The Good Life Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1500 words

The Good Life - Essay Example As asserted by Plato in The Republic, the good life is basically defined in terms of the moral life. Although there is more to good life that morality, Plato believed morality is a vital component of living the good life. In this regard, the conflict between the good life and moral life becomes logically impossible in view of their internal relationship. (Nagel) In searching for the good life, one must strive to have a moral life. This endeavor leads us to break away from the senseless and ungratifying pursuit of physical pleasures, honors and material benefits that commonly take precedence over one's search for the moral life (Kraut). It is in this manner that my view is similar to Plato's. As Plato proposed that living a good life involves contemplation by ceasing to engage in unsatisfying interests, I also believe that a good life entails the same kind of thinking to seek out the truth about our happiness, a critical factor of the good life, by giving up on trivial pursuits. At this day and age when we are bombarded with myriad messages the powerful media about the superficial notions on how to satisfy our desires, this requires substantial sacrifice. According to Aristotle, living a good life necessitates the fulfillment of one's nature. ... Similarly, I believe that using our ability to think is crucial to the good life. The greatest gift that we possess is our ability to think and bring about the fullest potential of our brains. I also consider that using this ability to improve the chances of future generations to live a good life is of great importance. Apart from this condition to good life, Aristotle also provided a profile of one who may live a good life. He defined good life as the activity of the soul in accordance with virtue, which comprised of theoretical wisdom, practical wisdom, and understanding (Edel). As such, only those who are able to exemplify these are deemed capable to lead good lives. For Aristotle, this profile excludes women, slaves and lower classes including trades people and farmers because they are not capable of making their own decisions so they are unable to practice these virtues. Moreover, those who had experienced great loss are not able to lead the good life as it would be difficult to build new friendships, a necessary requirement to have a good life. The chronically ill would also find it difficult to have a good life for it is difficult for them to learn the desires of a healthy person since health is a requirement for leading the good life. (Haslip) In this point, my view on good life contradicts Aristotle's idea. This is because for me, good life is attainable regardless of age, race, gender, social standing, mental and emotional conditions. I believe that anyone who has the ability to hold one's intrapersonal factors separate from external and other environmental factors may achieve happiness, thus, live a good life. For instance, a sick person, although he/she is not of sound health, can still be happy