Both Aristotle and Plato are well known for their focus on defining the purpose of human beings. For them, humans have a special characteristic that no other living being possesses. This characteristic is that humans strive to achieve a certain level of goodness. Although they agree among themselves that there is a highest good that one must achieve in order to live a fulfilling life, they have different ideas about what that good is. In Aristotle's search to find the highest good of a human being, he first asked what that good is. it is the ergon, or task, of being human. Its main focus was mainly on what should be the aim or purpose of human existence. Aristotle said that everyone tries to achieve happiness, whether by having money, by loving, or by being honored. However, according to the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, he believes that the good we are trying to achieve constitutes an ultimate level of experience and is "desirable in itself and never for anything else." All the other blessings we experience throughout our lives only push us toward the one thing that will make us happy in the end. Although we can think of happiness as a state of mind, Aristotle saw it as the way you live your life. In other words, happiness is not going to disappear in a few minutes or a few hours. It is a goal that is achieved “at the end of life and measures the extent to which a person has reached their full potential as a human being” (Shields). To discover where this happiness comes from, Aristotle explored nature through biology. Based on the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy and a website called The Pursuit of Happiness which talks about Aristotle's story, he knew that what would ultimately make humans happy would...... middle of paper......ristote/>.Bowen, Tom. “Reading Questions for Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics.” Oakton. Oakton Community College, January 16, 2014. Web. May 3, 2014. “Comparison of the political theories of Plato and Aristotle.” » Guide to the novel. Guide to the novel, and Web. May 4, 2014. .González, Pedro. “Human Nature, Allegory and Truth in Plato’s Republic.” Barry University. The Russell Kirk Center for Cultural Revival, 2013. Web. May 3, 2014. Ross, W.D. “Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics.” The Internet Classics Archive. Atomic Web, 2009. Web. May 4, 2014. .Shields, Christopher. “Aristotle”. Stanford University. Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, September 25, 2008. Web. May 3 2014. .