Essay on Life’s Moral Character - 1063 Words

Life’s Moral Character Virtue is a state that decides consisting in a mean, which is relative to us; it is a mean between two vices, one of excess and one of deficiency. In the book, Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle uses his collection of lecture notes to establish the best way to live and acquire happiness. According to Aristotle, to live a happy life, you must obtain these to become morally good. Defining virtue and choice with the â€Å"doctrine of the mean† will guide our choices and build up moral character. When we follow this guide of choices can a series of good choices change a vicious character? Aristotle states that the human function is the life activity of the part of the soul that has reason and I will try to explain those†¦show more content†¦129). According to Aristotle, moral virtue is a means to an end, happiness. Aristotle maintains virtues are formed by repetitions. It is by doing just acts that a just man is produced. And by doing just acts without the kind of habit formation â€Å"no one would have even the prospect of being good.† (N.E. 40) Aristotle believes to make a citizen good he has to form good habits which can form virtues. Aristotle holds the view that the goal of a human life is to be happy. He rationalizes this to be so because humans, unlike plants and animals, hold the ability to reason (N.E. 129). Aristotle claims moral virtue becomes a result of habit. Aristotle relates moral virtue with nature. Nature has a certain course of action, which must be followed. Anything contradicting the course of nature would be classified as non-uniform. Aristotle views choice in relation to the end or good of all our actions which he defines as â€Å"eudemonia† or happiness. The attainment of happiness depends upon the acquisition of specific virtues which are attained through practice and which enable the human being to function in its proper way or nature. He defines choice as a â€Å"deliberate appetition† which involve s a dispositional directedness toward some end (a good or apparent good) and the rational deliberation of how to achieve that end (N.E. 205). These are actions that are done in the spur of the moment. These things are driven by desire and spirit and not what we would normally callShow MoreRelatedYouth Sports and Character Development3975 Words   |  16 PagesYouth Sports and Character Development Introduction Character development is not something that can be gained or developed over night. Character development is the multiple life skills that an individual builds within themself throughout their lifespan. When a person develops good character in their early years of life, they will benefit in the long run because they used the life skills they gained and put them to use, becoming a successful individual in all aspects of life. There is one thingRead MoreMoral Destruction in the Great Gatsby Essay918 Words   |  4 PagesThe Great Gatsby: The Destruction of Morals In The Great Gatsby, the author F. Scott Fitzgerald shows the destruction of morals in society. The characters in this novel, all lose their morals in attempt to find their desired place in the social world. They trade their beliefs for the hope of being acceptance. Myrtle believes she can scorn her true social class in an attempt to be accepted into Tons, Jay Gatsby who bases his whole life on buying love with wealth, and Daisy, who instead of marryingRead MoreEssay Moral Destruction In The Great Gatsby893 Words   |  4 Pages The Great Gatsby: The Destruction of Morals nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;In The Great Gatsby, the author F. Scott Fitzgerald shows the destruction of morals in society. The characters in this novel, all lose their morals in attempt to find their desired place in the social world. They trade their beliefs for the hope of being acceptance. Myrtle believes she can scorn her true social class in an attempt to be accepted into Tons, Jay Gatsby who bases his whole life on buying love with wealth, andRead MoreValue of Life: Priceless Essay640 Words   |  3 Pagesleast once in a lifetime. The answer is not a definite one. Everyone has various beliefs and morals; this makes manifesting life’s value into a definite answer a daunting task. I believe every individual holds a personal value of life, each of us appreciate different aspects of life more than other. Life is priceless. There is no specific value that can be placed upon it. There is no way to weigh a life’s worth. Sure you can calculate a person’s economic wo rth or their career, but a career isn’t aRead MoreThings Fall Apart Critical Lens Essay829 Words   |  4 Pagesa literature, in most cases, parallels life’s mysteries. As Ernest Hemingway put it, â€Å"To be truly memorable, a book must have at its core one of life’s great quests: the quest for love, truth, or power.