#Cardinal Virtues

[littleflowerfaith]

“Humility is not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less”

C.S. Lewis

[sea-salted-wolverine]

The House of Usher and the cardinal virtues

I thought to myself it's no good to whine about slotting characters into boring reductive categories without a good rebutal, so here's a dose of slightly more interesting archetypes.

Prospero reflects the cardinal virtue of Diligence and its mirror the sin of Sloth ("But he has an orgy so it has to be lust," by god you're so boring) He is the only Usher who tries to make anything of value. When Camille goes on her little spiel about how Ushers don't make stuff, she's not wrong. Perry got pretty ruthlessly shot down when he was presenting his ideas for trying to make value and start a night club chain, rather than just taking credit for someone else's work like all of his siblings and his dad. But he was at least trying. His drive to prove himself and gain respect is how he gets himself into the whole mess. However, it is the act of not doing his due diligence that kills him.

Camille has an interesting one because while breaking into a lab facility to expose mistreatment of animals would seem like the cardinal virtue of kindness, she's only there to get one over on her sister. The inverse of Kindness is Envy, and for as important as her role is as the family spin doctor, Camille is valued the least. Everyone suspects Perry when they hear about an informant, but that's because he's an idiot baby. Victurine is useful with her heart mesh implant, Napoleon took the role of the "chill fun sibling", and the other two are original Ushers, so Camille is left as the unfavored child.

Napoleon tried to buy his way out of his problem with Charity. He could have come home with a different cat entirely and told his boyfriend he was looking in shelters for Pluto and accidentally fell in love. Name it Mars, let the boyfriend chalk it up to a weird grief response. Bummer Pluto never came home. Verna would have had him trip over the thing on the stairs in the middle of the night and that would have been that. Instead, everything was transactional as he maximized what he could get out of his relationships for the least amount of effort. The boyfriend can live with him, the boyfriends cat can move in too, but as soon as that becomes even the slightest bit more effort (like when boyfriend wants to meet the family, or curb the drug use, or the cat brings home a dead thing) Napoleon wants it gone from his life.

Victurine likewise could have had a painless clean death had she mustered up the Humility to say that the device didn't work. Her demise, unlike her younger siblings, was a compilation of smaller shitty decisions and white lies. She could even recognize that each choice was morally wrong, but it was little choices that were easier to brush off. A dead monkey, a foraged signature, a rightfully concerned patient reassured with platitudes. Even before she was scrubbing blood off the floor to Bonnie Tyler, her inability to admit her choices were flawed was getting her in trouble.

Tamralane with her perfectly manicured curated life, is the one to take Temperance to its furthest extreme. I think it was Atwood who wrote about women and the internal voyeur to preform for, but I'm not going to Google it for a post about horror characters losing their minds and dying horribly. She lives under a personal panopticon of her own expectations and can never allow herself to experience her own life lest she fall short. Her wealth rather than mitigating this exacerbates the issue, giving her access to any and every distance she could possibly want. Death by mirrors isn't so much her going insane as it is the culmination of the life shes built for herself.

(Plus, I know her lonely evening was meant to be ~spooky~ but babe, that is literally just ADHD. Can't remember where you put the thing? Can't remember doing the thing? CAN'T SLEEP?! DOES EVERYONE HATE YOU AND THINK YOU'RE AN INSANE BITCH FOR PERFECTLY VALID REASONS?! Looks like Adderall for you).

Fraudrick. You dickwad. No Patience to allow your very injured and traumatized wife explain herself. The inverse of Patience is Wrath. Demonstrated that one in spades. I'm on Verna's side on this one. Pliers, really?

(His wife's name is fucking Mori. As in momento mori.)

Which leaves Madeline and Rodrick. What's a Gothic horror story without some really fucking weird and unsettling sibling dynamic? Dull, that's what. Anyway, never letting anything touch them or impede them in their lust for power and wealth offers a strange sort of Chastity. There's no love, not for the kids or Annabelle Lee that could touch them, no moral they wouldn't overturn, no value they wouldn't abandon. Madeline values her freedom above all else but she spent her life bound to her brother. They wouldn't even spare each other in ruthless pursuit of just a little more power.

So yeah, bummer for August Dupain that he wound up against the most supernaturally fucked up family that ever lived.

