The Nicomachean Ethics

The Nicomachean Ethics

Summary

A profound examination of the nature of happiness by one of the giants of ancient Greek philosophy

In The Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle argues that happiness consists in 'activity of the soul in accordance with virtue' - for example, with moral virtues, such as courage, generosity and justice, and intellectual virtues, such as knowledge, wisdom and insight. The Ethics also discusses the nature of practical reasoning, the value and the objects of pleasure, the different forms of friendship and the relationship between individual virtue, society and the State. Aristotle's work has had a lasting influence on all subsequent Western thought about ethical matters.

Translated by J. A. K. Thomson
Revised with Notes and Appendices by Hugh Tredennick
Introduction and Bibliography by Jonathan Barnes

About the author

Aristotle

Aristotle was born in the Macedonian city of Stagira in 384 BC, and died in 322. He studied in Plato's Academy in Athens and later became tutor to Alexander the Great, before establishing his own school in Athens, called the Lyceum. His writings, which were of extraordinary range, profoundly affected the whole course of ancient, medieval and modern philosophy. Many of them have survived, including The Nicomachean Ethics, The Politics and Poetics, among others.
Learn More

Sign up to the Penguin Newsletter

For the latest books, recommendations, author interviews and more