Nothing in Excess or Deficiency

The Perfect Middle of Virtue

ARISTOTLE’S NICOMACHEAN ETHICS BOOK 2 CHAPTER 5-6

This is a popular rendition of Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics for contemporary readers. Brief, understandable pieces with a short practice to integrate the wisdom into your life. No philosophical background necessary.

When you have a perfect work of art, adding or removing anything would worsen it. 

This is true for everything. Whenever we succeed in identifying an excess or deficiency we avoid them. It is the perfect middle term that seek. Not too hot, not too cold- just right.

The middle is not a simple average- but in relation to the person. The perfect meal for a wrestler is too large for another person. Each has their perfect middle  which excess and deficiency would  ruin.

This perfect middle in virtue stands in regard to emotions and actions. One can feel too much pity, or too little. There is a perfect middle that one should strive for. The same stands for things like anger, fear, confidence, desire and so on. 

It is the wisdom of identifying the perfect middle that will be part of the search for wisdom.

From this we can see that it is possible to be in error in many ways, but what is good is limited. There are many more excesses and deficiencies than the range of the golden middle.

It’s not enough to just read.

Manifest this wisdom in your life by doing this practice, or it will slip through your fingers.

It takes less than 5 minutes.

Choose well.

Practice: 

• Recall two events in which you felt emotions recently

• Try to gauge if you were in excess or deficiency with regards to that emotion