Overview
This lecture continues the exploration of Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics by examining the contemplative life and the money-making life as conceptions of happiness.
The Contemplative Life
- The contemplative life is devoted to rational contemplation and philosophical thinking for its own sake.
- Happiness, in this view, is found in the activity of understanding reality and seeking knowledge, not in practical action.
- Contemplation includes philosophical, scientific, or theological thinking aimed at comprehending truth.
- The goal of contemplative activity is knowledge for its own sake, not as a means to another end.
- Aristotle does not comment here on whether contemplation is truly the highest form of happiness.
The Money-Making Life
- The money-making life treats the accumulation of wealth as the ultimate goal and the highest good.
- In this way of life, all activities and pleasures are reduced to means for acquiring more money.
- Aristotle criticizes this view, arguing money is only a means to other goods, not an end in itself.
- True happiness includes the proper use of money but does not equate happiness with wealth.
- Those who do not use money well are not happy; wealth must serve actual goods.
Key Terms & Definitions
- Contemplation — The activity of thinking aimed at knowledge for its own sake, not for practical ends.
- Philosophical Life — A life dedicated to contemplative activity and understanding reality.
- Money-Making Life — A way of life that prioritizes wealth accumulation as the highest good.
- Highest Good (Eudaimonia) — The ultimate end or purpose of human life, often equated with happiness in Aristotle's philosophy.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Review Aristotle's arguments about the contemplative and money-making lives.
- Reflect on examples of contemplative or money-driven pursuits in contemporary life.