Book 4 / Chapter 1
Paragraph 1 - Liberality and the Mean in Wealth
Explanation - Part By Part
"Let us speak next of liberality. It seems to be the mean with regard to wealth; for the liberal man is praised not in respect of military matters, nor of those in respect of which the temperate man is praised, nor of judicial decisions, but with regard to the giving and taking of wealth, and especially in respect of giving."
In this part, Aristotle transitions to discussing "liberality," which he identifies as a virtue related to wealth. He describes liberality as the "mean" (or balanced middle) when it comes to handling wealth. A liberal person is not celebrated for qualities like bravery in battle (which would relate to military matters), nor for self-control (associated with temperance), nor for fairness in legal judgment. Instead, the liberal person is praised specifically for how they manage wealth—particularly for their attitude and actions in giving and taking it, with a focus on their generosity in giving. This highlights that virtue in the context of wealth is rooted in thoughtful and appropriate generosity, rather than excess or stinginess.
"Now by 'wealth' we mean all the things whose value is measured by money."
Aristotle is clarifying what he means by "wealth." In this context, he defines wealth as anything that has value and can be measured or exchanged using money. Essentially, wealth isn't limited to piles of gold or accumulated riches—it includes all material possessions or resources that society deems valuable and can be represented in monetary terms. For him, this broad definition serves as the foundation for discussing virtues and vices related to how people handle their material resources.
"Further, prodigality and meanness are excesses and defects with regard to wealth; and meanness we always impute to those who care more than they ought for wealth, but we sometimes apply the word 'prodigality' in a complex sense; for we call those men prodigals who are incontinent and spend money on self-indulgence."
In this part, Aristotle is discussing two extremes of behavior related to wealth: prodigality (excessive spending) and meanness (stinginess). He explains that meanness is when someone is overly attached to their wealth and unwilling to share it, essentially prioritizing money far more than they should. On the other hand, the term prodigality—though it technically refers to someone who wastes their wealth—can be used in a "complex sense." By this, Aristotle means that some individuals labeled as prodigals are not just careless spenders but also indulge excessively in pleasures and lack self-control (incontinence).
Essentially, Aristotle is pointing out that while prodigality is primarily about wasting wealth, it is often linked with a broader lifestyle of indulgence, making it seem like these people suffer from multiple flaws, not just the misuse of money.
"Hence also they are thought the poorest characters; for they combine more vices than one. Therefore the application of the word to them is not its proper use; for a 'prodigal' means a man who has a single evil quality, that of wasting his substance; since a prodigal is one who is being ruined by his own fault, and the wasting of substance is thought to be a sort of ruining of oneself, life being held to depend on possession of substance."
In this part, Aristotle is making an important distinction about the term "prodigal." He points out that people often use the word inaccurately. In common usage, a "prodigal" is sometimes seen as someone who indulges in multiple bad behaviors—wasting money, being excessive, and giving in to self-indulgence. Aristotle objects to this broader characterization because he thinks it confuses things.
According to him, the proper use of the word "prodigal" describes a person with one specific fault: the tendency to waste their wealth or resources recklessly. He ties this idea of recklessness to self-destruction. Wealth, in Aristotle's time (and arguably now), was considered a foundational necessity for living a stable and fulfilling life. By squandering their wealth, the prodigal person essentially harms themselves, undermining their ability to sustain a good life.
So, Aristotle insists that prodigality should not refer to someone who combines multiple vices but rather someone whose defining flaw is their inability to manage and value their resources responsibly.