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Tragic Dilemmas
Tragic dilemmas entail a moral dilemma that revolves around a tragic tragedy. According to Katherine, a tragic dilemma is based on a situation where an individual has to choose between two horrific options (3). It is worth noting that tragic dilemmas contribute to a person’s life being ruined despite the choice they make. This poses a problem to virtue ethics since virtuous individuals might be forced to make a tragic choice. The problem emanates from finding the strengths of making choices that seem to be less horrific. However, the choices can be virtuous, which might be the right to choose, but they remain evil and not satisfying. Aristotle’s argument based on virtuous people is based on three criteria that help distinguish virtuous people from other individuals. First, virtuous people choose to behave in the right manner. Secondly, virtuous people know how to act appropriately and third, the behavior manifests in their choices (Jimenez 15). Therefore, based on these arguments, the choices made are not right regarding the outcomes but are right since a person of true virtue does them. Following Aristotle’s arguments, a virtuous person can defend against such a challenge since they know how to carry themselves in the right manner when making choices. Thus, the right behavior is manifested based on the choices that they make. Moreover, there is a high likelihood of these individuals carrying themselves in the right manner when making the choices. In this case, the choices that they make can be virtuous despite being in a tragic dilemma. According to Jimenez, virtuous people are always keen when making the actions, which makes them determine whether they are moral or immoral (6). Therefore, this compelling force makes the virtuous people to act appropriately, which support the challenge emanating from the tragic dilemma.
Works Cited
Jimenez, Marta. “Aristotle on Becoming Virtuous by Doing Virtuous Actions.” Phronesis A Journal of Ancient Philosophy (2016): 3-32. Document.
Katherine, Jackson. “Tragic Dilemmas and Virtue.” Boston College (2018): 1-12. Document.