Combining Texts

Ideas for 'Natural Kinds', 'The Meditations (To Himself)' and 'Medical Conceptions of Health pre-Renaissance'

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3 ideas

22. Metaethics / A. Ethics Foundations / 2. Source of Ethics / k. Ethics from nature
Nothing is evil which is according to nature [Aurelius]
     Full Idea: Nothing is evil which is according to nature.
     From: Marcus Aurelius (The Meditations (To Himself) [c.170], 2.17)
     A reaction: A bit hopeful. Sounds tautological. I.e. anything which is agreed to be evil is probably immediately labelled as 'unnatural'. What would he agree was evil?
22. Metaethics / B. Value / 2. Values / d. Health
The Greeks had a single word meaning both 'beautiful' and 'good' [Pormann]
     Full Idea: The later Greeks coined the term 'kalokagathia' for the fact of being both beautiful [kalos] and good [agathos], thus linking moral and physical health.
     From: Peter E. Pormann (Medical Conceptions of Health pre-Renaissance [2019], p.44)
     A reaction: In their literature good people are often handsome, and bad people ugly. Socrates was famous for being an exception.
22. Metaethics / C. The Good / 3. Pleasure / c. Value of pleasure
Justice has no virtue opposed to it, but pleasure has temperance opposed to it [Aurelius]
     Full Idea: In the constitution of the rational animal I see no virtue which is opposed to justice; but I see a virtue which is opposed to pleasure, and that is temperance.
     From: Marcus Aurelius (The Meditations (To Himself) [c.170], 8.39)
     A reaction: There are plenty of hideous things opposed to justice, but presumably that immediately disqualifies them from being virtues.