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What makes a person, no matter their background, intelligence, or resilience, stand out from the crowd, to display excellence in the art of living?
It was this question that led two friends; a behavioural neuroscientist turned counsellor and a mathematician; both experienced academics and educators, to embark on a journey of discovery. The answer they found is called virtue.
Virtue sits in the background of daily life, yet influences everything we say and do. It is about a person’s style and substance in spite of their physical strength or intellect. Virtue is for us all, not only for the strong and the smart.
So how do we attain a life of excellence in a world awash with instant gratification yet marred by anxiety and depression?
The authors argue our need to always feel comfortable, if not happy, has robbed us of achieving excellence in our own lives. Taking an evidence-based approach, they examine research findings from psychology, anthropology, and biology; while also touching on religion and philosophy; to identify six virtues which are foundational to our humanity and which orientate each of us to our ‘best-lived’ life. These foundational virtues are Courage, Diligence, Wisdom, Honour, Justice, and Kindness.
Cutting across cultural and religious barriers this unique book provides readers with practical tools in the daily art of living. Not only will mental health professionals, parents and teachers find this book of value but so will all those who seek to empower others.
Herein lies a clear path to a life of excellence through virtue.
Front Matter
Chapter 1 - The foundational virtues
Chapter 2 - Courage
Chapter 3 - Diligence
Chapter 4 - Wisdom
Chapter 5 - Honour
Chapter 6 - Justice
Chapter 7 - Kindness
Chapter 8 - In the pursuit of excellence: Using multiple virtues
"In the current context of culturally defined models of wellbeing, this book’s brilliant explication of the scientific basis for the virtues is most welcome."
- James Phillips, Assoc. Professor, Auckland University of Technology
"This book is written with passion and warmth . I recommend it for parents, for teachers, and for all of us who recognise that our greatest task is to prepare the next generation to live well in the world we shall hand on to them."
- Rev. Professor Philip Hughes, Alphacrucis College and author of Educating for Purposeful Living
"My daughter once declared at the tender age of 6 that she wanted to be a particular type of teacher —‘a teacher of happiness!’ This book takes me back to that moment — happiness in its purest form . It inspires, ignites passion and challenges us to take control."
- Joe D'Amico, General Manager, Chisholm Institute (Dandenong Campus)
"What psycho-social framework can help us live lives of excellence? Drs Tom Edwards and Cosimo Chiera have identified six virtues that are both cross-cultural and timeless - and perhaps unexpected. Using these six virtues they detail a robust virtue-based model for living a life that is both meaningful and fulfilling as opposed to the pursuit of fleeting happiness.
In Chapter 1 of The Freedom of Virtue Edwards and Chiera first compare and contrast morals, values and character with virtues, highlighting important differences in depth and scope. They then take a cross-disciplinary approach to show the value of Courage, Diligence, Wisdom, Honour, Justice and Kindness as those six foundational virtues which define excellence in the art of living. The authors have been careful to draw from multiple cultures, both East and West, in their analysis and include First Nations’ examples as well. Whilst some foundational virtues (e.g. Courage, Wisdom and Justice) may sound familiar others, like Diligence and Honour, will be a genuine surprise to many readers. Even the foundational virtue of Kindness has been shifted by the authors from empathy to compassion.
Chapters 2 through 7 outline each foundational virtue in turn. These chapters start with relatable stories from everyday life. Through examples the foundational virtues, which operate in the background of life, become recognised for their contribution to a life well lived. Using gender-balanced stories, such as the courage of two female rock climbers in the Atlas Mountains, or the diligence of Marie Curie, the authors demonstrate the reality of each foundational virtue in people’s lives. Usefully, care has gone into clearly defining each foundational virtue. For example, the difference between heroism, bravery and courage (pp. 46-48) is teased-out with surprising consequences. Finally, the authors show how each foundational virtue can be developed and grown. Importantly in their chapter on Honour the authors describe how to grow a healthy honour culture as opposed to what sometimes gets reported in the media. In addition, scattered regularly throughout the book are useful activities and points to consider that allow the reader to reflect on their own experiences.
Chapter 8 concludes the book by pulling all the foundational virtues together into an integrated model and touching on the implications of this. Without glossing over personal imperfections, Winston Churchill and Nelson Mandela are given as apt examples of people who had grown in multiple virtues by later middle age.
The implications of The Freedom of Virtue are significant for those who lead school communities, for teachers, welfare staff and for students. For example:
1. For students, the value of Diligence is easily recognisable as the academic success that sustained hard work and attention to detail brings
2. Shifting from Diligence to Honour, schools should be much more deliberate about how students ‘win their glory’ and ‘earn their honour’ as respected members of the school community. This language dramatically shifts conversations about self-esteem to self-respect and reframes teenage risk-taking behaviour. It also makes membership of the School Representative Council, for example, an honoured position with all that it entails
3. From a teacher’s perspective consider difficulties in classroom management when the ‘group honour’ (i.e. social cohesion) among misbehaving teenage boys is strong. For these boys maintaining honour with their friends by playing-up is more important than losing honour by being obedient or conscientious, even if it gains the respect of the teacher. By becoming aware of how group honour works teachers can begin to change classroom dynamics and engage all students
4. Virtues also have implications for school leaders being primarily about community and culture. As values tend to change over time with community standards it’s possible to find school values that are no longer relevant. However, the enduring nature of the foundational virtues allows a school to build a culture on solid, if not timeless, foundations. A school which becomes virtuous can then begin to receive its honour in the community.
The Freedom of Virtue brings a fresh approach to living a fulfilling life. It is grounded in research and analysis, but explains complex ideas in a useful and easy to read way. The impact that this book is going to have is only just beginning to emerge, but its significance is already obvious. Imagine the impact upon family, school and community life if everyone started to live motivated by virtue?"
- Michael Walker, Academic and counsellor with many years experience as a school counsellor and a chaplain, specifically in rural schools & socio-economic disadvantage. He has published in the academic literature on both Transformative Learning and Narrative Therapy.
