Lecture 11 Notes

Wraping Up Aristotle, Introducing Aquinas

Plan of the Lecture

I.    An Important Remark
II.   Some Disturbing Suggestions
III. The Internal Nature of Friendship
IV.   Some Closing Remarks on Aristotle
V.   Introduction to Thomas Aquinas

I. An Important Remark

"And so too, it seems, should one make a return to those with whom one has studied philosophy; for their worth cannot be measured against money, and they can get no honor which will balance their services, but still it is perhaps enough, as it is with the gods and with one’s parents, to give them what one can."

-IX.1

II. Some Disturbing Suggestions

A. Friendship between Unequals: Differences in Virtue

"In all friendships implying inequality, the love should be proportional, i.e. the better should be more loved than he loves, and so should the more useful...for when the love is in proportion to the merit of the parties, then in a sense arises equality, which is certainly held to be characteristic of friendship" (VIII.7)

"But if one friend remained the same while the other became better and far outstripped him in virtue, should the latter treat the former as a friend. Surely he cannot. When the interval is great this becomes most plain, e.g. in childish friendships; if one remained a child .. while the other became a fully developed [adult] how could they be friends when they neither approved of the same things nor delighted in and were pained by the same things?" (IX.3)

Aristotle has a point, particularly about the possibility of friendship between a grown-up and a child.
While Aristotle argues that inequality always gets in the way, this seems to ignore important possibilities: love from someone better can be enobling love. It can also call one to higher things.
Does Aristotle ignore friendship based on shared history?

B. Friendship Between Unequals: Friendship with God

Aristotle writes, "when one party is removed to a great distance, as God is, the possibility of friendship ceases" (VIII.7).
This claim contradicts the experience of many people of great sanctity.

C. Worth recalling the world in which Aristotle lives

His world was one in which human excellence was highly prized: athletic excellence, physical beauty, military valor.
It was a world in which great and heroic deeds live on in stories.
It was an aristocratic world in which heroes are above anyone else. That a hero could be a friend of someone ordinary was unthought. How many of you come from such a world?
Aristotle's ideas about friendship and love owe nothing to gospel ideals, e.g., "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me" (Matt. 25.40, KJV) and "love your enemies, bless them that curse you" (Matt. 5.44, KJV).

D. Aristotle got lots of things right

The "Disturbing Suggestions" show the problems with Aristotle's view; Christian ethics will be an improvement.
To see this, look at "Internal Nature of Friendship".

III. The Internal Nature of Friendship (Book 9)

A. Importance of the Internal Nature of Friendship OR Friendships are Like Cars

Do not choose one because you look good with it. Do not choose one because it reinforces illusions about yourself. Do not treat one like a rental or short-term lease. Do not choose one because it has a flashy body
Do attend to what's going on under the hood! Attend to your own and your friend’s inner life.

B. The Virtue of Self-Love

"Friendship is based on self-love": chapter 4. To be a good friend to others, you must be friend to yourself.

Friendship requires living together (chapter 12). You must take time with yourself, take inventory. If there are inner conflicts, resolve them.
Friendship requires knowing yourself, your desires, your faults and virtues.
Be kind to yourself: treat yourself as would a friend. The person who is friend to herself is not at odds with herself (IX.4). She takes pleasure in her own company; she doesn’t mind being alone (228). Bad people, by contrast, can’t bear own company (IX.4). The person who loves self takes pleasure in good qualities as exemplified in activities of a particular ("determinate" p. IX.4) life she knows intimately: her own.

Proper and Improper Self-Love: chapter 8. Friends value each other and wish good things for one another. What should we value in ourselves? Wish for ourselves?

Aristotle rightly condemns the selfish:"people who assign themselves the greater share of wealth, honors and bodily pleasure" (IX.8)
An account of proper self-love is more problemmatic:"assigns to himself what is noblest and best” and “those who busy themselves in an exceptional degree with noble actions" (IX.8)

But: excellence of sort Aristotle intends not open to many. What’s under the hood there?

C. The Virtue of Beneficence: chapter 7

Aristotle takes it for granted that there is greater pleasure in benefitting others than in being benefitted. The problem is how to account for this.
Aristotle’s answer shows limitations of his ethic. He only allows for two causes for the pleasure:

Those whom one benefits are products of craftsmanship: "This is what happens with craftsmen too; every man loves his own handiwork better than he would be loved if it came alive....This is what the position of benefactors is like; for that which they have treated well is their handiwork, and therefore they love this more than the handiwork does its maker." (IX.7)
Benefitting others is a noble action; nobility elicits pleasure.

Would Christianity give a different and better account? Would it even single out the same sorts of beneficent actions as most praiseworthy?

IV. Some Closing Remarks on Aristotle

A. Main Features of His View

While Plato's philosophy might be called a "Morality of Order", Aristotle’s defends what we might call a "Morality of Excellence".
He lived in a world that valued excellence, beauty, and heroism.
The good life, as Aristotle understood it, is a complete life. It includes activities which exemplify these values. This life, however, is available only to cultured, rich, male aristocrats.
We may disagree with Aristotle; but we cannot ignore him.

B. Four Reasons not to ignore Aristotle’s view

REASON #1: Plausible Ethic of Excellence. That the good life is found in pursuit of excellence is plausible. We have strong intuitions that something important lost if we lived in world that didn’t try to elicit excellence. So Aristotle’s ethic recognizes important, plausible human value.
REASON #2: Importance of the Virtues. Aristotle is correct to say that the pursuit of human excellence requires the cultivation of states of character. Thinking about one’s life as a project of developing one’s character has attractions.
REASON #3: The Discussion of Friendship. Aristotle has great insight into nature and needs of friendship, as well as great insights into virtues required for it. At a time of life when friendship especially important, it is especially salutary to be reminded of them.
REASON #4: Shortcomings of Pre-Christian View. We suggested that Aristotle falls short in self-love, beneficence. We wonder whether Christianity might do better. This sets the stage for the next great philosopher: Thomas Aquinas.

V. Introduction to Thomas Aquinas

A. The Method of Disputation

Thomas Aquinas employs what is, to us, an eccentric expository style.
His exposition takes the form of an elaborate set of arguments and counter-arguments. This can his own view hard to determine unless you read carefully.

B. Nuts and Bolts

Step One: He broaches a question.
Step Two: He divides the question into sub-questions called "articles". Notice, for example, Question 2: "Of those things in which happiness consists". This question is divided into two articles: art.1 "Whether happiness consists in wealth" and art. 2 "Whether in honor".
Each article poses a question Aquinas will answer.

Before defending his own view, he adduces 3 (or more) reasons called "objections" for thinking the contrary.
Then he adduces an authority (such as St. Paul or St. Augustine) agreeing with him.
Then he defends his own view, beginning "I answer that..."
Finally, he refutes the objections.

SO, in the example of Question 2: "Of those things in which happiness consists'. Article 1 "Whether happiness consists in wealth", we get: "objection 1: It would seem that man's happiness consists in wealth [for reason 1]...On the contrary...Boethius says...I answer that it is impossible for man's happiness to consist in wealth...[for the following reasons]...replies to objections...
The best thing to do when reading Thomas Aquinas is to read "I answer that..." first, then read the rest.

Citation: Weithman, P. (2006, September 19). Lecture 11 Notes. Retrieved November 23, 2009, from Notre Dame OpenCourseWare Web site: http://ocw.nd.edu/philosophy/introduction-to-philosophy/lectures/lecture-11-notes.