Nicomachean Ethics: Text and Doctrine

This article argues that the structure of Nicomachean Ethics reproduces the structure of Aristotle's ethical theory, consisting of three parts: the doctrine of the highest good, the doctrine of the virtues, and the doctrine of the three types of life. We show that the last four books successively analyze three concepts of happiness: the sensual (book VII), the practical (books VIII and IX), and the contemplative (book X).