community. Arguments in the case centered on how we ought to understand the basic concept of liberty.
5.6: Cultural Relativism
- Read the first three sections of Chapter 4 and answer the following questions:
- What was Nietzsche's most famous quote?
- What is the definition of "cultural relativism"?
- How does Nietzsche's eternal return challenge traditional religious beliefs about rewards?
- Are Wallace Souza's actions immoral? Why or Why not?
What three contemporary approaches to ethics offer alternatives to cultural relativism? Which of these alternatives is the best direction? Attempt the exercises at the end of each section.
5.7: Existentialist Ethics
- Watch this lecture, from 10:23. This lecture gives an introduction to Nietzsche's critique of morality. Nietzsche finds that modern morality is dominated by a limited view of Christian ethics as a passive and subservient rather than powerful. He describes the will to power as a necessary part of living as a fully actualized noble soul.
- Read this lecture for a sense of Sartre's conception of existence. For Sartre, first we exist, and then we shape our essence through our choices in life.
5.8: The Relation between Morality and the Law
- In this video on ethics, the distinction between legal guidelines with external standards, and moral and ethical standards is discussed. For example, many professional organizations have Codes of Ethics that are based on principles and guidelines for good behavior, but these Codes of Ethics are usually not legally binding. The distinction between ethics and morals is also addressed, with attention to personal cultural norms and one's own internal beliefs about what choices are right and wrong.
Unit 5 Discussion
Post and respond to the following topics on the course discussion board, and respond to other students' posts.
- Consider someone with unusual opinions or unusual goals in life, for example, someone who chooses never to marry. How does this person's decision relate to existentialist ethics (as in Sartre's radical freedom and radical responsibility)? How should this person behave toward people he or she dates? Explain your response.
- How would you weigh economic arguments in favor of same-sex marriage? For example, consider the argument that when people pair up and take care of each other in old age, it decreases financial burdens on our society and government as a whole. Or, consider a student who is applying to college and filling out their financial aid paperwork. If the student is the child of a same-sex couple, then is that student only obligated to report the lower income of one parent, because both parents are not legally married? Is this fair to other students who must report the income of their opposite-sex married parents who need the same financial aid resources?
- Should the state be able to involve itself in cases where citizens, who are adults and who are able to give informed consent, choose to harm themselves? For example, note the different state policies on physician assisted suicide/euthanasia. Explain your response.
Unit 5 Assessment
- Receive a grade
Take this assessment to see how well you understood this unit.
- This assessment does not count towards your grade. It is just for practice!
- You will see the correct answers when you submit your answers. Use this to help you study for the final exam!
- You can take this assessment as many times as you want, whenever you want.