10/24/04
Theology
How Is Marge an Excellent Illustration of Aristotle’s Virtuous Person?
From reading “Marge’s Moral Motivation” a chapter in the book The Simpson’s and Philosophy: The D’oh of Homer, I have learned that Marge is a cartoon character who exemplifies Aristotle’s views on a virtuous person.
Aristotle, along with other Greek philosophers, examined people’s character traits in order to judge a person’s goodness. These traits are virtues and are described as a mean between two extremes, a middle ground that brings about a balance in a persons life. Aristotle organized a list of virtues in his book Nicomachean Ethics and concluded that the result of living out these virtues was happiness. The virtues he listed are bravery, temperance, self worth, mildness, friendliness, honesty, wit, and modesty. Aristotle claims that “virtues are desirable because they promote the long-term happiness of those who posses them”(51). The virtues increase our well-being because they aid our ability to be sociable with others which encourages us to succeed in our dilemmas.
Marge is a great example of Aristotle’s virtue ethics because through her actions she personifies a person of balanced virtue and a life directed by reason. She is brave in the Simpson’s shows when she takes on crime rings and escapes from an occult. However she is reasonable, as shown through her unwillingness to jump from one car into another while both are speeding down the road. She is generous and temperate, yet she avoids extreme because she believes in promoting the well being of her family. Marge’s many examples of virtues pointed out in the chapter show that her choices are made to increase the happiness of the Simpson family. Because Marge is so dedicated to her family she strives to acquire happiness by working for the happiness of her family. She encourages her daughter Lisa to develop a strong and informed conscience. She says that to love is to have faith that someone will do the right thing.