Virtue of Aquinas and Machiavelli Essay Essays

Virtue of Aquinas and Machiavelli Essay Essays Virtue of Aquinas and Machiavelli Essay Essay Virtue of Aquinas and Machiavelli Essay Essay The author’s end in this essay is to measure the definition of virtuousness harmonizing to Aquinas and compare/contrast that with Machiavellian virtuousness. Following this rating the writer will try to discredit Machiavellian virtuousness as being shallow and impossible. Trusting on inquiry 55 from the Summa Theologiae and assorted chapters from The Prince. the writer hopes to put a solid and concrete statement against Machiavelli. It is deficient to compose of Aquinas without first adverting Aristotle and the relationship Thomas Aquinas had with his work. Aristotle writes at great length of the human good. The good for adult male. harmonizing to Aristotle. is an active usage of those modules which separate adult male from the remainder of nature. viz. ground and will. which are distinguishable from lower modules such as feeling or reaction. One rule that profoundly influenced Aquinas was Aristotle’s theory that the moral virtuousnesss are each an norm of two opposing human traits ( which is how the mean individual gauges ethical motives today whether they are witting of it or non ) . Courage is found between cowardliness and heedlessness. generousness between stinginess and extravagance. The highest good for Aristotle is found in the contemplation of truth. he believed this was the highest portion of man’s nature ; that it was so because of its trust on man’s mind and ground. Thomas Aquinas took the contemplation of truth a brilliant measure farther by contending adult male. through seeking his ultimate terminal. as take parting in the very nature of God. For Aquinas this engagement is the province of Grace. A individual in the province of Grace possesses certain powers. these are referred to as virtuousnesss. More specifically they are infused virtuousnesss that can be separated into two distinguishable sorts: Theological virtuousnesss and Moral ( or Cardinal ) virtuousnesss. Before diging excessively profoundly into the particulars of these virtuousnesss it is of import to set up some land work. Thomas Aquinas defines virtuousness as â€Å"a good wont bearing on activity† . We can besides associate this definition to a good module. viz. wont. Intrinsic to the construct of virtuousness is habit. Habit harmonizing to Thomas can be within the natural order or elevated to the Divine by Grace. Habits are seen as â€Å"stable dispositions† . or qualities. that guide the modules to move a certain manner. Habits can be infused or acquired depending on the module. Of class non every wont is a virtuousness but merely one that guides a module. through the usage of ground. toward the good ; the good being the Ultimate terminal or the Beatific Vision which awaits us when our life here on Earth is over. Aquinas makes a cardinal point about virtuousnesss. The cardinal point made is between what Aquinas refers to as the infused virtuousnesss ( those which are God given and work in us without intervention from the modules of adult male ) and the acquired wonts. When these acquired good wonts become regular pattern for us we call them our â€Å"second nature† . Our 2nd nature leads our actions to flawlessness. Elemental and perfectly necessary for the development of our 2nd nature are ground and will. our mind. The infused virtuousnesss. on the other manus. are a gift from God and are therefore called supernatural because they transcend ground and will ; they are gifts which we can non freely get or run. Among these infused gift virtuousnesss are two sorts: the first are the Theological virtuousnesss ( Faith. Hope. and Charity ) which are concerned straight with God and our ultimate terminal. which are unaided by ground. The theological virtuousnesss supply adult male with the love of God and learn us His will. The 2nd and lesser of the infused virtuousnesss are the moral virtuousnesss. The moral virtuousnesss are concerned with human action and non with God himself. More specifically they are concerned with human behavior. The four moral virtuousnesss ( which are besides called Cardinal virtuousnesss ) are Prudence. Fortitude. Temperance. and Justice. Where the Theological virtuousnesss are tied into the supernatural. the Cardinal virtuousnesss are associated with the natural universe. Among the four Prudence is the highest because it is linked with ground. The rule act of Prudence is the executing of right or good ground. Prudence guides our ground. Examples of this are good judgement and the ability to cover with the unexpected in a good manner. Fortitude is concerned with the ability to cover with what is painful or unpleasant. Temperance is