Liber I, Pars IV — Quot sunt mores iuvenum laudabiles, et quomodo reges et principes ad mores illos debeant se habere. Cap. I.

Liber I, Pars IV — Quot sunt mores iuvenum laudabiles, et quomodo reges et principes ad mores illos debeant se habere. Cap. I.

In three parts of the first book, it has been shown how kings and princes should set their goals, what virtues they should possess, and which passions they should follow. Now, it remains to discuss the fourth part. Specifically, we will talk about the morals that should be imitated. These morals can be classified in two ways. They can be distinguished by age and fortune. Indeed, young people have different morals than older individuals, and those who are in different states of fortune have their own as well. Furthermore, the morals associated with fortune are said to vary as well. For such external goods as nobility, power, and wealth significantly influence moral character. For the most part, noble people have different morals than those who are ignoble; powerful people have different morals than the powerless; and wealthy people have different morals than the poor. However, we will speak about all these matters. First, let's discuss the morals of young people. Some morals are commendable, while others are blameworthy. Among other things, the philosopher touches on the subject of youth. In his Rhetoric, he discusses six commendable morals and six blameworthy ones. First, young people have commendable morals because they are generous. Second, they are spirited and full of good hope. Third, because they are magnanimous. Fourth, because they are not of a malicious character. Fifth, because they are easily compassionate. Sixth and last, because they are modest and easily embarrassed. For young people are generous because they have not experienced poverty, and the good things they possess, they have not acquired through their own labor. For anyone, with greater diligence, retains their resources when they have suffered some misfortune due to poverty, or when they have acquired those resources through their own effort. For what is acquired through labor is kept with greater care; indeed, anyone delights in their own work, for whatever they acquire through their own effort, they possess more dearly. Second, young people are full of hope. This happens for three reasons, as the philosopher proves. Rhetoric. Young people are bold and full of hope, primarily because few have experienced setbacks, and they believe they can achieve anything. They are also hopeful because they are filled with passion; thus, they live much in the future. According to their natural course, they should live abundantly in the future. Since memory relates to the past and hope to the future, young people live little in memory and much in hope. For young people do not take much pleasure in what they have done, as they remember having done little; rather, they take great pleasure in thinking about what they will do. For they hope to accomplish great things, which is why they tend to be bold and full of hope. Third, it happens that they are magnanimous, which is attributed to the preceding reasons. For this is what makes someone magnanimous: they elevate themselves with great things and strive to achieve greatness. Young people, therefore, since they are generous and spirited and full of hope, have no reason to hold back from being magnanimous. It could also be assigned to a special reason. For when young people are very passionate, and when they are hot, they desire to excel: young people always want to surpass others and to excel. For we see in the order of the universe that hot elements, like fire and air, always rise above the cold ones, namely, earth and water. Therefore, since among other things, honor and glory are what one seems to surpass and excel in, young people, because they are passionate and desire to excel, greatly desire glory and honor; and consequently, in some way, they are magnanimous, whose proper matter seems to be honor. Fourth, young people are commendable because they are not of a malicious character, for they do not believe others to be bad, but for the most part, they believe that all people are good. The reason for this is that inexperienced people don't judge the actions of others based on what they've seen; rather, they judge according to what they see in themselves, and thus they believe others to be the same. For this reason, it is said in the second book of the Rhetoric that children measure others by their own innocence. Just as they themselves are innocent, so they believe others to be innocent as well. Fifth, young people are easily moved to compassion because, as was said above, this compassion arises most strongly when we believe others to be undeserving of equal treatment. Therefore, if young people measure others by their own innocence and believe others to be undeserving of equal treatment, they are easily moved to mercy. Sixth, young people are prone to blush and feel shy. For everyone fears losing what they value too much. Blushing and shyness, as has been said, is the fear of being dishonored. So, when young people, who are overly eager to excel, fear being shamed. For this reason, they easily feel shame. Philosophers, however, seem to touch on another reason in the second book of Rhetoric, which is that young people are naturally shy. For (as he himself says) they are moved by nothing unless they are taught by the law. For he refers there to the teachings of the law, the paternal or maternal admonitions through which children are instructed. Thus, when mothers always admonish their sons to pursue honorable things; because what is honorable is the same as the status of honor, young people greatly desire those things that seem to import the status of honor, and in the face of opposition, they greatly fear those things that bring disgrace and dishonor: and because shame is the fear of being dishonored, young people easily feel shame. It can be seen that the morals of young people are commendable, and it can be easily understood how kings and princes should conduct themselves in relation to them. For not everything that is commendable in this context is commendable in an absolute sense. We see that being fierce is admirable in a dog, but it's not admirable in a human. Thus, while being modest is commendable in young people, because due to their age they cannot help but commit some shameful acts, which they should be ashamed of, kings and princes, who ought to be like demigods, should not only avoid committing shameful acts but should also find it abominable to hear shameful things mentioned, for such conversations corrupt good morals. Therefore, they are not in a state where they should be ashamed. Thus, they should not be ashamed unless it is under certain circumstances: for if it were to happen that they committed shameful acts, they would need to be even more ashamed than others, because they would be behaving in a more disgraceful manner. The first of the five qualities we mentioned as admirable in young people can be applied to kings and princes: for they ought to be generous, hopeful, not of a malicious disposition, magnanimous, and merciful. However, the sixth quality, namely being modest, should not be expected to apply to kings and princes in a straightforward manner. For it is fitting for kings and princes to be generous, because it would go against their nature if they, having a multitude of riches, did not allocate them to worthy and pious uses, as we have sufficiently discussed above in our treatise on generosity. They should also be even more hopeful than others, given that the common actions they must engage in are more worthy than others. Furthermore, they should be magnanimous, for (as was said in a certain chapter on magnanimity) true magnanimity is especially fitting for kings and princes, since they are called to undertake great deeds and strive for lofty goals. It is also fitting that they not be of a malicious character, so that they do not hold a bad opinion about anyone. For if the actions of their subjects were always interpreted in a negative light, they would end up being tyrants and destroyers of nations. Thus, it is also fitting for them to be compassionate. For (as the philosopher says), in rhetoric, people generally do wrong. Therefore, human frailty demands forgiveness for faults. Thus, kings and princes, according to whose judgment legislation is established, by which penalties are inflicted, should be said to be compassionate. However, it is not fitting for them to be modest simply, as was said above.