Q0531
“Virtues are in general beneficial characteristics, and indeed ones that a human…” — Philippa Foot (Virtues and Vices (1978))
Verified English quotation. Primary source: Virtues and Vices (1978). Theme: virtue.
English
Virtues are in general beneficial characteristics, and indeed ones that a human being needs to have, for his own sake and that of his fellows.
Source and attribution
The archive attributes this English wording to Virtues and Vices (1978) and files it under Analytic Philosophy. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
About Philippa Foot
Philippa Foot (1920–2010) was a leading Oxford moral philosopher who helped restore virtue ethics within analytic philosophy. Across essays collected in Virtues and Vices and the late book Natural Goodness, she linked moral evaluation to the needs and life-form of human beings rather than to free-floating emotivist attitudes.
How to read this passage
Virtue ethics asks not only which acts are right, but what kind of person one becomes. Courage, justice, temperance, and wisdom are classic Western lists; Confucian ren and yi offer related but distinct vocabularies. This passage enters that discussion through virtue, desire, community.
Concepts in this quote
- Virtue
- Virtue names excellences of character—habits of perception and action oriented toward the good.
- Desire
- Desire drives action and suffering alike; philosophy asks which desires to educate, restrain, or affirm.
- Community
- Community appears in this archive as a live philosophical concern—not a slogan. These verified English passages show how thinkers treat community as a problem of judgment, practice, or explanation.
How to cite this quotation
APA: Philippa Foot. (n.d.). Virtues are in general beneficial characteristics, and indeed ones that a human being needs to have, for his own sake and that of his fellows. In Philosophy Blind Box. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0531
MLA: Philippa Foot. “Virtues are in general beneficial characteristics, and indeed….” Philosophy Blind Box, https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0531.
Chicago: Philippa Foot. “Virtues are in general beneficial characteristics, and indeed….” Philosophy Blind Box. Accessed 2026. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0531.
Frequently asked questions
What is the source of the quotation “Virtues are in general beneficial characteristics, and indeed…”?
The passage is attributed to Philippa Foot, Virtues and Vices (1978). The archive attributes this English wording to Virtues and Vices (1978) and files it under Analytic Philosophy. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.
What does Philippa Foot mean by virtue?
Virtue ethics asks not only which acts are right, but what kind of person one becomes. Courage, justice, temperance, and wisdom are classic Western lists; Confucian ren and yi offer related but distinct vocabularies. This passage enters that discussion through virtue, desire, community.