A comparison of Aristotelian and Cartesian highest human goods

Abstract

The present thesis is an attempt to analyze and compare two philosophers' accounts of the highest human good: Aristotle's and Descartes'. My main goal has been, after understanding the conceptual frameworks necessary to evaluate the accounts these two philosophers give of the highest human good, to analyze and compare them.In my analysis I have concluded that for Aristotle the highest human good is contemplation, and for Descartes a special contentment of the soul achieved through following virtue.In the comparison I have made, I found one similarity between them: this is that both accounts include godly features. Besides that, there were two main differences between these accounts. One difference originated from the difference in the accounts of causation in Aristotelian and Cartesian philosophy. The second difference concerned the relation between the account of the highest good and the rest of the philosophy it belongs to. The Aristotelian account of the highest good has a necessary relation with the general philosophy of Aristotle, whereas the Cartesian account of the highest good has only a contingent relation with the general philosophy of Descartes.