9. Virtue and Habit I: How Does Aristotle Say We Cultivate Virtue Through Habit?

Transcript

PROFESSOR: So today's lecture is about the claim that we've been exploring in the context of Aristotle's ethics, that the way to cultivate virtue is by cultivating in ourselves certain sorts of habits. And I want to start by showing you a picture of a T-shirt which was popular at MIT in the mid-'90s when my husband was a graduate student there. And... Read More

Key Insights

• "Habits are tools for turning oughts into ises." (4:36)
• "So Aristotle's basic insight is that if you want to become something, act as if that is what you already were." (7:10)
• "If you want to become instinctively brave, act as the brave one does." (7:24)
• "And then it will become natural to you." (7:33)

Questions & Answers

Q: How does Aristotle say we cultivate virtue through habit?

Aristotle says we become virtuous by repeatedly performing the actions associated with virtue. We become just by doing just actions, temperate by doing temperate actions, and brave by doing brave actions.

Q: What does it mean that habits turn oughts into ises?

Habits take normative commitments about how we want to behave and turn them into regular patterns of actual behavior. Repeating the same activities creates descriptive, law-like relations within us, so chosen conduct can eventually become natural.

Q: What is the difference between normative and descriptive laws?

Normative laws express judgments about how things ought to be, such as looking both ways before crossing the street. Descriptive laws state how things actually behave and support predictions about the future based on the past.

Q: Why does the lecture compare a speed limit with the speed of light?

A speed limit of 65 miles per hour is normative because it states how fast someone may drive. The limit of 186,000 miles per second is descriptive because it states how fast something can go.

Q: Why does Aristotle connect virtue with learning a craft?

Both virtue and craft are developed by producing the same kinds of actions or products expected after mastery. Builders become builders by building, harpists become harpists by playing the harp, and people become virtuous by practicing virtuous actions.

Q: What should someone do if they want to become brave?

The lecture says to act as a brave person acts. Repeating brave actions can make bravery instinctive and natural.

Q: Why is cultivating virtue different from training a rock or watching a plant grow?

A rock falling and a plant unfolding with water and light are cases where merely descriptive laws apply. Virtue belongs to a middle realm where people can consider how they want to be, act as if they already are that way, and thereby become that way.

Q: How does piano practice illustrate the formation of habit?

A person becomes a piano player by training their fingers to act as a piano player’s fingers do. The craft is learned by repeatedly producing the kind of performance expected once the craft has been learned.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Normative laws dictate how we should behave, while descriptive laws describe how things actually are.

• Habits are a way to bridge the gap between normative and descriptive laws, as they allow us to act in certain ways repeatedly, making them natural to us.

• By recognizing the connection between our desired behaviors and the actions we take, we can cultivate virtues and shape our behavior through practice.