The Highest Good in Aristotle and Kant

The notion of the highest good used to occupy a primary role in ethical theorising, but has largely disappeared from the contemporary landscape. The notion was central to both Aristotle’s and Kant’s ethical theories, however--a surprising observation given that their approaches to ethics are commonly conceived as being diametrically opposed. The essays in this collection provide a comprehensive treatment of the highest good in Aristotle and Kant and show that, even though there are important differences in terms of content, there are also important similarities in terms of the structural features of Aristotle’s and Kant’s value theories. By carefully analysing Aristotle’s and Kant’s theories of the highest good, a team of experts in the field shed light on their respective ethical theories and highlight the richness, complexity, and fruitfulness of the notion of the highest good.

Joachim Aufderheide, King’s College London, Ralf M. Bader, Merton College, Oxford

Joachim Aufderheide studied Philosophy, Greek, and Latin at the Universities of Gottingen and St Andrews. He received his PhD from St Andrews for a thesis on pleasure in Plato and Aristotle in 2011. Since then he works as lecturer in philosophy at King’s College London.

Ralf M. Bader is a Fellow of Merton College and Associate Professor of Philosophy at the University of Oxford. Previously he was a Bersoff Assistant Professor and Faculty Fellow at New York University. His research focuses on Kant, ethics, metaphysics, and political philosophy.