Every human action aims at some good, and the good which is chosen for its own sake rather than as means to an end is the highest good.
Ethics is a part of politics, which is the most authoritative and architectonic science.
An inquiry into ethics should not be expected to have the same sort of precision as a mathematical inquiry, because the nature of the subject-matter is different. The highest good is happiness, which means living well. There is a dispute as to what constitutes happiness whether it is pleasure, honor, health, wealth, knowledge or something else. If a student's ethical habits are not good, he will be hindered from accepting ethical knowledge. Some think that happiness is to be found in pleasure, others that it is to be found in honor, and others that it is to be found in contemplation.