[maimoncat]

Eiiii ti ricordi gli oc basati sull'Orlando Furioso che mi hai mandato? Bene allora sto facendo dei grafici di riferimento e volevo sapere tre cose:

1) Le corone le hanno e se si come sono

2) I colori

3)Cos'è la cosa nella testa di Andronica (Non offenderti ma non capisco)

Ah, certo

Per loro pensavo che, piuttosto delle corone, avessero la loro divinità collegata ai loro simboli iconografici, quindi Dicilla alla spada infuocata, Fronesia allo specchio magico

Andronica alla mazza di rovere

E Sofrosina alle due borracce d'acqua che tiene legate in vita

2) per i colori direi che Dicilla ha piume castane e veste verde, Fronesia squame blu cielo, Andronica pelo bruno scuro e corrazza gialla, con accenti e tunica arancioni, e Sofrosina pelle grigia e veste rosso spento.

3) dovrebbe essere un'ascia conficcata in testa. Non sapevo proprio come disegnarla per bene, scusa 😅

Inoltre ho dato a ognuna di loro una stella a quattro punte come punto di unione

Ah, e ho dato qui a Sofrosina un cappuccio, che secondo me le sta bene

Spero sia stato d'aiuto! <3

[thecatholicbozo]

[angeltreasure]

Cardinal Virtues

Prudence

Justice

Fortitude

Temperance

[j-august]

Parking spaces in downtown Hollywood were as scarce as the cardinal virtues.

Ross MacDonald, The Way Some People Die

[toadeyes-miqote]

Prompt #26: Last

Note - ShB role quest spoiler

She had been hearing bits of information during the time that she was here. Someone had finally managed to take them down.

The Mystel archer - Andreia went down first. Fallen by a pair of Mystel hunters. Or rather one Mystel hunter and an Eulmoran dandy playing at being a bounty hunter. The irony wasn’t lost at all.

Hearing someone spin a new tale about Renda Rea's life in the wake of that bounty earned was unexpected. It was as if someone knew who she was before. Having gone through all that trouble.

Word began to spread, then Dikaiosyne fell soon after. Word that it might have been the same hunter spread throughout the Crystarium that it was the Warrior of Darkness picking them off.

It was quiet for a spell and then Phronesis fell. The dwarf was sitting there downing drink after drink, it came as no surprise when a msytel dressed in a semi-familiar fashion came up to the table and place a drink before them. For the Warrior of Darkness to take an interest in Ardbert and his crew. Might she be the one to end it all? “I heard you were hunting down Soppo… Soppi…” “Sophrosyne.. Balam-Quitz got your tongue?” “Almost. How many more drinks would you like? I saved your story for the last.” This would prove interesting indeed as the green clad Warrior signal to her to bring more drinks.

[emilyryann]

Prudence: An overlooked virtue

Pictured above: A painting of a woman that embodies the idea of virtue, with a snake in one hand representing wisdom, and a mirror in the other representing clarity.

Prudence is one of the four cardinal virtues that Aquinas wrote about and I believe it is an often overlooked virtue. Prudence, as I would define it, is using common sense and having the wisdom to make a decision that is good for you and others, not just what brings a good feeling or happiness at that moment. To quote Aristotle, prudence is recta ratio agibilium or"right reason applied to practice." Having prudence requires one to have the wisdom to look at their own experiences and the experiences of others in order to make a reasonable and informed decision. Cultivating prudence is difficult because it requires wisdom, which is something that comes with age and experience. In order to grow in your own prudence you must seek the counsel of those wiser than you and those who have more experience. One can also cultivate prudence in their life by getting to know themselves better and reflecting on what is good for themself and what is not. That way when the time comes for decisions, you will know yourself and will be able to make a more informed decision. Anscombe writes in her article modern moral philosophy that "in fact rather generally it must be good for anyone to think 'Perhaps in some way I can't see, I may be on a bad path, perhaps I am hopelessly wrong in some essential way'" and I think the idea of self-reflection and logic being applied to every thought and action is what prudence is.

It is difficult to pick a role model for prudence because everyone is very flawed and often times people's flaws stem from a lack of prudence and an inability to use practical wisdom. I have chosen to look into the fictional realm in search of a model of prudence and a character that came to mind was Samwise Gamgee, the companion of the Lord of the Rings protagonist Frodo Baggins. There are many fictional characters that exercise prudence but I believe Samwise is a particularly good example because J.R.R. Tolkien writes his character to be a voice of reason throughout the novel. He understands what is best for his life and the lives of those around him. Despite some insecurity and irrationality from his companions, he fulfills his purpose. This may be seen as fortitude to some, but I see it as prudence because while he is completing his goals despite adversity, it is because he is making wise choices and using reason that he is able to complete his journey. Throughout their journey, Samwise is concerned with not only the struggles at present but the struggles to come and makes a calculated decision based upon that. This is a perfect example of prudence in my mind because it is logical thought and self-governance in a time of difficulty, and one who continues to make wise choices while having every reason not to is an exemplar of prudence.

