
Part of study guide to professor Long's introductory ethics course; includes biographical details, comments on Aristotle's writings, short introductions to Rethoric and Nichomachean Ethics and study questions
Aristotle's method is dialectical. He believes that inquiry should start from, and attempt to harmonize and explain, the "appearances" (phainomena)—i.e., what initially seems plausible—where this includes not only the data of sense-perception, but also the "reputable beliefs" (endoxa) of other people ... Not all beliefs are equally reputable. The reputability of a belief is a function of the number of its adherents and the wisdom of its adherents. Hence endoxa are also referred to as the opinions of the many and of the wise.