Vandrare

as we live, we constantly learn and update what we know. so we need to keep reassessing what living well means to us constantly, and then work towards that personal goal. i think the question of what we need to know here is just what living well is. if we can figure that out, i'm sure we can realise how to go about achieving that goal.

jpbrooks

Good topic!
Well, assuming that the claim that "all men, by nature, desire to know", is invariably true for all humans, I would suggest that Praxis, particularly Philosophical Praxis, would be necessary for a "well lived" life. Lacking an adequate definition of "living well" at present, we have no choice but to "discover" one in the process of living. And this would require testing various proposed definitions by applying them to our lives. So it seems reasonable to assume that Praxis, given what we already claim to know up to this point in time, is inextricably intertwined with "living well".

I will return later.

Grimly Fiendish

Both, please.

Respectfully,

Grimly Fiendish.

Grimly Fiendish

Quote:

Can we examine how YOU came about this bit of necessary knowledge? This seems to be a good start! Sophie.

Aristotle. Metaphysics. 350 BC.

Respectfully,

Grimly Fiendish.

sophie

Grimly Fiendish : What do we need to know in order that we may live well ?

It seems as if you have found Aristotle and Metaphysics necessary to know in order for you to live well. Do you think this is universally true, meaning, if ALL are familiar with Aristotle and Metaphysics then they are well on the road to living well?

Grimly Fiendish

Quote:

It seems as if you have found Aristotle and Metaphysics necessary to know in order for you to live well. Sophie.

That is an unfounded assumption, for I have not written anything regarding Aristotle's position on this matter. The only assumption you can be safe in is that I have read Aristotle.

Quote:

Do you think this is universally true, meaning, if ALL are familiar with Aristotle and Metaphysics then they are well on the road to living well? Sophie.

Judging from the subject of this topic, evidently not.

*

May I ask if you, and all reading this post, live well, and if so how do you achieve this ? I am genuine in my curiosity.

Respectfully,

Grimly Fiendish.

sophie

Grimly Fiendish : That is an unfounded assumption, for I have not written anything regarding Aristotle's position on this matter. The only assumption you can be safe in is that I have read Aristotle.

Earlier I asked : Can we examine how YOU came about this bit of necessary knowledge? This seems to be a good start! You answered Aristotle.

Further the implication is clear from your proposition : All men, by nature, desire to know.

Through your own desire to know, you attended to find Aristotle, which it seems was to strike upon the path of living well, seeing you intially knew not how to live well. You did not have to particularily say it, it was deduced.

Luiseach

Okay...it's my view that whatever we decide defines 'living well' should be justifiable on both subjective and and objective (generalised) grounds.

This is where we get into the question of ethics and morality in relation to the 'good life.'

What, first of all, does 'well' mean?

If we can define that, then we are on our way to figuring out how to conduct ourselves in accordance with a list of criteria for 'wellness.'

I have loads of dictionaries (too many in fact), but my favourite is the O.E.D.. Some denotations of the word 'well' are as follows:

'in good manner or style'; 'satisfactorily'; 'rightly'; 'wisely' (Oxford English Dictionary s.v. 'well')

From this definition, then, it's clear that whatever we decide 'living well' means is contingent upon what we think is 'right,' 'wise,' 'satisfactory' and 'good.'

And what we understand to be right, wise, satisfactory and good is, in turn, contingent upon a combination of the following: moral and ethical systems; social, cultural and political contexts; and, finally, our subjective positioning in relation to moral/ethical systems and social, cultural and political context.

Hope this helps somewhat.