A parallel treatment of ethics to the Nicomachean, possibly compiled from Aristotle's earlier lectures. The relationship between the two treatises remains debated, but the Eudemian contains distinctive discussions of friendship and moral luck.
Start ReadingThe good life and happiness (eudaimonia). Aristotle surveys previous opinions and establishes that happiness is an activity of the soul in accordance with virtue.
Virtue and character. How virtues are acquired through habit. The doctrine of the mean: every virtue lies between two extremes.
Voluntary and involuntary action. Moral responsibility requires knowledge and choice. We are praised or blamed only for what we do willingly.
Friendship. Its varieties (based on pleasure, utility, and virtue), its necessity for the good life, and its relationship to justice.
The relationship between fortune, virtue, and happiness. Aristotle's final reflections on what makes a life truly good.