Philosophy 304 - COLLOQUIUM IN APPLIED ETHICS

Topics course. Aristotle thought that happiness is the goal and meaning of life. Hence it was crucial to answer the question, what constitutes happiness? He argued that the answer is: a life of the moral and intellectual virtues. For Christian thinkers in the Middle Ages (Augustine, Aquinas) this answer is at best incomplete, since it leaves out Heaven. We will examine their alternative, as well as three criticisms of it by Eckhart, Luther and Kant.

Topic: Is Happiness the Point of Life? Aristotle, Some Followers and Some Critics.