ETHICS

Aristotle transitions from discussing courage to temperance, highlighting that these two virtues relate to different aspects of human nature—specifically, the "irrational" parts of the soul. By "irrational," he doesn't mean unreasonable or foolish. Instead, he refers to aspects of our nature that aren't governed purely by reason, such as emotions, desires, and instincts. Courage deals with how we confront fear and pain, while temperance is about managing our desires for pleasure. Both virtues aim to bring balance and discipline to these non-rational parts of ourselves.

Aristotle is continuing his discussion of virtues and now turns his attention to temperance, a virtue related to how we handle pleasures. He emphasizes that temperance is about finding a balance, or a "mean," in how we approach pleasures. Unlike courage, which deals more directly with pain and fear, temperance doesn't focus on pain as much. Instead, it addresses how we respond to pleasurable experiences. On the opposite end of this spectrum stands self-indulgence, which is the excess or lack of restraint in pursuing pleasures. Both temperance and self-indulgence arise in the same area—our relationship with pleasurable experiences—but temperance is about balance, while self-indulgence represents going too far.

In this part, Aristotle begins narrowing down the scope of the discussion to identify which types of pleasures temperance and self-indulgence are concerned with. He acknowledges that there are different kinds of pleasures, broadly separating them into two categories: those tied to the body and those tied to the soul. For example, pleasures like the love of honor or the love of learning are connected to the mind or soul. These intellectual or emotional pleasures don’t directly involve the body in the way physical sensations do.

Aristotle also points out that people who pursue these non-bodily pleasures (like honor or learning) are not labeled as temperate or self-indulgent, no matter how much they enjoy or indulge in those pursuits. Similarly, people who engage in other non-bodily pleasures, like gossip (talking for the sake of amusement) or worrying about material things, don’t fall under the same moral framework of temperance and self-indulgence. They might be called something else—like gossips or misers—but these activities are outside the realm of bodily pleasures.

So, Aristotle aims to clarify that temperance and self-indulgence specifically deal with bodily pleasures—pleasures that are tangible and experienced through physical senses. This focus prepares the foundation for discussing temperance in more detail.

Aristotle is making a key distinction here between two types of pleasures: those related to the body (bodily pleasures) and those related to the mind or soul (non-bodily pleasures). Pleasures of the soul, such as the joy someone feels when pursuing honor, gaining knowledge, or engaging in intellectual activities, are different from pleasures that involve physical sensations or desires (like eating, drinking, or other bodily enjoyments).

Here’s the point: people who are strongly drawn to non-bodily pleasures (like the pursuit of learning or social recognition) are not considered temperate (exercising restraint) or self-indulgent (lacking restraint). These terms are reserved for how someone responds to bodily pleasures. In other words, temperance and self-indulgence are about controlling physical desires, not things like the love of honor or intellectual fulfillment.

In this part, Aristotle is making a distinction between pleasures and behaviors connected to the body and those connected to the mind or non-physical aspects of life. He explains that individuals who enjoy things like storytelling, gossiping, or casually passing time talking about random topics are not labeled "self-indulgent" in the way people are when they overindulge in bodily pleasures like food or drink. Instead, such people might be called "gossips" or something similar, but their behavior falls outside the realm of what Aristotle is specifically discussing with temperance or self-indulgence. Similarly, individuals who feel pain over the loss of money or friends are reacting emotionally or socially, not in a bodily way, so they aren't described using those terms either. Essentially, Aristotle wants to focus only on bodily pleasures when discussing temperance and self-indulgence, leaving out pleasures and pains tied to other aspects of human experience.