[1] Every craft and every line of inquiry, and likewise every action and choice of pursuit, seems to aim at some good.
And for this reason the good is rightly described as that at which all things aim.
[2] But the ends we aim at seem to differ: some are themselves activities, and others are products that lie beyond the activities that produce them. Where these ends lie beyond the actions, the products are by nature more important than their producing activities.
[3] Now, as there are many actions, crafts, and sciences, their ends or goals also turn out to be many as well. For instance, health is the end of medicine, a boat is the end of shipbuilding, victory is the end of military strategy, and wealth is the end of household management.
[4] But some of these pursuits fall under a single capacity. Thus, bridle-making and the other crafts involved in producing equipment for horses fall together under the art of horsemanship. And horsemanship and every other action of warfare fall under military strategy. In the same way other arts fall under yet further ones.
[5] In all of these, the ends of the overarching pursuit are more worthy of choice than all the subordinate ends. After all, it is for the sake of the ends of the overarching pursuit that we pursue the subordinate ends. Here, then it makes no difference whether the end of an activity is the activity itself, or whether it is something else that lies beyond the activities, as is the case with the pursuits we just mentioned.
2. [6] Suppose, then, there is some end to the things we do that we desire for its own sake and desire everything else for the sake of this.
[7] Suppose further that we do not choose everything for the sake of yet something else, because if we did, then the process would go on to infinity and our desire would be empty and futile.
[8] Clearly, then, this end [that is pursued for its own sake and not for the sake of anything else] would have to be the Good, that is, the highest good.
(This is my translation above, so differs a bit from other published translations, though I hope it’s clearer than many. Also I’ve added the numbers in the square brackets for ease of reference.)
In the section above Aristotle argues from a premise (or starting assumption) to a conclusion. His first premise is, in summary:
[1]
Everything we do as human beings aims at some sort of “good,” that is, some kind of benefit or goal or purpose.
For instance, if you smother your roommate in the middle of the night with a pillow, you wouldn’t do that for just any reason. You’d have some specific “good” you are trying to accomplish: for instance, stopping his loud snoring so you can finally get a decent night’s sleep.
Presumably, this is not a morally good way of handling the situation, but it is a good that you’re trying to accomplish – in the sense that you think, at the moment you act, you’ll be better off doing it.
Aristotle argues from this premise down to a specific conclusion:
[8]
There is an end of our actions that is the ultimate end, that is, the highest good or goal.
Your assignment is to take the rest of the numbered paragraphs (which I’ve numbered [2] through [7]) and re-word them in your own words, just as I did here with [1] and [8]. You should have eight numbered sentences when you’re done, including the two I’ve given you.
As you do this, try to trace out the argument, that is, highlight how Aristotle’s thought progresses from his opening assumption in [1] down to the final conclusion in [8]. What are the logical connections that lead from one paragraph to the next, if any?
This is Aristotle’s set-up for the whole Nicomachean Ethics, so he should be trying to make some kind of sense, constructing a solid starting point for his subsequent discussions.
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