Item 4 in Stoic Four Cardinal Virtues
Temperance
Govern appetite, emotion and desire through proportionate rational restraint.
- Position
- 4
- Form
- Virtue to cultivate
- Obligation
- Aspirational
- Wording status
- Editorial paraphrase
- Intended audience
- Persons pursuing Stoic philosophical practice
- Last reviewed
- 28 June 2026
Names and terminology
Canonical name: Temperance
Original term: Sōphrosynē
Source wording
Editorial paraphrase: Govern appetite, emotion and desire through proportionate rational restraint.
Literal meaning
Govern appetite, emotion and desire through proportionate rational restraint.
Broader interpretation
Interpretation depends on the framework's historical purpose, intended audience and relationship to its other principles.
Ethical purpose
To shape conduct or character in a way consistent with the wider ethical framework.
Modern application
Modern application requires attention to consent, rights, evidence, foreseeable harm and changing social conditions.
Criticism and difficult cases
Application can become difficult when this principle conflicts with another duty, when harm is indirect, or when ancient social assumptions do not fit modern conditions.
Truth By Reason analysis
Truth By Reason assesses this principle according to evidence, rights, intentions, foreseeable consequences and consistency with the treatment of all affected beings.
Ethical themes
Sources
- Stoicism Academic / peer reviewed