Kants and Aristotles Ethics Essay -- Philosophy, Philosophers

To be good is good but it has to be done for the right reason. Aristotle and Kant are two famous philosophers who have different ethical theories. The theory’s of virtue and duties rest not only on laws and obligations but from what comes from the inside. Morality comes from inner strength, character and how we live our life to the best end. Aristole 384-322 b.c.e. Aristotle conceptualized the branches of philosophy and contributed to the theories in logic, metaphysics, ethics and political philosophy (book 237). Aristotle’s teleological ethics: the reason for being. Aristotle focused on the peoples actions whether good or bad, as well as their character, not there right or wrong actions. Immanuel Kant (1724-1804) branches of philosophy included contributions to metaphysics, epistemology, ethics, and aesthetics. Kant's deontological ethics, a duty based ethics. His focus is on rational will and a conception of self-governing reason, and not what kind of person one should be (Betzler 7). The bases of Aristotle’s and Kant’s theories are different. Aristotle believes when you do something it comes from the virtues you have, while Kant believes there is always a reason behind actions. However, both agree â€Å"that time and practice is required to develop virtues† (betzler 50). Another thing they have in common is that both of them focused on peoples actions and why people performed those actions. Whether, it is happiness or good will we are all completing an action to the end; in order to have a good life. Aristotle’s Strength is his belief in moderation (Book480). Aristotle believes the ultimate goal in life is to be happy and people will do what makes them happy. He defined the highest good as â€Å"eudaimonia† (Chaffee 477). To a... ...n different ways to achieve an end. However, I believe that Kant’s theory is most likely correct because it includes everyone and not just what makes an individual happy. Although, Kant’s views are a bit extreme when it comes to rules, we all have to have rules to live by we cannot just go out and do what makes us happy. I do like the â€Å"Golden Rule† better mainly because that is what my great-grandmother us to tell me all the time and it is a good rule to live by. â€Æ' Works Cited Betzler, Monika. Kant's Ethics of Virtue. Berlin, DEU: Walter de Gruyter, 2008. Broadie, Sarah. Ethics with Aristotle. Cary, NC: Oxford University Press, 1993. Chaffee, John. The Philosopher's Way Thinking Critically About Profound Ideas. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2009. Kupperman, Joel. Ethics and Qualities of Life. Cary, NC: Oxford University Press, 2007.