Published in Aristocracy and nobility in the Ancient and Medieval World

Keywords: Keywords: Aristotle, Ethics, Prudence, Sophocles, Tragedy.

The main purpose presented in this article is to analyze how the Sophoclean works influenced the Aristotelian ethical thought construction process. In order to conduct this analysis, the tragedy Oedipus at Colonus is used to arouse the discussion on central questions in the ethical thought of Aristotle, such as practical wisdom, caution and prudence. Therefore, it was necessary to re-compound the transition route between the political-mythical thought, expressed in the mythical temporality of the tragedies, and the political-ethical thought, experienced in the Athens daily routine during the fifth century B.C. However, it is not the proposal of this article to establish an evolutionist analysis concerning the Greek philosophical knowledge construction process. Since this process was done by human efforts, so it is a historical product, it is not a purpose of this work elaborate any kind of validation about one or another way (mythical or ethical) of comprehension, behavior and action. Thus, herein is offered a comparative view between these two possibilities in order to understand how one contributed to the construction of the other one.