Once upon a time, there was a magnificently wealthy king, who lived in a grand palace with sprawling gardens, good wine, and more gold than you could shake a ruby-encrusted sceptor at. One day, the king, in his hubris, invited a weary (but famously wise) traveler to his palace. The king enthusiastically gave the traveler, named Solon, a grand tour of his palace, all the while showering him in hospitality. At the end of the tour, the king asked (expecting already to know the answer) who Solon considered to be the happiest man among mortals. Solon's answer surprised him.....
For those of you who don't know the story of Solon and the King of Croesus, the king gets a huge slice of humble pie along with a side-dish of wisdom: Count no man happy until you see how he dies. What does that mean? And what does it have to do with philosophy? Well, as I considered Aristotle's conception of eudaimonia, it seemed closely connected to Solon's now famous proverb.
Eudaimonia is a lot of things: an activity, self-sufficient, continuous, complete-in-itself. However, I don't recall there being a standard set (the proverbial measuring stick) by which man can determine whether or not he has achieved eudaimonia. Further, for being the bee's-knees in self-sufficient and complete flourishing, it seems as though eudaimonia can be too-easily stolen away by tragic circumstances. Aristotle even mentions at one point that eudaimonia cannot be achieved unless a man's material needs are provided for; hence, man can only contemplate nearly continuously, as he must occasionally stop to do trivial little things like eating, sleeping, and (so I hope) occasionally bathing. If, however, some exceedingly tragic circumstances befall a person, one does not have the leisure time to devote to things like contemplation. Maslow's faithful hierarchy of needs kicks in, and suddenly needs like philosophical enlightenment and self-actualization have to wait.
It's at this point that Solon re-enters the picture. What then, dear Solon, is the measure of eudaimonia? Solon's answer is both ominous and familiar: Count no man happy until you see how he dies. Even if you strive for eudaimonia your entire life, even if you master the intellectual virtues and you've practiced the character virtues until you're acting magnanimous in your sleep, whether you have reached your goal or not cannot be determined until after you die. After all, before that point, your situation can change, and your eudaimonia (or pre-eudaimonia, since you can't be said to have the real-deal until after you die) can be taken away. I don't know about you guys, but I'd be pretty peeved if my eudaimonia got snatched away from me at the last minute, particularly after a life-time of hard work and habituation aimed at building it up. It seems to me like something as complete and self-sufficient as eudaimonia should be a bit more permanent.
Just a fun, existentially troubling thought before this semester's end. Perhaps I'll post a cheerier one before finals actually roll around.
