Aristotle on the use of virtue

This paper offers a detailed interpretation of Eudemian Ethics VIII.1, a notoriously difficult text that contains numerous textual problems and a rather intricate argument. I argue that the main topic of the chapter is the question of whether virtue can be used otherwise than genuinely, and that the answer is that this is possible only in a purely logical sense. In other words, a just person can commit injustice simply because, if she lacked this capacity, her actions would be a matter of necessity. Furthermore, I argue that the theses Aristotle singles out in the conclusion of the chapter — that practical wisdom requires the virtues of character and vice versa, that nothing is stronger than practical wisdom, and that practical wisdom is not knowledge — are merely by-products of the argument for the main conclusion, namely that there is nothing inherent in virtue that would allow for its misuse.