† In other words, the very heart of a text must show its readers the pursuit of self-fulfillment. Things Fall Apart, by Chinua Achebe, reveals through the customs and traditions of Ibo culture, as well as the choices and consequences made by each character that a body of work is only worthwhileRead MoreIn The Great Gatsby, Nick Carraway as the Foil, Protagonist, and Narrator596 Words   |  3 Pagesmorality, he is able to function as the foil for many of the characters in The Great Gatsby. Gatsby is dreamy and passionate, while Nick is realistic and practical. Nick is morally sound and ethical, while the rest of the occupants of the Eas t and West Egg are reprobate and corrupt. Nick says, â€Å"Conduct may be founded on the hard rock or the wet marshes† (Fitzgerald 1), and by this he means that behavior may be based on good and steadfast morals, or on loose and erroneous ones. Although Nick becomesRead MoreThe Great Gatsby And The American Dream Essay1073 Words   |  5 Pagesneeds. In addition, both authors similarly present the American Dream as a corrupting obsession that leads to the sacrifice of moral values in order to convey the need for balance for those who desire to obtain the American Dream . Gatsby’s American Dream of finally obtaining Daisy’s love contrasts with Willy’s American Dream of financial success, leaving both characters to sacrifice important needs in their life to obtain this dream. Through this behavior, the authors illustrate how they are notRead MoreEssay On Similarities Between Araby And A P1046 Words   |  5 Pagesidentical literary traits from each character which are the protagonist. The main point of the two is that they revolve around a young male who is pressured by his conscience to untangle the difference between the harsh reality and the fantasies of romance that play in his head. The young man does indeed recognize the difference is what turns him in the direction of an emotional catastrophe. One of the comparisons between the stories is the fact that the primary character, which is also the protagonistRead MoreThe Ethics And Morals Of A Doll s House Essay1559 Words   |  7 Pagesnineteenth-century European society’s moral, laws, and social structures for their deleterious effects on freedom, happiness, and self-determination. Specifically, the characters of Nora, Krogstad, Torvald, Dr. Rank, and Mrs. Linde lack freedom and happiness because of society’s backwards gender roles, moral righteousness, and an excessive concern with vanity; all of these characters’ lives are shaped by circumstance, not choice. By the novel’s conclusion, the ethics and morals of a discriminatory societyRead MoreEssay on Who Am I?825 Words   |  4 Pagesand subjects. In doing so, he is able to determine just how much of his â€Å"character† was a result of nature, and how much was a byproduct of society. So, using Montaigne’s idea of self-examination , is it really possible to truly know who we are? How might we go about figuring it out? And what is it that truly shapes us today? People define themselves in many different ways: I am (my name), I am (my job position), I am (my life’s experiences), etc. With so many different means of classification, it

Essay on Shakespeares Macbeth is a Tragic Hero - 1170 Words

In the late 16th century and early 17th century, no playwright was better known than William Shakespeare. He was especially known for many famous tragedies. When Shakespeare wrote these plays he took many key aspects into account to create as much of an impact as possible on the reader or the audience. Macbeth, for example, is about one man, Macbeth who does what he thinks is necessary to become king but dies tragically due to his judgement. In this play, Shakespeare communicates how Macbeths destiny can be changed depending on how he deals with his predicted future, in other words, his fate versus his free will. Macbeth makes many foolish decisions throughout his life like believing evil and supernatural†¦show more content†¦This prophecy comes true because not only do the witches deliver deceptive prophecies to Macbeth near the end of the play, but when Macbeth is told he will be king, he feels he needs to kill the king (Duncan) after Duncan declares Malcolm to be his successor to the throne. This could be interpreted in a way by Macbeth that he must kill Duncan and set up Malcolm for the death for the prophecy to come true, which would make the witches partially responsible for Duncan?s death and eventually the death of Macbeth. Now, not only does Macbeth believe he has to kill Duncan to become king, but he also feels compelled by Lady Macbeth who endlessly encourages him to kill Duncan. Plotting the death of Duncan takes Macbeth into a state of deterioration, and the encouragement by Lady Macbeth doesn?t help. In the time period the play was written, women were not nearly as powerful as men. In the play, Lady Macbeth has power over Macbeth and Macbeth may take this as a challenge, seeing he is viewed as a warrior by many. She talks to him trying to prove that her viewpoint is correct and it will help in the long run. ?Art thou afeared / To be the same in thine own act and valor / As thou art in desire (1.7.43-45). In this quote, Lady Macbeth feels that her husband is a coward if he doesn?t kill the king. After Macbeth finally kills the king Macbeth alienates himselfShow MoreRelatedEssay on Shakespeares Macbeth is a Tragic Hero956 Words   |  4 PagesMacbeth is a Tragic Hero  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚        Ã‚  Ã‚   Shakespeares tragic hero is a man of noble birth who falls from a position of honor and respect due to a flaw in his character. He freely chooses a course of action which ultimately causes him suffering and brings him to a fatal end.