Pagina 427 de 734

Moreover as there is a character who takes less pleasure than he

ought in bodily enjoyments, and he also fails to abide by the

conclusion of his Reason,[20] the man of Self-Control is the mean

between him and the man of Imperfect Self-Control: that is to

say, the latter fails to abide by them because of somewhat too

much, the former because of somewhat too little; while the man of

Self-Control abides by them, and never changes by reason of

anything else than such conclusions.

Now of course since Self-Control is good both the contrary States

must be bad, as indeed they plainly are: but because the one of

them is seen in few persons, and but rarely in them, Self-Control

comes to be viewed as if opposed only to the Imperfection of it,

just as Perfected Self-Mastery is thought to be opposed only to

utter want of Self-Control.