ETHICS

Aristotle is pointing out that a life centered on making money isn't the ultimate goal or "good" that people should strive for. Why? Because wealth is not valuable in and of itself—it’s only a tool, something we use to achieve other things. People desire money because it allows them to obtain necessities, comforts, or pleasures, but money has no intrinsic worth. Therefore, a life focused solely on accumulating wealth isn't a fulfilling or meaningful existence, since it's missing something deeper or more self-sufficient.

Aristotle is pointing out that the things previously mentioned—the life of enjoyment (pleasure), the pursuit of honor, or even the life of virtue—might seem like ultimate goals (or "ends") because people value them for their own sake, not just as a means to achieve something else. For example, people pursue pleasure, honor, or virtue because they intrinsically desire them, not because they are merely stepping stones to something else. This is a key distinction he's exploring in his quest to define what true happiness (or the ultimate "good") really is.

Aristotle is pointing out that even the things people often pursue as inherently desirable—like pleasure, honor, or wealth—are not truly the ultimate goal (or "end") of human life. He emphasizes that many arguments and efforts have been wasted defending these as ultimate ends, but they ultimately fall short. For Aristotle, the true "end" must be something self-sufficient and complete, something pursued for its own sake and not as a means to something else. He signals here that it's time to move on from discussing these lesser goals because they don't satisfy the deeper question of what true happiness or the highest good really is.