Edith Hall, a renowned scholar of ancient Greek literature and philosophy, discusses how Aristotle's teachings can enhance modern life. She emphasizes the importance of pursuing what you excel at for the greater good while critiquing contemporary misunderstandings of Aristotle's views on human nature. Hall shares her personal journey from strict faith to embracing Aristotelian ethics, exploring community, cooperation, and true happiness as interconnected. Her insights highlight the significance of intention and moral character in navigating life's challenges.
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question_answer ANECDOTE
Hall's Aristotelian Journey
Edith Hall found Aristotle's ethics appealing while searching for secular guidance during her time at Oxford.
Her introduction to Aristotle was through Greek tragedy, leading her to his Nicomachean Ethics.
insights INSIGHT
Aristotle's Bottom-Up Ethics
Unlike Plato's top-down approach, Aristotle's ethics begins with the individual, recognizing humans as animals with unique capacities.
These capacities include deliberation, disciplined recollection, and humor, setting us apart while embracing our animal nature.
insights INSIGHT
Human Potential (*Dunamis*)
Aristotle believed in dunamis, the individual potential within each person, much like an acorn's potential to become an oak.
Identifying and fulfilling this potential, often linked to pleasure and enjoyment, is key to happiness.
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In 'Aristotle's Way', Edith Hall explores how Aristotle's ancient wisdom can guide us in living a meaningful life. The book distills Aristotle's philosophy into ten practical lessons, focusing on happiness, potential, and self-improvement. Hall's work is both a personal reflection and a scholarly exploration of Aristotle's ideas, making them accessible to modern readers.
Nicomanchian Ethics
Nicomanchian Ethics
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Aristotle
Meditations
Marcus Aurelius
Meditations is a series of private writings composed by Marcus Aurelius, one of Rome's greatest emperors, as he struggled to understand himself and make sense of the universe. Written between 170 and 180 CE while on military campaigns, this work combines Stoic philosophy with personal observations on leadership, duty, mortality, and human nature. Through twelve books of intimate thoughts never intended for publication, Marcus Aurelius explores themes of self-improvement, resilience in the face of adversity, and living virtuously while accepting what cannot be changed.
The Greek way
Edith Hamilton
In *The Greek Way*, Edith Hamilton provides a profound understanding of ancient Greek civilization, examining its philosophical foundations, artistic achievements, and societal structures. The book delves into the intellectual and moral framework that shaped Greek identity, highlighting contributions to democracy, literature, and philosophy. Hamilton analyzes Greek literature and prominent figures such as Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, and explores the Greeks’ artistic achievements in drama, poetry, and sculpture. The book offers a nuanced perspective on the Greeks’ complex worldview and their enduring impact on Western culture[1][3][4].
Ryan speaks with Edith Hall about why she wants to open up Aristotle’s works to the world at large, how Aristotle defined what a human being is and how one can be happy, the importance of doing what you’re good at and enjoying what you’re doing so long as it’s good for the social good, and more.
Edith Hall, FBA is a British scholar and professor of classics at Durham University, specializing in ancient Greek literature and cultural history, and professor in the Department of Classics and Centre for Hellenic Studies at King's College, London, as well as a Fellow of the British Academy. Her research and writings have been influential in three distinct areas: (1) the understanding of the performance of literature in the ancient theater and its role in society, (2) the representation of ethnicity; (3) the uses of Classical culture in European education, identity, and political theory. She has written and been a part of many publications about Greek classics, including Aristotle's Way: How Ancient Wisdom Can Change Your Life (2018), Sophocles and the Greek Tragic Tradition(2009), and Inventing the Barbarian: Greek Self-Definition through Tragedy (1989).
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