Aristotle’s Virtue Theory
The following lesson can be used to introduce students to the virtues. This lesson looks at the virtues through the philosophical lens of Aristotle, who believes that a virtue is a habit which lies in the golden mean between excess and deficit. While the works of Aristotle predate Christianity, this can be a good time to discuss how there are certain universal truths which can be reasoned to and are accessible to all, also known as natural law. Aristotle uses difficult terms to describe the excess and deficit of certain virtues, making this a good opportunity for students to expand their vocabulary. Play Opening Video: Aristotle and Virtue Theory: Crash Course Philosophy Say: If we take a good look at our daily lives, we will notice certain patterns in our behavior called habits. Habits are things that we do every day - intentionally and unintentionally. Some of these things are good and some are not so good. In the worlds of religion and philosophy, these good habits are called virtues and the bad habits are called vices. The idea of a “virtue” is something that has been studied and discussed for millennia. The philosopher Aristotle believed that a virtue was simply a well-balanced character trait. He said that it is possible to have “too much” or “too little” of a particular character trait, and that the “golden mean” of a particular trait is a virtue. For example, someone may have the character trait of being generous. Having “too little” of this character trait would make someone greedy or selfish, but having “too much” of this trait could lead someone to being taken advantage of by another. It is in finding the balance of this trait, knowing when and how to be generous, that one can find virtue. Complete the following worksheet to further explore Aristotle’s “Virtue Theory”. (Create a student worksheet from the following material.) Handout: Aristotle and Virtue Use the Word Bank to help you fill in the blanks that follow. Word Bank skepticism cowardice scrupulosity selfishness hope self-indulgence rashness authoritarianism justice Deficit Golden Mean (Average) Excess faith despair presumption charity (love) enablement prudence indecisiveness injustice fortitude stubbornness temperance Puritanicalism Answer Key: Deficit Golden Mean (Average) Excess skepticism faith scrupulosity despair hope presumption selfishness charity (love) enablement rashness prudence indecisiveness injustice justice authoritarianism cowardice fortitude stubbornness self-indulgence temperance Puritanicalism Creator Katy Wyle Curriculum Intern
