Happiness for Aristotle

Aristotle says: “One swallow does not signify the beginning of summer,” a phrase taken from his Ethics to Nicomachus, which he dedicated to his son Nicomachus. Through this example, Aristotle points out that moments of fleeting pleasure do not make true happiness, just as the appearance of a single swallow or a sunny day does not signify the beginning of summer.

For Aristotle, happiness is not a matter of short-term joy or fleeting moments of pleasure, but something deeper and more lasting. In this sense, Aristotle emphasizes that children cannot be happy, because they are at the beginning of their lives and have not lived a full life in any sense of the word.

For Aristotle, true happiness requires a long and complete life, where a person can achieve the virtues and goals that guarantee inner satisfaction and continuity.