Aristotle on Pain: Pain as hindering the energia in the Nicomachean Ethics

Abstract

This paper endeavours to examine the function of pain in Aristotle's ethical philosophy. First, it delves into the relationship between pleasure and activity before directing its attention towards the relationship between pain and activity. While certain pains can be interpreted as kineseis that drive an animal out of its natural state, in the ethical domain, that pain which is understood as hindering the energeia assumes greater significance. This paper expounds on the implications of this idea of pain as an impediment to the activities of human and animal life and its connection to other vital areas of Aristotle's philosophical thought, including sense perception, psychology, and moral action.