Opening with a meditation on the film "Act of Valor," which was put together by Navy SEALs and combat veterans of the Global War on Terror, the essay eventually turns to concepts of Aristotelian ethics as filtered through Romans like Tacitus and later Christians like Thomas Aquinas. I think that many of you will find that you enjoy reading it.
It does raise the point that the Roman influence really wants to cash this "virtue" talk in terms of "manliness." That's not true in the Greek, where the term is arete and means "excellence." There's no suggestion that this is an especially manly quality, or linked to manliness, even though all the same virtues are under consideration. That is if anything a difficulty today, as young feminists may be inclined to dismiss this ethical school out of the sense that it has nothing to say to them, and perhaps holds them in disdain. In fact, everyone needs courage and self-mastery, justice and practical wisdom. Those aren't qualities that can afford to be lost in translation.
One might ask why glory should be the reward of virtue. Why not self-satisfaction, or peace of mind? Aristotle opens by saying that the ends of ethics -- i.e. the study and pursuit of virtue -- shouldn't be honor, of which glory is a form. This is because people can be unjust, and not bestow honors upon you even if you deserve them. Something more personal -- your own flourishing and happiness -- is what he thinks you should be seeking through virtuous behavior.
Yet for those who attain what Aristotle calls the capstone of virtue, honor is the chief concern: not in the sense of 'what people happen to honor,' but 'what is most worthy of honor.' He does not care what other people tell him is most worthy, but what his own reason and discernment do. To do what is most worthy of honor, using your virtues to excel in its performance, is the highest sort of work and demands the highest sort of person.
And that, of course, is glorious.
In modern pop psych terms it is the difference between self-esteem, which is bestowed on you by others, and self-respect. Raising someone's self-esteem is likely to be temporary and shallow. Teaching them what behaviors will lead to self-respect is more valuable, for it can endure injustice.
ReplyDeleteSomething more personal -- your own flourishing and happiness -- is what he thinks you should be seeking through virtuous behavior.
ReplyDeleteTo Catholics and rightly-ordered others, what is actually sought is heaven. Some also say that "heaven" is the real meaning of "happiness" in the 'life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness' phrase in the Declaration.
That is not to ignore the temporal reward(s) of virtuous behavior, of course. Rather, temporal and eternal go hand-in-hand.
Yes, and in that context “Glory” makes sense too. Like the early 20th century spiritual, “This Train is Bound for Glory.”
ReplyDeleteAVI:
ReplyDeleteIn the Dragnet episode "Burglary -- Mister", Daniel Lumis had a TON of self-esteem. He esteemed himself so highly that he felt entitled to cash bad checks on luxuries, try to soak an unattractive young woman for a honeymoon fund, trick a moving firm into cleaning out his blind grandmother-in-law's house out of sheer spite--and he even expected the cops to respect his I'm-me-therefore-the-ordinary-rules-don't-apply attitude.