As far as models of human flourishing, I think the virtue of prudence best fulfills the independent esteem need on Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Prudence is the ability to make sound choices for yourself and this allows for one to achieve success and well-being without depending on someone or something else to motivate you to make those smart choices. It is hard to fit prudence into just one category of human flourishing on any of the three models (Maslow, Seligman, and Galtung) because some degree of prudence is needed in almost every category. For example, in Seligman's PERMA model, you need good judgment to form positive relationships and to be able to find meaning. In Galtung's core needs model, you need prudence to make decisions to better your well-being and take care of yourself. I do think that prudence extends beyond physiological needs and survival though, it is a virtue that cultivates a higher level of well-being. You don't necessarily need prudence to have your physical needs met, you need some decision-making skills maybe, but not as a virtue. If one has prudence it allows them to make the difficult choices that allow them to grow into a better person. It is a clarity of mind that is needed as you develop self-actualization, freedom, and identity.

Pictured above: My placement of prudence in Maslow's hierarchy of needs and Galtung's table of basic human needs.

"Entering the forest" in terms of prudence is another difficult task. I think when we look for prudence throughout history we should look for the mundane people who made a difference not by surmounting great obstacles but by continuing to live and do the right thing for themselves and others. I think "entering the forest" for prudence requires one to enter not a war or major world event but at a person who listened to reason and made logical choices when faced with troubles. Prudence is a virtue that is not as often displayed in modern media, but it can be found throughout history in everyday people who do great things just by having practical wisdom when others do not.

Note: Underlined phrases are hyperlinked to web pages with more about that topic.

[chloehasacat]

Fortitude, Memory, Connection

"The cardinal virtue of Fortitude represented by a seated woman, her right hand on a column (possibly a modern impression)" ca. 1480–1520

The cardinal virtue of fortitude is often depicted as a woman carrying in her arms a large column, from this imagery we can interpret the meaning of the virtue to be akin to something like "strength", or perhaps "perseverance". Indeed, with the latin root fortis meaning "strong", the woman carrying the column is demonstrating her physical strength. As a virtue however, fortitude requires another sort of inner strength, a solidity of will, or resilience in the face of challenge. Fortitude is not only a virtue in the sense that it allows us to be steadfast in cultivating our sense of morality, but in the vaster sense that it is a skill to be used in many instances which require it. Cultivating this virtue can be done simple with self practice, perhaps by setting personal goals like reading a book for a certain amount of time without getting distracted. This virtue could be demonstrated and practiced by standing up for oneself in our relationships, holding steadfastly to a belief, or even pushing for a bit more distance during a run when it feels like you want to give up.

The cultivation of a virtue like this is not only done by oneself, as with any virtue we need exemplars and role models on which to base our understanding of the virtues and our goals. When considering people that have the trait of fortitude, my mind first goes to suffragist Alice Paul. Among her accomplishments as a leader of the women's suffrage movement in the United States, she had endured great hardships to ensure that she remained strict in her conviction. She (along with other suffragist women) was sentenced to seven months in prison for "obstructing traffic" during a picketing protest. While she was in prison, she organized a hunger strike in which she was force fed through her nose after refusing to eat. I cannot imagine the intense strength of will which would be required to endure... A moral exemplar in more ways than one, Alice Paul embodies the virtue of fortitude for her strength of mind and solidity of her beliefs. Below is a photo of Alice Paul, as well as a link to a trailer for the movie "Iron Jawed Angels" which tells parts of Alice Paul's and the Suffragists' story.

