Happiness and Death: Discussions around Nicomachean Ethics I.10 in thirteenth Century Commentaries

BUFFON, VALERIA

Leuven

Simposio; SIEPM Annual Colloquium 2018; 2018

Katholieke Universiteit Leuven

The problem of the exact relationship of happiness with death is discussed from the beginning of the Nicomachean Ethics. There, Aristotle recalls the famous adage from Solon after considering the case of Priam, whose happiness was taken away by the end of his life... ?Must no one at all, then, be called happy while he lives; must we, as Solon says, see the end?? (NE I.10 1100a10-11). This passage and the several interpretations of mediaeval philosophers have been examined from different points of view by great mediaevalists such as R. A. Gauthier, Georg Wieland, followed more recently by Iacopo Costa. After remembering the principal points of their contributions, we will add a very little footnote to them. About this passage and following lines then, many questions are raised in the first commentaries on the NE by the Parisian Arts Masters. In contrast, those questions are reduced to one or two in the last commentaries of the 13th century. In this paper, we will touch two levels of analysis. Firstly, we will examine in large, the number and statement of the questions related to this passage throughout the 13th Century. Then, we will examine some of the questions raised by the first commentaries, that have not been retained by their posterity, such as: ?Does happiness reside in the dying person?? (Vtrum morienti insit felicitas); ?Do the good and evil actions of the descendants affect the dead person?s happiness?? (Vtrum bona filiorum et mala proueniant ad patres mortuos); ?Do the dead know the good and evil that they did?? (Vtrum propria mala que fecerunt in uita cognoscant et similiter bona que fecerunt).In these questions, several interesting topics arise regarding life and death: such as corruption of the body, and all that dies with it such as sensations, virtues and sensible knowledge. So, this fact will entail discussion on the corruptibility of soul?s knowledge of past actions and of the virtues of the separated soul. The arts masters understand that it is important for the comprehension of happiness to indicate to which parts of human being extends corruptibility, and how things belonging to the body such as action and virtue arising from action can be known by, be a part of, or affect the separated soul?s happiness.