On Aristotle’s Natural Limit
论证亚里士多德的自然限度与其人类繁荣理论密不可分，认为以赚钱为目的的生活与幸福不相容，过度追求财富会排挤友谊、自主等内在价值，且超出自然限度的财富获取是一种恶习。
Among scholars of ancient economic thought, it is widely recognized that Aristotle established an upper limit to money-making. This “natural limit” has been variously construed, with some claiming that it might be settled independently of Aristotle’s ethical theory. This essay defends the contrary thesis: Aristotle’s natural limit is inextricably tied to his account of human flourishing. I also argue that, for Aristotle, a human life committed to money-making is incompatible with achieving eudaimonia. Why? For Aristotle, money-making as an end in itself is endemic to the life of pleasure, not the good life. Moreover, the unchecked pursuit of evermore money is likely to crowd out other intrinsically valuable goods, such as friendship, agency, and autonomy. Finally, from the standpoint of Aristotle’s virtue ethics, wealth acquisition beyond the natural limit is considered to be a vice, not a virtue.