Week 6 blog

In Lisa Tessman’s Burdened Virtues, I focused on chapter two and how she describes that virtue can be damaged depending on the situation. In this chapter, she goes to describe that people who have faced oppression or have been “damaged” in any sort of way will have a difficult time maintaining virtues. She quotes Aristotle in this chapter frequently and defends her position by stating that if one have faced misfortune in their life,then they do not have the equipment needed to prosper and live a “good life”. Although this situation is seen in society, I do not necessarily agree that people are stuck in a box if they have faced adversity in their life and therefore will have bad virtues. A person can choose to live a good virtuous life even if good fortune was not given to them initially. I think outside factors can help an individual have a positive look on life and allow for them to flourish as much as they can.

Tessman then goes in to say that virtue is circumstantial. Someone may have have goos virtues, but given a situation to choose between two evils, someone will choose the lesser of the two but still be forced to realize their virtues have been ruined. Tessman uses another Aristotle example to show that a person will do someone of bad morals in order to save their family. And even with that being the better option, the action committed was still something the individual. would not usually commit.