associated with the impulses and cravings for what is enjoyable and eventually Justice towards the will of people. Emphasis must be made on the cardinal difference between the two types of virtuousnesss. Theological virtuousnesss ( covering with the occult ) and Cardinal virtuousnesss ( concerned with the natural ) . A moral virtuousness by definition avoids extremes by manner of the usage of human ground. the theological virtuousnesss transcend ground. The supernatural and natural virtuousnesss are interconnected as Aquinas explains: â€Å"Grace ( the occult ) does non destruct but builds upon nature† . Ultimately mortal man’s modules can be described as holding ground which is enlightened by religion ; this elevates adult male into boundlessly higher fields than other animals. After sufficient discourse and account about Aquinas and virtuousness we come to a hamlets. Some four hundred old ages subsequently a new idea emerges with the deep and fractured ( some would state profoundly fractured ) head of Machiavelli. a adult male who continues to offer so much excessively so many slimey politicians across the Earth. Machiavelli and his position on the human status and more specifically human virtuousness in footings of the political adult male is the 2nd subdivision of our probe. Prior to Machiavelli the position of a political leader ( or Prince. as referred to by Machiavelli ) was much different than his ain reading. A Prince and his functions in respects to political authorization were viewed as rightful merely if the exerting swayer had a strong moral character and was a virtuous individual. A swayer was viewed as making good merely when he sought the good. Rulers had to gain the right to be obeyed and respected. This position of a swayer is called a â€Å"moralistic authority† and is exactly what Machiavelli criticizes in his work titled The Prince. In composing The Prince. Machiavelli sought to snuff out so current positions ( or at least present a radically different position ) of political authorization. Machiavelli preached that there is no moral footing on which to judge the difference between correct or illicit utilizations of power. Rather. whoever has power has the right to command ; since goodness does non guarantee power and the good individual has no more authorization merely because he is good. Good or morality is ineffective in the acquisition and care of power. Obviously this position is in blunt struggle with the thoughts of a moralistic political ideal. For Machiavelli the merely existent concern of the political swayer is the acquisition and care of power entirely and non the common good of the community. Virtue. as had been taught by the philosophers preceding Machiavelli. is really frequently incompatible with his impression of effectual usage of power. This is so because those who are willing to utilize tactics without any moral backup are certain to throw out he who acts harmonizing to his virtuousness and is unwilling to use other. immoral tactics. Harmonizing to Machiavelli the lone confidence that a prince can get the better of the strains of political relations is if he is willing and ready to travel against virtuousness when necessary. This kind of swayer must non be low to utilizing tactics such as slaying. misrepresentation. graft. use. and any other manner of immoral behavior he sees fit if certain state of affairss require it in order to keep ( or addition ) power. For Machiavelli it is precisely this attack to opinion that he sees as the â€Å"virtues† of leading. The usage of any manner necessary to obtain and keep power is virtue. Through this bold attack to opinion we are given an wholly new return on virtuousness and arguably mankind itself. With this new vision of political regulation. purged of any moral influences. we are given a wholly new attack to the exercising of power. It is now rooted in the foundations of de-moralized political relations. This new and audacious attack to â€Å"power politics† is exactly what Machiavelli calls virtuousness. Machiavelli employs this new construct of virtuousness to mention to a scope of qualities a prince will happen necessary to get. in order to â€Å"maintain his state† and to â€Å"achieve great things† . the two necessities of power for him. This makes viciously clear that there is no similarity between conventional Christian virtuousness and Machiavellian virtuousness. One can therefore sum up Machiavelli’s position of what it is to be a virtuous individual as such: A prince above all else must get a â€Å"flexible disposition† . A swayer must be capable of switching his/her actions from good to evil and back once more â€Å"as luck and fortunes dictate† . Precisely how does Machiavellian virtuousness affect the exercising of power? In order to