Letter 117 — On Real Ethics as Superior to Syllogistic Subtleties (§5)

“And this objection is also raised against our school: “You wish to be wise. Therefore, being wise is a thing to be desired. And if it be a thing to be desired it is a Good.” So our philosophers are forced to twist their words and insert another syllable into the word “desired,”—a syllable which our language does not normally allow to be inserted. But, with your permission, I shall add it. “That which is good,” they say, “is a thing to be desired; the desirable thing is that which falls to our lot after we have attained the Good. For the desirable is not sought as a Good; it is an accessory to the Good after the Good has been attained.””