Nicomachean Ethics

Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics is the foundation of Western ethical philosophy, introducing the concepts of virtue ethics, eudaimonia (human flourishing), and the central importance of friendship to the good life. Thomas Aquinas built Catholic moral theology upon its framework, ensuring that Aristotle's ethical vision would shape Western civilization for centuries to come.

Written at the Lyceum in Athens, the Nicomachean Ethics became the cornerstone of Christian moral philosophy when Aquinas synthesized it with Christian theology in the thirteenth century. In 1981, Alasdair MacIntyre's After Virtue revived Aristotelian ethics for the modern era, sparking a renaissance in virtue-based moral philosophy. The work remains a core text in every philosophy and ethics curriculum.