In his ethical works, Aristotle presents an extraordinarily nuanced and insightful account of the different aspects of the good human being and the good human being's life. Yet many of Aristotle's claims about ethical virtue seem so puzzling that modern philosophers have often discarded them, or reworked them to fit more familiar modern theories that do not make ethical virtue central. My aim in this book is to re-examine Aristotle's puzzling claims, especially the much-maligned doctrine of the mean, showing how together they form a thought provoking ethic of virtue, one that deserves to be developed and refined. Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, the most important of his ethical treatises, appeals to anyone interested in ethical character and thought, including undergraduates, graduates, specialists in ancient Greek philosophy, and modern virtue ethicists. I should be pleased if this book does the same.

There is a fine line between a work on Aristotle's ethics and a work on Aristotelian Ethics, the former being more closely tied to Aristotle's texts, the latter going into new territory, inspired by Aristotle's ideas. While I have approached Aristotle's texts from a less familiar perspective, bringing out elements in his philosophy that have not received their due, and considering them in the light of ancient and modern debates, I have refrained from venturing too far from his original views. The exception is Chapter 4, where I consider possible virtues that Aristotle himself does not consider, but, even there, I keep comments on the particular virtues short and to the point.

The passage of more than two thousand years has yielded a wealth of scholarship about Aristotle's work, and the last thirty years has seen burgeoning interest in Aristotle's ethics, with new books and articles published every year.