Neither by nature, then, nor contrary to nature do the virtues arise in us; rather we… — Aristotle

Neither by nature, then, nor contrary to nature do the virtues arise in us; rather we are adapted by nature to receive them, and are made perfect by habit.

In the original Greek

οὔτ᾽ ἄρα φύσει οὔτε παρὰ φύσιν ἐγγίνονται αἱ ἀρεταί, ἀλλὰ πεφυκόσι μὲν ἡμῖν δέξασθαι αὐτάς, τελειουμένοις δὲ διὰ τοῦ ἔθους.

The Nicomachean Ethics · 322 BC
★ 3.9
Provenance
Current citation
Aristotle. Nicomachean Ethics, translated by Terence Irwin. Hackett Publishing, 2019, bk. 2.
Original citation
Aristotle. Ἠθικὰ Νικομάχεια, Ēthika Nikomacheia [Nicomachean Ethics]. c. 322 BC.

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