[Music] book one of Nicomachean ethics is broken into 13 sections in section one aristotle asserts that every craft line of inquiry and every action seeks some good an ultimate end or goal within categories some pursuits are better than others pursuing actions supporting the higher goal is also good in section 2 what the good ends outcomes are for individuals who seek the best good in their areas of interest will logically also be the good ends that are the best goods for a city or community Aristotle considers political science the highest ruling science in section 3 Aristotle explains how individuals who are experts in their area of interest are good judges in that area but the unqualified good judge is the person educated in every area this is older and more experienced people and they should usually study political science young people are driven by emotions while older people have likely learned to accord with reason in forming their desires but his guidelines can't apply to every imaginable circumstance a caveat with which Immanuel Kant will later take issue in his critique of Pure Reason in Section 4 happiness means something different to Aristotle than it might to the modern reader most people agree that the greatest good is happiness however they do not agree on the definition of happiness for the readers to have common ground they need to have a similar understanding of basic principles a principle is a fundamental belief providing a foundation for further discovery he addresses Plato's view that there is some other good that exists in its own right in Aristotle's view the good has to be applicable in the real world and cannot exist outside of human states and actions except with the gods whom he mentions in later sections in Section 5 Aristotle lists three different concepts of happy lives lives of gratification political activity or study average or vulgar people find happiness in gratification also honor is dependent on others opinions to be the true good in section 6 true good according to Aristotle needs to apply to real situations in life to different virtues and in different the good cannot be some common and single Universal and it does not need to last eternally and has to be achievable by humans since the idea of good is beyond human reach Aristotle argues against Plato's idea that goodness is a single property goods whether possessions actions her ways of being are too diverse to be distilled into one form in section seven Aristotle explains how the good he's searching for must be the most complete good seems to be happiness since happiness is self-sufficient meaning a person does not seek happiness to try to accomplish something else to determine the highest good for a human being Aristotle says he needs to discuss the human function and concludes that it is the activity of the soul in accord with reason someone who performs this function well or in accord with virtue has achieved the highest human good the good is the human tail offs the one key to happiness in Section eight he divides goods into three types external goods goods of the soul and goods of the body there are some truths that are not disputable and the ultimate good will be found in actions or activities Aristotle then examines how thoughtful people define happiness happiness requires resources like health wealth friends and family because they help a virtuous person engage in virtuous actions in Section nine happiness requires learning and attention people need both complete virtue and a complete life because a life that ends miserably will not be happy in Section ten can someone achieve happiness during his lifetime since fortunes change yes Aristotle decides if he maintains a good character and does virtuous actions all his life in Section 11 Aristotle addresses how someone's legacy can change after death while the fortunes of a person's descendants may affect their happiness after they die the effect will be too small to cause worry in Section 12 is happiness praiseworthy your honorable people are praised for their achievements actions and characters happiness is not praised but it is congratulated and admired thus happiness must be better and more godlike than other virtues in Section 13 Aristotle breaks down the two parts of the soul into rational and non rational the non rational soul has two parts including a plant-like element which is the capacity for nutrition and growth shared with every human being and an impulse somewhat like reason that controls appetites and desires desire needs to yield the reason while reason needs to recognize desire aristotle considers the whole human being as a thinker with goals and an animal with appetites the greek term for the ultimate end or purpose is Talos which someone is designed to do or the way they are designed to live teh loss is not the same as a goal although goals can be motivated by it you