What is wisdom according to Aristotle? What role does knowledge of the causes play in wisdom?

What is wisdom according to Aristotle? What role does knowledge of the causes play in wisdom?

Introduction

Aristotle was a Greek philosopher who lived 2400 years ago, but his reflections on ethics and the moral virtues are still penetrative in our thoughts and actions. He is one of the most influential philosophers who spread Western thoughts far and wide in the world. The world, as seen from Aristotle's eyes is far more different than what normal humus perceive. Aristotle's world is built in accordance with three foundations linked together and entwined. At the center, the starting point of these foundations is the individual's virtuous life. This is the basis for a broader and a fair community life. The last and most comprehensive foundation is based on the universe and its underlying presumptions (Hardie, 1968).

Aristotle's views start from the individualistic sphere; because according to him, all of us will get to know the world (self, other people and other existing forces) through our own existence. These bases of Aristotle's thinking do not divide the world, but brings it together. We do not find the theory of Aristotle's philosophy, empiricism, ethics and knowledge in different areas of fragmentation, which is typical of the current philosophical and scientific thoughts. This paper realizes the concept of “wisdom” as described by Aristotle, in addition to describing the role of causes played in his perception of wisdom.

Thesis Statement

Practical philosophy and “wisdom” is an entirely differentiated concept, each portraying different underlying thoughts as portrayed by Aristotle.

Analysis

Aristotle's philosophy can be broadly divided into two parts; one relating to knowledge of the external world, defined as theoretical philosophy because its sole purpose is to provide knowledge, and the other part is the practical philosophy which has, as its goal, the reflection of everything about man- his actions, productions, social and political relations. Theoretical philosophy, by its very nature, is the search for truth that is how things are by necessity and cannot be otherwise (Natali, 2001). On the contrary, practical philosophy does not portray a scientific claim rather, he uses the expression (the philosophy of human affairs), which takes into account specific differences and unpredictability, namely the freedom that remains to each individual acting on his conduct, even when it has little freedom, and is plagued by many uncertainties. Practical wisdom is one of the key defining themes in the concepts put forth by Aristotle. A person possessing practical wisdom does not follow preaching on ancient times; rather, it is a combination of experiences that teach him or her about the goodness of an action. A virtuous (Aristotle interchangeably used the words wisdom and virtue) person has enough wisdom to draw important conclusions about others and his surroundings, something which might be subjected to a misunderstanding by other individuals (Takahashi & Overton, 2005). It is the moral judgment of a virtuous person that determines what is good for him or her; this being an ...