(Campbell 129) Macbeth is the epitome of a tragic hero who rises high then falls rock bottom to his death. Macbeth, once a noble man, follows the advice of witches, finds himself King, abuses his power and then gets killedRead MoreEssay on Shakespeares Macbeth as Tragic Hero623 Words   |  3 PagesShakespeares Macbeth as Tragic Hero      Ã‚  Ã‚   Shakespeares Macbeth follows the journey of nobleman Macbeth that starts with him as Thane of Glamis and ends with him as King of Scotland. Macbeth is a tragic hero because he possesses all the traits that Aristotle outlined in his poetics. He said that the tragic hero must be a man that is higher than mortal worth, but has tragic flaws. Aristotle also stated that the flaws will lead to great suffering and usually death; the cause being fateRead MoreMacbeth as a Tragic Hero in Willian Shakespeares Macbeth2662 Words   |  11 PagesMacbeth as a Tragic Hero in Willian Shakespeares Macbeth Two and a half thousand years ago, Aristotle defined a tragedy as an imitation of an action that is serious, complete and of a certain magnitude. Two thousand years later, Shakespeare reincarnated this and other classical principles in the form of his four great tragedies; Hamlet, Othello, King Lear and Macbeth. Aristotle laid down some elements which he and other classical theorists seemed to think necessaryRead More Shakespeares Macbeth as Tragic Hero Essay examples872 Words   |  4 PagesMacbeth as Tragic Hero      Ã‚  Ã‚   Aristotle defined a tragic character is a man who â€Å"falls into misfortune through some flaw. (Grube, 5) Shakespeares tragic hero is a man who falls from his position of honor and respect due to a flaw in character and ultimately arrives at a fatal end. (Nostbakken, 2) Macbeth is an epitome of a tragic hero. He had a good nature, but was driven by greed and a quest for power. Macbeth had been a military hero,   loved and praised by the people, but his blind ambitionRead MoreEssay about Shakespeares Macbeth is a Tragic Hero1762 Words   |  8 PagesMacbeth is a Tragic Hero In many respects Macbeth, of Shakespeare’s play Macbeth is the least admirable tragic hero of literature. Typical tragic heroes have at least a few admirable character traits. One may, or may not like the hero, but there is something in their characters or their situation on which one can hang some sympathy, even if there is not enough for us to rationalize away their actions. But Macbeth is a mass murderer, who does away with friends, colleagues, womenRead MoreEssay on Shakespeares Macbeth as a Tragic Hero1087 Words   |  5 PagesMacbeth as a Tragic Hero According to the Greek philosopher Aristotle, The best tragic plot moves the hero from prosperity to misfortune, occasioned not by depravity, but by some great mistake he makes. The plot of Macbeth follows these basic guidelines; throughout the play we follow the path of the main character as his life is torn apart as a result of the colossal mistake he makes when he kills Duncan. It is for this and the many ensuing reasons that we can say that Macbeth accuratelyRead MoreEssay on Shakespeares Macbeth - The Tragic Hero717 Words   |  3 PagesMacbeth - The Tragic Hero      Ã‚  Ã‚   Every true Elizabethan Tragedy comes complete with a tragic hero.   The tragedy Macbeth, written by William Shakespeare, has a perfect example of a tragic hero, otherwise known as Macbeth.   A tragic hero must be a man who is great and admirable in various ways.   He should be placed in society in such a way that everything he does affects all of the members of his society.   A tragic hero should at some point reach the top of Fortune’s Wheel, but land upRead More Shakespeares Macbeth as Tragic Hero Essay680 Words   |  3 PagesMacbeth as Tragic Hero      Ã‚  Ã‚   A tragic hero is usually a person of high esteem or social ranking cursed with a flaw or obsession that will eventually lead to their demise. Macbeth is a tragic hero. Examining the events that occur as Macbeth travels the typical path of a tragic hero easily supports this claim.    Before Macbeth is even introduced to the audience, Duncan and Ross speak of his greatness. When it is discovered that the Thane of Cawdor has surrendered, Duncan decides to giveRead More Aristotles Tragic Hero in Shakespeares Macbeth Essay examples1044 Words   |  5 PagesAristotles Tragic Hero in Macbeth      Ã‚  Ã‚   Aristotle and Shakespeare lived ages apart, but Aristotle had a great affect on Shakespeares plays. In Shakespeare’s tragic play, Macbeth, the character of Macbeth is consistent with Aristotles definition of the tragic hero.    Aristotles tragic hero is a man who is characterized by good and evil. He is a mixture of good characteristics and bad characteristics. For example, Macbeth was an honorable Thane of Glamis. He was a valiant fighterRead MoreMacbeth as a Tragic Hero in William Shakespeares Play Essay935 Words   |  4 PagesMacbeth as a Tragic Hero in William Shakespeares Play The play ‘Macbeth’ by William Shakespeare charts the rise and fall of the Scottish general Macbeth, through a tale of treachery, deceit and death. First performed in 1606 ‘Macbeth’ is inspired by a story of the Scottish monarchy. A tragic hero is one who at the outset is not wholly good or bad but has a character fault that causes them to make tragic mistakes resulting in their eventual downfall. ‘Macbeth’ is a renaissance