Happiness is the highest good because we choose happiness as an end sufficient in itself Even intelligence and virtue are not good only in themselves, but good also because they make us happy We call people “good” if they perform their function well

For Aristotle, eudaimonia is the highest human good, the only human good that is desirable for its own sake (as an end in itself) rather than for the sake of something else (as a means toward some other end)

Happiness can be viewed as a result and a condition of living right Flourishing is distinct from, but related to, happiness Success in living makes people happy and this happiness tends to foster more success Happiness is linked to the notions of self-esteem and flow

The necessary characteristics of the ultimate good are that it is complete, final, self-sufficient and continuous

There are two kinds of virtue: intellectual and moral We learn intellectual virtues by instruction, and we learn moral virtues by habit and constant practice

Therefore, it possible for moral virtue to exist in a man, inclining him to consent to reason, even though that particular man’s reason is not perfected by an intellectual virtue 5), prudence is an intellectual virtue Therefore, moral virtues cannot exist without intellectual virtues

Both excess and deficiency in the practice of a virtue can destroy it; the mean between them preserves it

Honesty, courage, compassion, generosity, fidelity, integrity, fairness, self-control, and prudence are all examples of virtues

An intellectual (from the adjective meaning “involving thought and reason“) is a person who tries to use his or her intelligence and analytical thinking, either in their profession or for the benefit of personal pursuits