Nicomachean Ethics
1558
- ethics
- early works to 1800
- morale ancienne
- ouvrages avant 1800
- filosofia grega
- filosofia antiga
- ética
- views on friendship
- aristotle
- éthique
The story
An detailed examination of what the best life might be for human beings. In order to anwer this question, Aristotle finds he also has to examine what virtue itself is and all of the various virtues that might make up the best life.
What it’s like
Dense, unhurried argument set in close early-modern print, with long paragraphs, numbered distinctions, and the slow rhythm of a mind working through a question rather than telling a story. The voice is patient and systematic, circling back to define terms, weighing opinions against one another, and building a picture of the good life one careful step at a time. Its mood is contemplative and steady, with a mild intellectual warmth whenever it turns to friendship, which it treats as one of the great goods of human life, and a calm conviction that happiness is learned through habit and reflection. Nothing is violent, frightening, or sexual; the only tension is the pleasure of an argument being tested and refined. Pacing is deliberate and cumulative, asking for attention and rereading rather than momentum. It suits a rainy Sunday, an early morning with coffee, or a quiet evening with a pencil ready for the margins. Best for readers who enjoy classical philosophy, slow reflective prose, and the particular feel of an old printed book.
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