Aristotle's Ethics (SparkNotes Literature Guide) (Paperback)

by Aristotle (Author), SparkNotes Editors (Author) "1 Every craft and every line of inquiry, and likewise every action and decision, seems to seek some good; that is why some people were..." (more)
Key Phrases: state involving reason, incontinent person, more choiceworthy, Good Itself (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Very useful as a cornerstone for our discussion of ethics and the Western moral tradition. The translation is elegant."--Dominic A. Aquila, Rochester Institute of Technology
"A fine translation of an essential classic in the field of ethics."--Claudia Card, University of Wisconsin
"The index is extremely helpful. The 'contents' are also a helpful tool. The numbering and division titles also make this book a little easier to teach."--Rose Marie Surwilo, College of St. Francis
"Very useful text of Aristotle: the translation presents no pitfalls to a beginning student; the editor's organization is useful but unitrusive; and finally, the cost is perfect."--Nickolas O. Papas, Hollins College
"An excellent translation and edition."--Winfield J.C. Myers, University of Georgia
"Most lucid and accessible edition popularly available." --John L. Hemingway, Washington State University
--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Review

"Very useful as a cornerstone for our discussion of ethics and the Western moral tradition. The translation is elegant."--Dominic A. Aquila, Rochester Institute of Technology
"A fine translation of an essential classic in the field of ethics."--Claudia Card, University of Wisconsin
"The index is extremely helpful. The 'contents' are also a helpful tool. The numbering and division titles also make this book a little easier to teach."--Rose Marie Surwilo, College of St. Francis
"Very useful text of Aristotle: the translation presents no pitfalls to a beginning student; the editor's organization is useful but unitrusive; and finally, the cost is perfect."--Nickolas O. Papas, Hollins College
"An excellent translation and edition."--Winfield J.C. Myers, University of Georgia
"Most lucid and accessible edition popularly available."--John L. Hemingway, Washington State University
--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: SparkNotes; Study Guide edition (June 13, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 158663822X
• ISBN-13: 978-1586638221
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.1 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.5 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (41 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #993,529 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

113 of 131 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful translation, July 25, 2001

By	Paper Doll - See all my reviews

This review is from: Nicomachean Ethics: Aristotle (Paperback)

It is more than a little amusing to see reviewers stumbling over their tongues to comment on Aristotle. Volumes--no, entire libraries--have been dedicated to Aristotelian commentary. I doubt any prospective Amazon buyer cares what Joe Smith from Anytown, USA thinks of Aristotle. What would be helpful is an assessment of the particular translations.

Hands down, Martin Ostwald's is, in my opinion, the best available. Well-annotated, with no interpretive essay to clutter the text, Ostwald immerses himself in the Athenian moral vocabulary, to our great benefit. Especially worthwhile is the glossary of oft-used, untranslatable ethical terms at the end of the book. Here, Ostwald clearly shows that the Greeks could convey in scant semantic space what it takes us an entire paragraph to even approximately explain.

56 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Art of Living, August 19, 2000

By	"brianap1" (Southern California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Nicomachean Ethics (Oxford World's Classics) (Paperback)

"Every art or applied science and every systematic investigation, and similarly every action and choice, seem to aim at some good; the good, therefore, has been well defined as that which all things aim."

In his Ethics, Aristotle does little more than to search for and examine the "good." Aristotle examines the virtues and vices of man in all of his faculties.

Aristotle refers to three types of lives, the common life, the political life, and the contemplative life, to which he assigns the highest order. Certainly, this is the most difficult life. Similar to Plato, Aristotle believed that "the unexamined life is a life not worth living." Aristotle does nothing other to examine the life of man and what is the best life to live.

Unlike Plato, you do not need to read the entire work to walk away with some useful insight into life. Though the over 100 chapters, divided into ten books, flow and build upon each other, you can read just one of them and be benefited. Aristotle covers many different subjects such as the good, morals, virtue, vice, courage, generosity, justice, intelligence, art, science, friendship, love, pleasure, and pain.

I can not say enough for the depth of insight Aristotle has into living the good life. Nicomachean Ethics is well written and presented in a clear manner that should be accessible to most readers. This is a must read for everyone.

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Book that Created Ethics; Don't Miss It!, February 25, 1998

By	[e-mail] (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Nicomachean Ethics (World's Classics) (Paperback)

The Nicomachean Ethics is the first systematic description of an ethical system. It has the clearest formulation of the questions that Ethics asks: 1. How should we live? 2. Why? 3. Why is that best? Aristotle's answer to 1. is that we should avoid extremes, because (answering 2.) every extreme is evil, and (answering 3.) since the opposite of any extreme is itself an evil extreme, we must therefore avoid extremes. The book has been read by every serious ethical philosopher since history began. Because of this, every serious ethical work can (and should) be read as a dialogue with Aristotle, as he sets the rules, and then challenges, "I know of no good that crosses all the categories . . . but in each category there is one particular good." Kant's Foundations of the Metaphysics of Morals is an attempt to find a normative good that crosses all categories, a "categorical imperative." Likewise Bentham's discussion of what has come to be called utilitarian ethics. Really, a most important book.