(E) Extension note

(E) Extension note

1. • Origin found in Natural Law theory by Aristotle.

   • • The Golden Mean became a useful way to understand Christian virtue. From the 13C to the 16C the concepts of virtue and godlines became descriptors of what is meant by a gentleman.
     • • The phrase 'moderation in all things: sums up the style of life to which a gentleman should aspire.

2. • Scholars understood 2 important things:

   • FIRST: the gap between being a savage and a civilised person was narrow
     • SECOND: human beings found it difficult to follow the virtuous life and to be moral beings. Various writers wrote on the nature of virtue at this time. EXAMPLE: Italian poet DANTE had a long love affair with a young woman, who he never once spoke to. He describes this as virtuous love untouched by sexual desire
       • • After the early 17C, the idea of moral virtue as the base of morality fell out of favour. It wasn't until the 20C in America that the virtuous life became important again in Western moral thought.