The Ethics of Aristotle - Penn State Hazleton

The Ethics of Aristotlewhat it is, and what are its characteristics.Well, the Unjust has been divided into the unlawful andthe unequal, and the Just accordingly into the lawful and theequal: the aforementioned Injustice is in the way of the unlawful.And as the unequal and the more are not the same,but differing as part to whole (because all more is unequal,but not all unequal more), so the Unjust and the Injusticewe are now in search of are not the same with, but otherthan, those before mentioned, the one being the parts, theother the wholes; for this particular Injustice is a part of theInjustice co-extensive with Vice, and likewise this Justice ofthe Justice co-extensive with Virtue. So that what we havenow to speak of is the particular Justice and Injustice, andlikewise the particular Just and Unjust.Here then let us dismiss any further consideration of theJustice ranking as co-extensive with Virtue (being the practiceof Virtue in all its bearings towards others), and of theco-relative Injustice (being similarly the practice of Vice). Itis clear too, that we must separate off the Just and the Unjustinvolved in these: because one may pretty well say that mostlawful things are those which naturally result in action fromVirtue in its fullest sense, because the law enjoins the livingin accordance with each Virtue and forbids living in accordancewith each Vice. And the producing causes of Virtue inall its bearings are those enactments which have been maderespecting education for society.By the way, as to individual education, in respect of which aman is simply good without reference to others, whether it isthe province of [Greek: politikhae] or some other science wemust determine at a future time: for it may be it is not thesame thing to be a good man and a good citizen in every case.Now of the Particular Justice, and the Just involved in it,one species is that which is concerned in the distributions ofhonour, or wealth, or such other things as are to be sharedamong the members of the social community (because inthese one man as compared with another may have either anequal or an unequal share), and the other is that which isCorrective in the various transactions between man and man.[Sidenote: 1131a] And of this latter there are two parts:because of transactions some are voluntary and some involuntary;voluntary, such as follow; selling, buying, use, bail,borrowing, deposit, hiring: and this class is called voluntary110