reply this inquiry we must analyze another cardinal rule of his virtuousness. Therefore enters the construct of Fortune. As discussed in Chapter 25 of The Prince. Machiavelli teaches the reader that luck shows itself where virtuousness and wisdom are missing. Fortune harmonizing to Machiavelli is a menace to the security of the province and must be fought against as such. Fortune is a force outside of ground that is wholly unpredictable which brings wretchedness and catastrophe to mankind. As Machiavelli provinces: â€Å"it is better to be hotheaded than cautious. because Fortuna is a adult female and it is necessary. in order to maintain her under. to crush and maul her† . Fortune is therefore viewed as a beginning of force which must be answered with force if one hopes to command it. Virtue is the lone readying one has against luck. Virtue provides the ability to react to fortune whenever and nevertheless necessary. Machiavellian virtuousness affects the exercising of power in everyway. Machiavelli’s construct of virtuousness is wholly integrated with the exercising of power. The effectual and utile exercising of power is virtue. for Machiavelli. The tools and methods a Prince utilizes to demand his bid and guarantee his place are his virtuousnesss. Machiavellian virtuousness is so basically different than true virtuousness. ( virtuousness as defined by Aquinas ) that an surrogate word would do to specify it. When analyzing the two philosophers the differences between them are rather obvious. but one must look deeper than what is given at face value in order to happen the true effects of Machiavellian virtuousness. Once a individual has a basic apprehension and cognition of Machiavelli and his plants one can so come in into brooding thought on him and happen a deeper effect to populating a Machiavellian virtuous life. What is adult male if all that has traditionally defined him has been reduced to mere tools which help him to accomplish an terminal? What is the him of the adult male? If virtuousness does non specify the individual. what does? The greatest defect in Machiavellian virtuousness is that adult male loses his individuality and his character. Virtue has been redefined from that which develops ethical motives and character to that which helps to procure power. Emphasis is now on the power and non the individual. With Machiavelli virtuousness covers merely one facet of the individual. Man as leader and power trader. What is left of the adult male. if there are no longer any specifying traits. if adult male no longer has an individuality? Without any formal individuality adult male is no longer viewed as being â€Å"like God† . the supernatural facet of adult male is gone. that which is our true individuality. We have learned from Thomas Aquinas that virtuousness is developed through wont ; these wonts become who you are. If we remove that. what of the remainder of the adult male? Man is reduced to something of a retainer to â€Å"power† . Aquinas elevates adult male to the supernatural. as existences created in the similitude and image of God. made to portion in the Divinity of God. Aquinas’ virtuousness covers the whole individual. Thomas lists the cardinal virtuousnesss which guide all the facets of human life. from Prudence to Charity and Temperance to Faith. By developing these virtuousnesss we become virtuous people. the virtuousnesss that we cultivate forms who we are and order our desires in line with the will of God. For Aquinas virtuousness leads us to God and our ultimate terminal which Beatific Vision. For Machiavelli virtuousness is merely the agencies of executing a undertaking. instruments that can and should be employed to make an terminal which is merely of this Earth ; viz. the securing and expanding of power. For Machiavelli all that affairs is what is of this universe. Man is reduced to nil more than animate being with mind. nil supernatural and no life here after. As I have antecedently stated above. the greatest defect in Machiavellian virtuousness is that adult male loses his individuality and character. One other obvious and dramatic restriction to Machiavelli’s position of virtuousness. and therefore adult male himself. is that he speaks merely of adult male as swayer. non adult male as provincial. or servant. or adult male in the familial sense. If adult male were to specify himself precisely as Machiavelli proposes. he would genuinely lose his individuality. If virtuousness is redefined than it would look that adult male excessively is redefined. Either Machiavelli missed something so foundational and necessary. such as the other functions people play in society. or his aim was. in specifying virtuousness. to merely redefine the swayer. Machiavelli must hold realized his position of