Abstract

Virtues are central within Aristotelian and Thomistic ethics; so, it is important to see what virtues are, why they are so good and interesting, and how they work. In order to arrive at a clear conception of virtue, prior thinking is necessary about the topics of action, decision, deliberation, character, and habit. As soon as a clear concept of virtue has been reached, it becomes possible to see that and how two classes need to be distinguished, intellectual and moral virtues. These in turn then can and need to be spelled out—in their most important aspects—as prudence, courage, temperateness, justice, and friendship. Taken together, they give us a strong background for—along the Aristotelian-Thomistic line of thinking—a virtuous mode of living.