Ethics

What is good? What is happiness? What is virtue? What is freedom of will, and who is responsible for a person’s fate and well-being? Aristotle, the great philosopher of reasonable conduct and moderation in everything, reflects on these questions. Three works on ethics have come down to us: "Eudemian Ethics," "Nicomachean Ethics," and "Great Ethics." The question of whether these works truly belong to Aristotle is still a matter of debate. The author of "Eudemian Ethics" was most likely Eudemus of Rhodes, Aristotle’s student—perhaps revising his teacher’s work. "Great Ethics," which is in fact only a short treatise summarizing Aristotle’s ethical views, was written by a Peripatetic—an unknown student of the philosopher. And only "Nicomachean Ethics" can confidently be said to have been written by the great thinker himself. The last two works are included in the proposed collection, with "Nicomachean Ethics" published in the translation of E. Radlov, which was never issued either in the USSR or in modern Russia.