Alice Paul raises glass in front of the ratification banner, August 26, 1920. National Women's Party Collection.

~~~

There is something to be said about the moral energy surrounding the virtue of fortitude, is is an idea which we can cultivate within ourselves by taking note of the ways in which virtuous people (like Alice Paul) have demonstrated it. We know that fortitude is not a virtue only expressed in dire situations (though it can be), it can be practiced and cultivated within our daily routines and interactions with others. And while fortitude can serve a larger purpose as a great, heroic example of strength, it also serves as a way to enrich our lives personally by serving a human "need". So what is this "need" that fortitude fills? I believe that it can differ between people based on the ways in which it is cultivated and utilized. The cultivation of fortitude can fulfill the need to belong and have meaning; as we fortify our beliefs and character, we become more sure of ourselves and our place in the world. Cultivating fortitude can promote the feeling of accomplishment in instances of it's utilization, in those moments where we did succeed in reading for an hour straight without checking our phone, or where we navigated a negative experience calmly and with resilience. We see the personification of fortitude with her heavy stone column, we see that she is enduring, and that brings about inspiration that we too can persevere under the weight of our own hardships.

To find examples of fortitude in history, one must look to those figures that believed steadfastly in a cause, a movement, a message. This may seem a loose guideline for a search, but those that create change are often people that had to show great fortitude whilst working towards it. In seeing "Fortitude" on the list of virtues on the Forward into Memory website, my first thought was of a woman named Yu Gwan-soon (유관순). She was a student at Ehwa Women's University who participated in protests for Korean independence in 1919. Yu Gwan-soon was jailed at the age of 17 for her role in the protests where she was subsequently tortured and killed. While in prison, she advocated for her own release, and the release of the other prisoners, and even organized a protest within the prison. A profound example of one exemplifying the virtue of fortitude, while in prison she writes "...this physical pain does not compare to the pain of losing my nation". I first learned about Yu Gwan-soon this year during my visit to the Seodaemun Prison Museum in Seoul, South Korea where I was able to stand in the cell in which she was imprisoned, and learn of her story. Here is a link to an article about Yu Gwan-soon and her life). The photos below are photos that I took from the outside of her cell, and of a piece of art in the museum memorializing her.

Continuing on my "entrance of the forest" of persons of fortitudinous virtue, I clicked on the page of a woman named Kim Nansa (김란사). She was a Korean woman who desired enlightenment and knowledge, she applied to Ehwa University, and was denied as married women were not allowed to enroll. Upon this denial, she showed great fortitude in pursuing enlightenment, she is quoted as replying to the school's rejection with the words: “My life is pitch-black like in the middle of the night. Would you give me a chance to find light?”, a compelling statement that moved the school to accept her as a student. After further reading and watching a speech by Professor Hope May (which can be found here) I discovered that Kim Nansa was the professor and mentor of Yu Gwan-soon, as well as the leader of a student club discussing national liberation. Perhaps this is not a solid set of directions that will lead one to the entrance of the forest, but rather an example that these connections, the red thread of memory, between virtuous people and events can be found in many places along the way.

[rainofaugustsith]

In Praise of Doing All The Things - Cardinal Virtues Edition

Viri is currently working on leveling several jobs, but also completing tribal missions and FATE zones in Shadowbringers. I'd ideally like All The Things done before doing the Seat of Sacrifice trial, but that might be a stretch with the FATES. I have finished four zones but am quite a ways off for the other two.

I'm so glad that I did all the Cardinal Virtues before getting to the end of the WoL/D's time in the First. The perks of that have been:

Shadowbringers spoilers, Cardinal Virtues spoilers, ahoy!!

Getting the quest with Cylva explains exactly what Elidibus is attempting with Ardbert. Elidibus is just repeating the Shadowkeeper scenario: propping up Warriors of Light, encouraging them and tipping the balance too far to Light. I wanted to scream every time one of the Scions or the Exarch was like "we don't know what that rascal is up to." VIRI KNEW.

All of the NPCs from the CVs, as well as Cylva, were choices when the WoL/D got their late night visit in their quarters. Cylva's was especially interesting, even though they managed to make her look foreboding even when she's completely agreeing with the WoL/D. And for the others, the Mage DPS and Healer NPCs who visited are people I wish Viri could take back to the Source with her, or visit all the time, because she adored them.

You get a ton of lore which is really helpful, especially with Lamitt's quest and the dwarfs. I still wonder how the people on the First would react to a non-masked Lalafell WoL, considering what happened to all the unmasked dwarfs on the First.