adult male was limited and flawed ; his true purpose was to alter society from the top down. Resulting would be a society that sought merely selfish desires and the acquisition of power. Machiavelli had no interesting apprehension adult male merely to ordain his thoughts and go a Prince. Man in accommodating these new thoughts is making nil less than lead oning himself. Virtue is a really wide subject which deserves rating. If we are to better understand ourselves and our civil society it is imperative that we learn what we can about those people who have. are presently. and will determine our ideas refering ourselves. God. and nature. What I have attempted is to turn to two really different positions on virtuousness. Aquinas continues to be the root beginning of our apprehension of virtuousness. Many efforts have been made by many people to redefine adult male ; Machiavelli is merely one of many. Machiavelli holds the rubric as the first philosopher to whole-heartedly effort to retrace adult male in his ain similitude and image and to extinguish God. As foolish and impossible as that seems from a Christian position. he succeeded and continues to win in winning over new ( non ) trusters. By the very nature of turning off from God we deceive and are deceived. all of his bold new tactics sum to little more than misrepresentation. Deception laced with penetrations and deformed images of adult male. Man every bit viewed as non fallen from Grace but instead nescient to his â€Å"true† capableness and intent. Machiavelli offers us another apple.

Everything You Need to Know About Adobe

Everything You Need to Know About Adobe Adobe is essentially a dried mud brick, combining the natural elements of earth, water, and sun. It is an ancient building material usually made with tightly compacted sand, clay, and straw or grass mixed with moisture, formed into bricks, and naturally dried or baked in the sun without an oven or kiln. In the United States adobe is most prevalent in the hot, arid Southwest. Although the word is often used to describe an architectural style- adobe architecture- adobe is actually a building material.  Adobe bricks have been used around the world, including near the muddy river areas of ancient Egypt and the ancient architecture of the Middle East. It is used today but also found in primitive architecture: mud bricks were used even before the grand ancient stone temples of Greece and Rome. Construction methods and the composition of adobe- the recipe- vary according to climate, local customs, and the historical era. Adobes strength and resilience vary with its water content: too much water weakens the brick. Todays adobe is sometimes made with an asphalt emulsion added to help with waterproofing properties. A mixture of Portland cement and lime may also be added. In parts of Latin America, fermented cactus juice is used for waterproofing. Although the material itself is naturally unstable, an adobe wall can be load bearing, self-sustaining, and naturally energy efficient. Adobe walls are often thick, forming a natural insulation from the environmental heat that creates and sustains the material. Todays commercial adobe is sometimes kiln-dried, although purists may call these clay bricks. Traditional adobe bricks need about a month of drying in the sun before they can be used. If the brick is mechanically compressed, the adobe mixture needs less moisture and the bricks can be used almost immediately, although purists may call these compressed earth bricks. About the Word Adobe In the United States, the word adobe is said with the accent on the second syllable and the last letter pronounced, as in ah-DOE-bee. Unlike many architecture words, adobe does not originate in Greece or Italy. It is a Spanish word that does not originate in Spain. Meaning the brick, the phrase at-tuba comes from Arabic and Egyptian languages.  As Muslims migrated across northern Africa and into the Iberian Peninsula, the phrase was transformed into a Spanish word after the eighth century CE. The word entered our English language through the colonization of America by Spain after the 15th century. The word is widely used in the southwestern United States and Spanish speaking countries. Like the building material itself, the word is ancient, going back to the creation of language- derivations of the word have been seen in ancient hieroglyphics. Materials Similar to Adobe Compressed Earth Blocks (CEBs) resemble adobe, except they usually do not contain straw or asphalt, and they generally are more uniform in size and shape. When adobe is NOT formed into bricks, its called puddled adobe, and is used like the mud material in cob houses. The material is mixed and then thrown in lumps to gradually create an earthen wall, where the mixture