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although he will have gained something extremely
evil; whereas to have deliberated well is felt to be a good thing. Therefore it is this
kind of correctness in deliberation that is Deliberative Excellence, namely being correct
in the sense of arriving at something good.1
[5]
But it is possible to arrive at a good conclusion, as well as at a bad one, by a false
process of reasoning; one may arrive at what is the right thing to do, but not arrive at
it on the right grounds, but by means of a wrong middle term. This quality then, which
leads one to arrive at the right conclusion, but not on the right grounds, is still not
Deliberative Excellence.
[6]
Again, one man may arrive at the right conclusion by prolonged deliberation, while
another may do so quickly. The former case also then does not amount to Deliberative
Excellence; this is correctness of deliberation as regards what is advantageous, arriving
at the right conclusion on the right grounds at the right time.2
[7]
Again, a man can be said to have deliberated well3 either
generally, or in reference to a particular end. Deliberative Excellence in general is
therefore that which leads to correct results with reference to the end in general, while
correctness of deliberation with a view to some particular end is Deliberative Excellence
of some special kind.
If therefore to have deliberated well is a characteristic of prudent men, Deliberative
Excellence must be correctness of deliberation with regard to what is expedient as a means
to the end, a true conception of which4 constitutes Prudence.10.
Understanding, or Good Understanding,
1 No distinction seems to be made between arriving at the right conclusion of a practical syllogism, i.e., inferring correctly what is to be done as a means to some End, and actually achieving that End by action.
2 At the right time, because deliberation must neither be so prolonged as to miss the opportunity for action, not so rapid as to be merely skillful conjecture; see 9.2.
3 i.e., to be well-counselled, to know what steps to take: cf. 9.4.
4 The antecedent of ‘which’ is probably not ‘the end’ but ‘what is expedient as a means to the end,’ since it is indicated below that Prudence deals with means, not ends. The difference therefore between Deliberative Excellence and Prudence seems to that the former is the intellectual quality displayed in the process of correctly investigation a problem of conduct, the later the more permanent and fixed quality of the mind possessing and contemplating the results of such investigations. Or perhaps more strictly both these qualities are included in Prudence, of which Deliberative Excellence is therefore one aspect or species.
Aristotle in 23 Volumes, Vol. 19, translated by H. Rackham. Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press; London, William Heinemann Ltd. 1934.
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