Compare the moral theories of Kant and Aristotle. Argue for the Essay

Compare the moral theories of Kant and Aristotle. Argue for the superiority of one or the other. Qualify your position however y - Essay Example There are similarities in their views on the role and nature of knowledge and morality in the lives of human beings, while there are differences in the tenets that make up their philosophy. Aristotle, in his philosophy, maintains the importance of the soul in the acquisition of moral virtue. It is only by fulfilling the dictates of this soul, which is guided by reason that one would be able to achieve happiness. This happiness could be achieved by man, who was at the highest position in Aristotle’s teleological view of things. Man was at the highest position in his scala naturae, which means the Great Chain of Being, as a result of the possession of rationality and reason, unique to man, who maintains his superiority as a result of this rationality. The rational human person, the creature at the top of the biological ladder, would have a good character that arose out of the creation of moral virtue. To create this character, he would need the fortune to be tutored by somebody higher than him like a teacher, something that would be available only to the elite sections of the society. Aristotle himself was tutored by people like Plato and he was tutor to Alexander the Great. Contemporary Greek ideas and practices were thus, a great factor in the development of the theories of Aristotle.