Plato And Aristotle: A Virtue Analysis

In order to better understand the concept of Virtue ethics it is necessary to analyze certain philosophers. These philosophers are Socrates through Plato, and Aristotle. There are three branches of normative ethics, and virtue ethics composes one of them; unlike deontology and consequentialism, virtue ethics focuses on the moral character of the individual, hence the name virtue – ethics (Hursthouse). Even though Aristotle’s and Plato’s approach to ethics, are that of virtue ethics, their points of view are not similar. In order to further understand the previous statement, it is necessary to analyze certain concepts from both philosophers. To understand Platonic virtue it is necessary to comprehend the following. First, one must understand his division of the soul and how this relates to an individual’s character. Second, one must grasp the importance of moderation, according to Plato, and third, the importance of the Good and how this allows Plato’s approach to ethics to be univocal. In Aristotle one must first understand what three elements compose (the soul and) an individual and how this relates to character. A similar analysis must be done, in order to understand the importance of moderation in Aristotelean ethics and finally the importance of friendship and justice. Through an in depth analysis of both, Plato and …show more content…
Plato makes it clear that it is not simple to control our appetites, this where both reason and the spirit are of great importance. Reason is the most important area of the soul, in relation to virtue, because it allows one to be able to identify what is wrong and right; the spirit interlinks with this, now that to a certain extent it could be considered to be the desire to do right. In the Republic, Socrates not only brings to awareness what makes a just city, but also a just and virtuous