Aristotle believes we practice good virtues for a greater reason, the superior aim in life is to achieve the supreme good, which is happiness. For Aristotle, happiness or fulfilment was the goal and purpose of life. In this understanding he meant more than just pleasure, he understood this in three different ways. First being happiness as a life of enjoyment of pleasure, second happiness as a free member of society, and last happiness as a philosopher. In order to achieve the eudaimonia, Aristotle believed that you had to practise skills or virtues to achieve happiness and live good lives.
For Socrates, upholding justice leads to this state, while for Epictetus, it is about being in accord with nature. For Epicurus, it is about maximizing pleasure through removing all pain. I will expound on these below. We will first consider how each philosopher views justice as a means to achieving the ideal human state. To Socrates, his action was right and thus he chose not to flee as he felt that upholding justice was very important and the most righteous and virtuous thing to do.
In theory or religiousness nature, when human are created, they were basically owned two rights. It is the right to life and the right to be loved that anyone also could not take away. Thus, whether any nation, they are ready to fight to get the right of life, the desire to live to realize dreams, their ambitions. Like in the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson said "That all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness”. Thomas Jefferson was very artful when stressed equality premise to mention to people’s three unalienable rights are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
The school of thought that you feed the most will win the tug of war between them and determine the path of fulfillment that you take. In order to be happy, in Epicurean ways, one first needs to understand the basic principals of the universe, and then they can be at ataraxia (peace of mind and sure confidence). Secondly, “All sensations are true” is an Epicurean saying meaning that there is no point seeking the sensations in life that are impossible, instead, one should find the sustainable pleasures in life. The reasoning behind this is if someone is seeking the greater pleasures in life and then when those pleasures are no longer existent, then, they will experience great anguish and unhappiness. So, by following the sustainable pleasures in life, one can be happy.
His idea of justice within society is a relatively equal society which benefits all. By having its members hidden under a “veil of ignorance” and naturally working under the fundamental principles of liberty and distributive justice, a society will benefit all of its individuals and grow as a whole to maximize potential. Rawls, in a way sees justice as the product of a progressing state of a balanced society. The more modern libertarian philosopher, Robert Nozick, carries a very different opinion of what justice is within a society. Unlike Rawls, Nozick sees flaws in the difference principle.
This leads Mill and Nietsche to believe that whatever they choose to do with their lives to make them happy, then that is their form of "right." In contrast, Aquinas would be the one to side with Aristotle because both philosophers are aiming towards reaching virtue and happiness in the end. Aquinas believes that law is nothing but reason for the common good, and that,if laws are obeyed, people will be led towards their happiness. This is similar to what Aristotle believes. He believes that people must do good to reach moral excellence (virtue), so if his and Aquinas's theories were combined, humans would reach virtue and happiness all together by obiding by the laws created for
This quotes says that Elvis Presley would believe in liberalism. He would believe that we should be an individual society free to do what we want, as long as we do not harm others. Elvis would believe in human rights, equality, and peace because his quote shows people should be
People assume that success, comfort, happiness, wealth and the wish to succeed is the American dream but when it was first created it was meant to be that “all men are created equal and that they are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable Rights including Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness” as stated in the constitution . The American Dream is about leaving behind whatever you were or weren't in your home country. None of that matters in the United States. What matters are your ambition, talent, and hard work, and rights as a living person. People of very humble beginnings who wouldn't have had a chance anywhere else became successful here.
For instance, Banneker’s uses Jefferson’s famous statement from the Declaration of Independence, “we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, and that they are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable rights, that amongst these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” to question the application and context of Jefferson’s words and concepts. Banneker seems to be using Jefferson’s words and ideas to argue his own perspective, but he does so in a respectful and thoughtful manner. I think this is an effective way to approach a disagreement with someone’s argument because it keeps the disagreement polite and civil. However, this style seems to subordinate off the original argument, preventing the introduction of new ideas. Instead, there is a different perspective on an existing argument.
Universalism is where people should uphold certain values, such honesty as well as other values that society needs in order to function correctly. Universal principles may be powerful and useful, however what people say, hope, or think they would do is often now what is actually done in the long run. Egoism is acceptable behavior which maximizes benefits for an individual “doing the right thing,’ the focus of moral philosophy is defined by egoism as “do the act that promotes the greatest good for oneself” (mhhe.com, Ethics and Corporate Responsibility). Utilitarianism, unlike egoism, seeks the greatest good for the greatest amount of people. Organizations seek the greats good for the largest amount of consumers they can supply to, increasing their need for product.