Eudaimonia

More Than Happiness

Aristotle's classic work "The Nicomachean Ethics" begins with "Every art and every inquiry, and similarly every action as well as choice, is held to aim at some good" (Aristotle, 2011, p. 1).  Then further in Book I, Chapter IV he wrote

... since all knowledge and every choice have some good as the object of their longing—let us state what is that we say is the political art aims at and what the highest of all goods related to action is.  As for its name, then, it is pretty much agreed on by most people; for both the many and the refined say it is happiness, and they suppose that living well and acting well. (pp. 4-5)

Aristotle lived and wrote in the Classical Era of the fourth century BCE. His writings have long been the source of great discussion and debate.  From 1100-1700 CE his ideas became the academic framework of European universities in the form of  Aristotelian Scholasticism.  During the English and French Enlightenment in the 17th and 18th centuries Aristotelian Scholasticism came under attack by new sciences and philosophies.  However, in the 20th and 21st centuries Aristotle's ideas especially his Ethics and Metaphysics re-emerged to captivate the hearts and minds of many particularly in the Positive Psychology movement.

What did Aristotle mean that "the highest of all goods" is "happiness (eudaimonia)?"  Happiness to Aristotle was not a perfect life of red roses and smiles; happiness is a virtue not a fleeting feel good emotion.   We all know life is stressful and far from perfect; that bad things happen to good people—God's people; however, eudaimonia can help us do more than survive—eudaimonia can help us thrive.  Eudaimonia literally means "having a good daimon" (p. x) and is made of two Greek words "eu" for good and "daimon" for spirit; thus one could translate eudaimonia as "a good spirit."  

The pop-culture understanding of happiness is misleading and is based on having a positive affect or outlook on life; however, eudaimonia is better described as human flourishing and is directly related to our character, satisfaction with life and well-being.  For a great overview of the human science of flourishing and positive psychology check out this article "On the promotion of human flourishing."

However, the one who wants to understand this new science more no one captured this construct of eudaimonia better than one of the founders or architects of the Positive Psychology movement Dr. Martin Seligman in his book "Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-being."  In this work Seligman (2011) presents his scientific theory of well-being.  I present an introduction to positive psychology on a subsequent page on this site.  The point I want to make now is the modern idea of happiness as part of the positive psychological construct is rooted deep in Aristotle's works and stands on the shoulders of scientific researchers, psychologist, sociologists, theologians, and all who are interested this "human science."  

Check out this website featuring Dr. Seligman: Authentic Happiness

References

Aristotle. (2011).  Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics.  Translated by Robert C. Bartlett and Susan D. Collins, Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.

Seligman, M. E. P. (2011). Flourish: A Visionary New Understanding of Happiness and Well-being. New York: Free Press.