Nicomachean Ethics

What it is

The Nicomachean Ethics is a work by Aristotle, consisting of ten books, focused on how people should best live. Its date of composition is uncertain, though it refers to events from the 4th century BC. The text as it survives seems to be based on lecture notes rather than a finished publication meant by Aristotle for circulation.

Why it matters

Aristotle, who studied under Plato, directly engages with and criticises an idea associated with Socrates: that no one does wrong knowingly. This makes the work one of the most important ancient sources for understanding and debating Socratic ideas about knowledge and wrongdoing, even though it comes from a later generation of philosophers. The work became hugely influential in medieval and modern philosophy, shaping how Socratic ideas were passed down and argued about for centuries.

Look closer

• Why might it matter that we know Socrates' ideas partly through what later philosophers like Aristotle said about them?
• What does Aristotle's disagreement with Socrates tell us about how philosophical ideas develop over time?
• This is a scan of a later printed edition — what does that remind us about how ancient texts are preserved and transmitted?