Arete Part 2

 

One of the definitions of arete is virtue. The word virtue is from the Latin vir meaning man. The Roman god of Virtus was depicted as holding a javelin and wearing a helmet. Someone who had virtue, in the classical usage, was quite literally and stereotypically “manly”: he was brave and able to defend his family and city.

 

It is this meaning of virtue that best represents the original concept of arete. In Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey the word usually implies excellence on the field of battle. Bronze Age society valued those who could best defend their city. The value system had a logic to it. Wealthy people were able to buy expensive metal armor. By owning this armor, they were able to fight “with excellence” for the city. For their contribution to the battle, they received more of the spoils of war, perpetuating their position in society. That is where we get the word “aristocracy”—the rule by the best people, those with arete.

 

This idea of arete works in a society concerned with survival. It also presupposes a society in which loyalty to the tribe trumps the individual. The wealthiest men rule cities of Homer’s world because they are generally considered to be working for the interests of the city.

 

In book 12 of the Iliad, Sarpedon, a Lycian king fighting for the Trojans, reminds a fellow aristocrat of the way their society works:

 

 

As society became more complex, the behavior that benefitted one’s group became less obvious. Cities that esteemed competition with comrades against enemies now valued cooperation with fellow citizens in business and trade. Arete began to mean (instead of military prowess) “fulfillment of what one should do or be” or “excellence of any kind.”

 

So then, arete is “excellence.” This leads into another, possibly more complicated question. If the arete of a knife is to cut perfectly, and the arete of a city is to provide safety and happiness for its citizens, what is the arete of a man or woman? This question goes beyond questions of external societal roles. It asks what is the overarching principle by which a man or woman could be excellent in every situation.

 

In an attempt to answer this question, Socrates expanded and refined the definition of arete to imply moral goodness. Traditional definitions of virtue that favor one’s own group did not satisfy Socrates. In the Republic, he deconstructs the ancient idea that virtue is helping your friends and harming your enemies. He argues that if harming people makes them less excellent in their capacity as humans, how can it be the function of an excellent and virtuous man to make others less excellent and virtuous?

 

According to Socrates, virtue is knowledge of the Good. The person with arete knows how an excellent human being behaves in each situation, and therefore acts with the qualities of justice, temperance, courage, and prudence. 

 

What does Socrates mean as “the Good?” The Good is what gives truth to knowledge and empowers us to know what we know. Pursuing knowledge of the Good, i.e., pursuing arete, is how humans, according to Socrates, can be happy. Happiness is not being in a pleasurable situation, but rather flourishing as a human being. True happiness is having a well-ordered soul that is self-controlled and rational.

 

Aristotle, like Socrates and Plato, was concerned with the moral dimension of arete. However, rather than focusing on the metaphysics of the Good, Aristotle was more concerned with ethics, which asks, “What does arete look like in practice?” According to Aristotle, living a happy life consists in using your reason to live in a way that is consistent with the virtues of courage, justice, temperance, and so on.

 

In order to accomplish this, one must know how to exercise each of the virtues in particular situations. For example, running into a burning building is rash if you’re saving a chair, and courageous if you’re saving a child. Eating a large steak might be excessive if you’ve been lying on the sofa all day, and quite temperate if you’ve climbed a mountain. It is the correct application of the virtues that marks excellence in a human being.

 

The practice of virtue takes rational thought and persistent action. This is why JH Classical Academy (and many other classical schools) emphasize intellectual development as well as the formation of moral habits. Achieving arete (excellence, virtue) is a lifelong pursuit aimed at achieving human potential and human flourishing.

 

But...there is something lacking in Aristotle’s argument. It is a little elitist, presupposing a sound mind and a careful education. The question should be asked, “Can less fortunate humans hope to live fulfilled lives marked by excellence and virtue?”

 

Stay tuned for Part 3: Arete and Christianity!