Well, the virtue of Great-mindedness has for its object great Honour,
as we have said: and there seems to be a virtue having Honour also for
its object (as we stated in the former book), which may seem to bear to
Great-mindedness the same relation that Liberality does to
Magnificence: that is, both these virtues stand aloof from what is
great but dispose us as we ought to be disposed towards moderate and
small matters. Further: as in giving and receiving of wealth there is a
mean state, an excess, and a defect, so likewise in grasping after
Honour there is the more or less than is right, and also the doing so
from right sources and in right manner.
For we blame the lover of Honour as aiming at Honour more than he
ought, and from wrong sources; and him who is destitute of a love of
Honour as not choosing to be honoured even for what is noble. Sometimes
again we praise the lover of Honour as manly and having a love for what
is noble, and him who has no love for it as being moderate and modest
(as we noticed also in the former discussion of these virtues).
It is clear then that since “Lover of so and so” is a term capable of
several meanings, we do not always denote the same quality by the term
“Lover of Honour;” but when we use it as a term of commendation we
denote more than the mass of men are; when for blame more than a man
should be.
And the mean state having no proper name the extremes seem to dispute
for it as unoccupied ground: but of course where there is excess and
defect there must be also the mean. And in point of fact, men do grasp
at Honour more than they should, and less, and sometimes just as they
ought; for instance, this state is praised, being a mean state in
regard of Honour, but without any appropriate name. Compared with what
is called Ambition it shows like a want of love for Honour, and
compared with this it shows like Ambition, or compared with both, like
both faults: nor is this a singular case among the virtues. Here the
extreme characters appear to be opposed, because the mean has no name
appropriated to it.
Chapter VII.
Meekness is a mean state, having for its object-matter Anger: and as
the character in the mean has no name, and we may almost say the same
of the extremes, we give the name of Meekness (leaning rather to the
defect, which has no name either) to the character in the mean.