Nicomachean

Nicomachean refers to the Nicomachean Ethics, a foundational work of moral philosophy by the ancient Greek thinker Aristotle. The title is commonly understood to honor his son Nicomachus, to whom the text or its editors were connected. The work explores the question of how human beings should live and what constitutes the good life, arguing that living well involves at least a flourishing life (eudaimonia) achieved through rational activity in accordance with virtue.

The Nicomachean Ethics is traditionally divided into ten books. It opens with the claim that every action aims at some good, and that the final end of human life is happiness. Aristotle then develops the doctrine of the mean, asserting that virtue is a stable disposition to choose the mean relative to us, shaped by habit and guided by practical wisdom (phronesis). He distinguishes moral virtues, such as courage and temperance, from intellectual virtues, such as wisdom and understanding, the latter of which require learning and reflection. The text also discusses voluntary and involuntary actions, the role of pleasure and pain, and the importance of external goods in achieving happiness.

In its treatment of friendship, politics, and the organization of character, the work has had a lasting influence on Western moral philosophy and ethics. It shaped later Aristotelian thought and informed Christian scholasticism, as well as contemporary virtue ethics. The Nicomachean Ethics remains a central reference for discussions of virtue, character, and the rational ends of human life.