dries in place. In the Natural Building Blog, Dr. Owen Geiger,  Director of the Geiger Research Institute of Sustainable Building, contends that Native Americans used puddled adobe before the Spanish introduced adobe brick-making methods. Preservation of Adobe Adobe is resilient if well-maintained. One of the oldest known structures in the U.S. is made from adobe bricks, the San Miguel Mission in Santa Fe, New Mexico, built between 1610–1628. Preservationists at the National Park Service of the U.S. Department of the Interior provide guidance on historic preservation, and their Preservation of Historic Adobe Buildings (Preservation Brief 5) published in August 1978 has been the gold standard for keeping this building material maintained. Constant monitoring of deterioration sources, including the breakdown of mechanical systems like leaky plumbing, is the most important part of maintaining an adobe structure. It is the nature of adobe buildings to deteriorate, we are told in Preservation Brief 5, so careful observation of subtle changes and performing maintenance on a regular basis is a policy which cannot be over emphasized. Problems usually have more than one source, but the most common are (1) poor building, design, and engineering techniques; (2) too much rainwater, ground water, or watering of surrounding vegetation; (3) wind erosion from windblown sand; (4) plants taking root or birds and insects living within the adobe walls; and (5) previous repairs with incompatible building materials. Traditional Methods of Construction To maintain historic and traditional adobe, its best to know traditional methods of construction so that repairs can be compatible. For example, true adobe bricks must be assembled with a mud mortar of properties similar to the adobe. You cant use cement mortar because its too hard  - that is, the mortars cannot be stronger than the adobe brick, according to preservationists. Foundations are often constructed of masonry red brick or stone. Adobe walls are load-bearing and thick, sometimes braced with buttresses. Roofs are usually wooden and laid flat, with horizontal rafters covered with other materials. The familiar vigas projecting through the adobe walls are really the timber parts of the roof. Traditionally, the roof was used as additional living space, which is why wooden ladders are often propped up alongside an adobe home. After the railroads enabled the transport of building materials to the American Southwest, other roof types (e.g., hipped roofs) began to appear atop adobe brick buildings. Adobe brick walls, once in place, are usually protected by applying a variety of substances. Before an exterior siding is applied, some contractors may spray on insulation for added thermal protection- a dubious practice in the long term if it allows the bricks to retain moisture. Since adobe is an ancient building method, traditional surface coatings may include substances that seem odd to us today, such as fresh animal blood. More common sidings include: mud plaster, a mixture of elements the same as the adobe brick mixturelime plaster, a mixture containing lime, which is harder than mud, but more prone to crackingwhitewash, a mixture preservationists describe as ground gypsum rock, water, and claystucco, a relatively new form of siding for naturally dried adobe bricks- cement stucco does not stick to traditional adobe bricks, so wire mesh must be used Like all architecture, construction materials and methods of building have a shelf-life. Eventually, adobe bricks, surface coverings, and/or roofing deteriorate and must be repaired. Preservationists recommend following these general rules: Unless youre a professional, dont try to fix it yourself. Patching and repairing adobe bricks, mortar, rotting or insect-ridden wood, roofs, and surfacing agents should be handled by seasoned professionals, who will know to use matching construction materials.Repair any problem sources before beginning anything else.For repairs, use the same materials and building methods that were used to build the original structure. The problems created by introducing dissimilar replacement materials may cause problems far exceeding those which deteriorated the adobe in the first place, preservationists warn. Adobe is a formed-earth material, a little stronger perhaps than the soil itself, but a material whose nature is to deteriorate. The preservation of historic adobe buildings, then, is a broader and more complex problem than most people realize. The propensity of adobe to deteriorate is a natural, ongoing process....Competent preservation and maintenance of historic adobe buildings in the American Southwest must (1) accept the adobe material and its natural deterioration, (2) understand the building as a system, and (3) understand the forces of nature which seek to return the building to its original state. - National Park Service, Preservation Brief 5 Adobe Is Not Software Since the first Earth Day, people from all walks of life have found a calling advocating for natural building methods that will help save the earth. Earth-based products are naturally sustainable- you are building with the materials that surround you- and energy efficient. The folks at Adobe is not Software are just one of many groups in the Southwest devoted to promoting the benefits of adobe construction through training. They offer hands-on workshops on both making adobe and building with adobe. Adobe is more than software even in the high-tech world of southern California. Most of the largest commercial manufacturers of adobe brick are in the American Southwest. Both Arizona Adobe Company and the San Tan AdobeCompany are located in Arizona, a state rich in the raw materials needed to manufacture the building material. New Mexico Earth Adobes has been producing traditionally made bricks since 1972. Shipping costs can be more than product costs, however, which is why architecture made with adobe is mostly found in this region. It takes thousands of adobe bricks to construct a modest-sized home. Although adobe is an ancient method of construction, most building codes tend to focus on post-industrial processes. A traditional building method like building with adobe has become non-traditional in todays world. Some organizations are trying to change that. The Earthbuilders’ Guild, Adobe in Action, and the international conference called Earth USA help keep the mixtures baking in the heat of the sun and not in ovens run by fossil fuels. Adobe in Architecture: Visual Elements Pueblo Style and Pueblo Revival: Adobe construction is most closely associated with what is called Pueblo architecture. A pueblo is in fact a community of people, a Spanish word from the Latin word populus. The Spanish settlers combined their knowledge with the terraced communities occupied by the people already living in the area, the  indigenous people of the Americas. Monterey Style and Monterey Revival: When Monterey, California was an important seaport in the early 1800s, the population centers of the new country called the United States were in the East. When New Englanders like Thomas Oliver Larkin and John Rogers Cooper moved West, they took with them ideas of home and combined them with local customs of adobe construction. Larkins 1835 home in Monterey, which set the standard for the Monterey Colonial Style, exemplifies this fact of architecture, that design is often a mixture of features from different places. Mission and Mission Revival: When the Spanish colonized the Americas, they brought the Roman Catholic religion. The Catholic-built missions became symbols of a new way in a new world. Mission San Xavier Del Bac near Tucson, Arizona was built in the 18th century, when this territory was still part of the Spanish empire. Its original adobe brick has been repaired with low-fired clay brick. Spanish Colonial and Spanish Colonial Revival: Spanish style homes in the New World are not necessarily constructed with adobe. The only true Spanish colonial homes in the United States are the ones that were built during the long Spanish occupation from the 16th to 19th centuries. Homes from the 20th and 21st centuries are said to revive the style of the Spanish homeland. However, the traditional construction of a house in the medieval town of Calataà ±azor, Spain shows how this method of construction moved from Europe to America- the stone foundation, the overhanging roof, the timber beams for support, the adobe bricks, all ultimately hidden by a surface coating that defines the architectural style. Sources Preservation of Historic Adobe Buildings, Preservation Brief 5, National Park Service Publication, August 1978, https://www.nps.gov/tps/how-to-preserve/briefs/5-adobe-buildings.htm and PDF at https://www.nps.gov/tps/how-to-preserve/preservedocs/preservation-briefs/05Preserve-Brief-Adobe.pdfSan Xavier del Bac, National Park Service, https://www.nps.gov/tuma/learn/historyculture/san-xavier-del-bac.htm and https://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/american_latino_heritage/San_Xavier_del_Bac_Mission.html [accessed February 8, 2018]A Brief History of Mission San Xavier del Bac, sanxaviermission.org/History.html [accessed February 8, 2018]Photo Credits: Adobe Pueblo in Taos, New Mexico, Rob Atkins/Getty Images; Thomas Oliver Larkin House, Ed Bierman via flickr.com, Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 Generic (CC BY 2.0); Calataà ±azor, Spain house, Cristina Arias/Getty Images (cropped); Mission San Xavier Del Bac,Robert Alexander/Getty Images (cropped)