Seeing the Good––Towards a Platonic theory of well-being
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 10690088 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Christophe de Ray (0000-0002-0540-8000, Nanyang Technological University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Publication date | 2025-08-15 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | The Philosophical Quarterly (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0031-8094 • E-ISSN: 1467-9213 |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1093/pq/pqaf063 |
| OpenAlex | W4414988972 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 19 |
Plato appears to have held that happiness (or well-being) consists in ‘knowing’ the Good in some way. I defend a view of this kind, arguing that well-being essentially involves the awareness of the Good. I do this, first by contending that great goods (e.g. friendship, knowledge etc.) can only contribute to our well-being if we appreciate them––that is, if we are aware of their value. This, I argue, amounts to being aware of the Good in them. I address the criticism that this kind of view over-intellectualizes well-being, before discussing its implications for the role of contemplation in well-being
Contemplation · Criticism · Form of the Good · Happiness · Free Will and Agency · Philosophical Ethics and Theory · Psychology of Moral and Emotional Judgment
The Summum Bonum in Aristotle’s Ethics
Plato on poetic creativity
Knowledge and Belief from Plato to Locke
The Form of the Good in Plato's Republic
The defense of justice in Plato's Republic
Philosophy and Religion in Plato's Dialogues
Well‐being as Enjoying the Good
Plato's Idea of the Good
The Good Life
Pluralism about Well‐Being
Pleasure and the Good Life
Finite and Infinite Goods
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |