What is it about?
The work of Aristotle has often been used as ancient authority for a variety of claims about business ethics. Aristotle has often also been criticised for views that he is thought to have held about business. This paper draws upon historical evidence about the social and economic conditions of fourth century BC Athens to which Arisotle was responding, and evidence from the texts that he left, in an attempt to to clarify the context of what he said, and what he meant by it.
Featured Image
Why is it important?
Writers on business ethics who analyse what Aristotle said in an acontextual, ahistorical manner are liable to give a misleading impression of what he intended by what he wrote. His work has been used as authority for some views that seem quite different from those that he would actually have held, and he has been criticised for other views that would seem much more reasonable if the social and economic context to which he was responding were better understood.
Perspectives
Aristotle remains one of the great philosophers of the western world, but the historical distance between his world and ours is very great. Scholars who draw upon his work to support particular views about business ethics must be wary of enlisting his authority for contemporary views without adequate consideration of the social and economic conditions to which he was responding.
Dr David Shaw
Independent Researcher
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Recontextualising Aristotelian Perspectives on the Purpose of the Business Corporation, Philosophy of Management, January 2021, Springer Science + Business Media,
DOI: 10.1007/s40926-020-00161-x.
You can read the full text:
Contributors
The following have contributed to this page
