Areté (ἀρετή) — Translated as virtue or excellence. For the Greeks, areté is the full realization of a being’s characteristic function: the areté of the eye is to see well; of the runner, to run well; of the human being, to live according to reason. For Socrates, areté is singular — knowledge of the good. For Aristotle, it is plural and acquired through habit. The Stoics made it the sufficient condition for happiness.
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