The Eudemian Ethics

Aristotle's works on ethics make dry reading at the best of times. This uninspired translation makes it hard to get past page 1. I ended up buying the paperback in the Oxford World's Classics series (Trans A Kenny) - much, much better

I have had Aristotle's Nichomachean Ethics on my reading list for some time and was unaware of the Eudemian Ethics until reading Alasdair MacIntyre's excellent and contemporary treatise on ethics "After Virtue", where MacIntyre promotes the lesser known Eudemian Ethics. Having read samples from Thomas Aquinas massive production (Aquinas was an excellent interpreter of Aristotle) and contemporary productions on ethics such as MacIntyre, which gives frequent references to both Thomas Aquinas and Aristotle, I embarked upon the texts of Aristotle - The Eudemian Ethics.The book contains timeless ideas and insights into human nature, what is to be considered proper conduct, and discusses virtue at length. A particular aspect of the Aristotlean ethics is its concept of the golden mean - virtue lies between two extremes, something that is elaborated on in detail in the book. The book is rich in wise concepts and frameworks that serve as the underpining of Aristotlean ethics. A few concepts that I will return to are the three lives of a person - the life of the philosopher, the life of the politician, and the life of the hedonist; moral virtues and intellectual virtues; and nobility as a designation of a fully virtuous person.I choose this Kindle version due to the affordable price and the positive reviews by other reviewers. The edition didn't disappoint. An advice to prospective readers of the Kindle edition: make use of star-marked references to the end section where Kenny has supplied helpful notes. Kenny is very knowledgeable on Aristotle and to read his considerations offers additional insights into the underlying text.I strongly recommend anyone to read this book - a book of timeless wisdom that helps to develop your perspective on morality, virtue and what is meant to live a life of happiness.

Please note which version you're getting: I was searching for the Anthony Kenny translation of Eudemian Ethics, which I found, but when I clicked on the Kindle link from that product information page, it took me to this Aeterna Press edition which is translated by J. Solomon. I wanted the Kenny translation and didn't realize this Kindle version was different before I bought it (although since it was only $0.99 I'm not going to lose sleep over this.) I'm giving this 3 stars for the incorrect product information--I haven't read the book yet.

After all these years, this is my first read of the Eudemian Ethics. The introduction is excellent, placing the text in philological and historical context. Very, very pleased with its readablitity and scholarship. An excellent companion read to the better known and more widely read, Nicomachean Ethics and Politics.

This is not only a "great book," but genuinely a tremendous complement to and for any copy of the Nicomachean Ethics. I Recommend it not only highly, but as highly as I am able. Fill-out and complete your learning of Nicomahaen Ethics!! And also enjoy it at the same time!! SJIV