Extemporaneous musings, occasionally poetic, about life in its richly varied dimensions, especially as relates to history, theology, law, literature, science, by one who is an attorney, ordained minister, historian, writer, and African American.
Sunday, July 9, 2017
NICHOMACHEAN ETHICS, EXCERPT
"Now the proud man, since he deserves most, must be good in the highest degree; for the better man always deserves more , and the best man most. Therefore the truly proud man must be good. And greatness in every virtue would seem to be characteristic of a proud man. And it would be most unbecoming for a proud man to fly from danger , swinging his arms by his sides , or to wrong another; for what end should he do disgraceful acts, he to whom nothing is great? If we consider him point by point, we should see the utter absurdity of a proud man who is not good. Nor, again, would he be worthy of honor if he were bad; for honor is the prize of virtue, and it is to the good that it is rendered. Pride, then, seems to be a sort of crown of the virtues; for it makes them greater, and it is not found without them. Therefore it is hard to be truly proud; for it is impossible without nobility and goodness of character ."
P.992, "Nichomachean Ethics, BASIC WORKS OF ARISTOTLE (1941, 2001)