The Undergraduate Center
PHL101 Triton College
Introduction to Philosophy Dr. John Wager
Reading Assignment

The Moral and Intellectual Virtues according to Aristotle

I. Moral Virtues:
Category:  Deficient Vice: 
( "too little") 		 Virtue: 
("just right") 		 Excess Vice: 
("too much") 
A.    Of Fear/Confidence: 

1. for fear: 
2. for confidence: 

 No Name 
Cowardice 		 Courage 
Courage 		 Cowardice 
Rashness 
B.    Of Pleasure/Pain: 

1. for pleasure: 
2. for pain: 

 Insensibility 
No Name 		 Temperance 
Temperance 		 Self-Indulgence 
No Name 
C.    Taking/Spending $: (ordinary sums) 

1. for taking $: 
2. for spending $: 

 prodigality 
meanness 		 Liberality 
Liberality 		 meanness 
prodigality 
D.    Taking/Spending $: (extraordinary sums) 

1. for taking $: 
2. for spending $: 

 Vulgarity 
Niggardliness 		 Magnificence 
Magnificence 		 Niggardliness 
Vulgarity 
E.    Honor/Humility: (truly great persons)  Undue Humility  Proper Pride  Vanity 
F.    Honor/Humility: 
(ordinary persons) 
Unambitiousness 		 Accurate 
Self-Knowledge 		 Over- 
Ambitiousness 
G.    Anger:  Inirascibility  Good Tempter  Irascibility 
 (1. Hot; 2. Choleric; 
3. Sulky: and 
4. Bad temper.) 
The last three "virtues of social intercourse" are less central. 
H.    How much you talk about yourself:  Mock Modesty  Truthfulness  Boastfulness 
I.    How pleasant your are to talk with:  Boorishness  Ready Wit  Buffoonery 
J.    How much of a real friend you are:  Quarrelsomness  Friendliness  Obsequiousness 
or Flattery 
There are other things that don't fit as well, but are still are matters of "balance." 
K.    Indignation at others' fortune: Spite 
("injustice") 		 Righteous 
Indignation 
("justice") 		 Envy 
("injustice") 

How to tell if you are balanced: Having the virtue (1). at the "right time;" (2).with reference to the "right objects;" (3). towards the "right people;" (4). in the "right way;" (5) for the "right length of time." Example: Angry at the right time, over the right cause, with the right person, in the right way, and for the right amount of time. If any of these are excessive or deficient, you won't be as happy as you could have been.

You can be a little 'vicious' or a lot. For example: a "hot" tempered person occasionally gets angry at the wrong time, or with the wrong person, or about the wrong cause, but he releases that anger in the right way, and gets rid of it quickly (the right length of time), so his excessive temper is not a severe problem. A "choleric" tempered person gets angry at the wrong time, or with the wrong person, or about the wrong cause, but he is also doing this constantly with somebody. And a "sulky" tempered person is also being angry at the wrong time, over the wrong thing, with the wrong person, but also in the wrong way and for the wrong length of time.
 
 

II. Intellectual Virtues:

 (You can't have "too much" of these, only "too little" to be really happy. The more you have of them, the better off--the happier-- you are.)
Category:  Ability: 
A.    "Scientific Understanding"  Understanding of the material world
B.    "Art"  The ability to make things 
C.    "Practical Wisdom"  "Judgement," "Common Sense." 
D.    "Intuitive reason" "Insight" into basic truths 
E.    "Philosophic wisdom"  Combines science and intuition 

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