During the Heroes Gauntlet dungeon, it was so meaningful to me that so many of the WoL/D's allies turned up to help them, every step of the way. If you have all the CVs completed, you get those quest NPCs also fighting for you along the way, complete with banter that suggests they themselves might find teammates.

Caption: Giott the Aleforged: Ugh, I would kill for a drink right now... Lue-Reeq of the Gilded Bow: When this is over, I'll buy you as many as you want! Steelarm Cerigg: Oho, does that offer extend to me as well? Granson of the Mournful Blade: Save the talk for the tavern! We're not out of the woods yet! Steelarm Cerigg: Let's finish this quick and have those drinks! It's free, so Taynor can't complain!

[velvetandbooks]

The four Cardinal Virtues

Ballet comique de la reine (1582)

[copela4692]

Patience - Virtues at Work

“Patience is one of the humble, workaday virtues; but it is, in a real sense, the root and guardian of all virtues, not causing them, but removing obstacles to their operation. Do away with patience and the gates are open for a flood of discontent and sin.” St. Thomas Aquinas, comp. to Summa, III, 394 Patience Escalier (1888), by Vincent Van Gogh What is Patience? Patience is a virtue, so the…

[syntonylife]

Mastering the 7 Cardinal Virtues: Your Guide to Law of Attraction Success

Attracting Abundance and Happiness Through the Power of Virtue: Unlock Your Potential Today! We have already explored how the 7 deadly sins can serve as stimuli to improve ourselves and deepen our path of personal growth to lead us to abundance, manifest our desires, and ultimately achieve happiness. Now I would like to highlight the seven cardinal virtues – those moral pillars that guide us…

[death-rebirth-senshi]

Where was demon slave and deadly sin ritual when the Umbra were being wiped out.

[toadeyes-miqote]

So...

Apparently Lue-Reeq does have a piece if you gave the first one to Renda-Rea or somehow think that it meant Exarch and not Lue.

I'm dense like that and Healer quest confirmed that exarch got a small piece. The rest be here if you are slow at leveling

So Lyse rematch?

fight fight fight!!! Let your fists do the talking.

dude why are you like this? this reminds me of that pre Garlemald trip and post In from the cold to storm Tower of Babil

[corancoranthemagicalman]

Do you have a scene you really liked but weren't able to fit it in a fic? Would you care to share? Do you have a most recent favorite line or scene? What is it?

*Asks are sent for fun, no pressure to answer.

Oh, this is a fun question. I've been sitting on it for a minute trying to really think on it.

When I'm writing, I treat it a lot like my other forms of art—which is to say, I delete my darlings. When something doesn't work, unless it was really a killer line, it's gone and forgotten. I had this really fun dialogue convo in one of my current WIPs that just did not fit and kinda grew rampant, so I plucked her completely, and tbh in the retrospective, I don't think it was all that clever enough to have saved somewhere else. So bye-bye she went!

Even the parts that are on my "pieces and parts" doc are more...I could definitely strengthen them. They were more a feeling that I was on to that I'd love to expand upon more in a fic where they fit, if that makes sense. I've always wanted to capture "deleted scenes", so I should really document them more thoroughly in my writing process, but no scene that I was in love with didn't make it into one of my fics!

For the second part of this, mhm. I'll keep it to my published works, haha. It's definitely not recent, but so much of Compression (my Bagginshield fic) has kept so near and dear to my heart. Particularly the scene in which Thorin and Bilbo are at the forge, if I'm being honest.

For a more recent work (if we'll do the grace of over six months as recent lol) I also adore Deadly Sins and Cardinal Virtues, and not just because I got to write it with @snarky-synesthete and @cryptic-queer-cryptid . It was fun exploring my writing style in comparison to theirs, and growing from that, too. Flexing some poetry style meeting quirky character narration. I adore anything to do with apple symbolism, and there were quite a few in that fic. The one bit that really sticks out though is —

That lust-red hair was long again. Nothing fancifully braided or anything…just enough to grab hold of. Just enough that if Furfur dared, he could reach out and grasp it. Listen to what sounds might bloom from that mouth if he pulled hard enough…beckon that throat to move so that he could bruise its apple-flesh. And, oh, Furfur would. Pluck them from the forbidden tree and bite into their knowledge. Let whatever truth they had drip down Furfur’s chin like fresh wine. Bathe Furfur anew in nakedness. Furfur would tear into them—teeth to Crowley’s core—if it meant that he was the only one to know the apple. Gorge himself on the fruit and not spare a drop for the soil. The soil hadn’t deserved Crowley. Hadn’t deserved their blood, their skin, and certainly not whatever precious wine might pour out of their ecstasy…and Furfur would give them only the most tantalizing finish. Dig into their body until Crowley could only remember the moment where the serpent had swallowed a stag, or where the deer had pierced the snake.

I love experimenting with this sort of style, and I think again, overall, my writing is so much stronger for having written this with two wonderful authors. I've got a few good lines cooking in some WIPs, but I feel like I'm getting lost in the sauce of this ask and all of my stacked WIPs, haha. So I'll save those good lines for when they're published.

Thanks for the ask!! :)