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Aristotle's Ethical Framework: Habit as the Foundation for Good Life

Introduction

In the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle claims that happiness is a state of living that meets all human needs, an “absolute ultimate goal” of all other aims, and is always valued for the good in itself. He further argues that the true happiness, as the ultimate good among humans, lies in the lifelong exercise of the virtues of the soul. This raises a key question: how is happiness developed through actions and exercises? This essay argues that the development of happiness will be structured in a two-part framework: habituation as the foundation, and wisdom as the completion and perfection. While practicing good habits provides the necessary groundwork for happiness, the sole dependence on habituation is insufficient to achieve the highest good. Wisdom is required to integrate with habits to attain the full expression of virtuous activities, which is the good life itself.

The Roles of Good Will and Duty in Kant's Ethics

The will is “the faculty of acting” within human beings , and the good will is the will to act merely in accordance with a universal principle of moral goodness. Kant claims that the good will possesses an absolute moral worth in itself. Any form of external metrics, such as actual utility or consequences, are much insufficient to determine the worth of a good will, nor could they drive even the slightest deviation from its intrinsic value.