Human nature and goodness › Virtue and the reasons a person sees

A virtue is more than an efficient technique. Someone could become very effective at manipulating a friend's dependence while failing to treat the friend justly. Skill describes how well a person carries something out; evaluation of the will asks what they are doing and why it deserves pursuit.

In Foot's approach, virtues belong to an account of the considerations a person should recognize. Truthfulness matters where another person is entitled to an honest account. Courage matters where fear threatens a justified commitment. These connections require attention to the circumstances: neither indiscriminate disclosure nor reckless risk-taking becomes good simply by being given a virtue's name.

Imagine a person admitting a mistake that has inconvenienced someone else. The admission might cost standing or comfort. An instrumental calculation could ask whether concealment would be detected. A moral assessment also asks what the affected person is owed and whether the agent is willing to acknowledge the facts.

This is why the framework cannot be reduced to advice about getting ahead. A virtue may help sustain a relationship without guaranteeing an advantage to its possessor on every occasion. The question is whether the action responds well to the reasons present, not whether the agent can always secure a reward for doing it.