Digital Sculpting Research - The Seven Virtues

I have to say I would've preferred to have a project based around the seven deadly sins but what can you do? Since I know very little about the seven virtues I've had to look them up and list them below, along with some background information about each virtue (courtesy of Wikipedia) and a few images to represent that particular virtue.

Chastity

"Abstaining from sexual conduct according to one's state in life; the practice of courtly love and romantic friendship. Cleanliness through cultivated good health and hygiene, and maintained by refraining from intoxicants. To be honest with oneself, one's family, one's friends, and to all of humanity. Embracing of moral wholesomeness and achieving purity of thought-through education and betterment. The ability to refrain from being distracted and influenced by hostility, temptation or corruption."

So in a nutshell, Chastity is a lot about purity and belief in oneself, wisdom and honesty. Based on this, if I were to choose Chastity I would look at characters like an Angel or a Mage or even a combination of both. Both of these characters symbolise wisdom and purity which are two strong parts of this particular virtue.

Temperance

"Restraint, temperance, justice. Constant mindfulness of others and one's surroundings; practicing self-control, abstention, moderation and deferred gratification. Prudence to judge between actions with regard to appropriate actions at a given time. Proper moderation between self-interest, versus public-interest, and against the rights and needs of others."

"Self control" and "justice" are two words that stick out for me in this particular description of Temperance. "Judge" and "the needs of others" also stick out as being fundamental to this particular virtue, and all of these words scream the qualities of a knight to me. However a Monk or a Samurai are also trained with these particular traits and so would be a good starting point for this virtue.

Charity

"Generosity, charity, self-sacrifice; the term should not be confused with the more restricted modern use of the word charity to mean benevolent giving. In Christian theology, charity—or love (agäpé) -- is the greatest of the three theological virtues.

Love, in the sense of an unlimited loving kindness towards all others, is held to be the ultimate perfection of the human spirit, because it is said to both glorify and reflect the nature of God. Such love is self-sacrificial. Confusion can arise from the multiple meanings of the English word "love". The love that is "caritas" is distinguished by its origin – being divinely infused into the soul – and by its residing in the will rather than emotions, regardless of what emotions it stirs up. This love is necessary for salvation, and with it no one can be lost."

Love is a huge part of this virtue, much more so than Chastity above, as this is love in all its forms; love for family, love for friends, love for neighbours and love your enemies. An unending love of everything and everyone on this planet defines this virtue, which is more focused on the will to love rather than the common emotion that we all express towards special people in our lives. This links heavily with a biblical lifestyle, and makes me think about Priests and Preachers that teach these beliefs in church. Therefore a Priest would be a strong place to start for this particular virtue.

Diligence

"A zealous and careful nature in one's actions and work; decisive work ethic, steadfastness in belief, fortitude, and the capability of not giving up. Budgeting one's time; monitoring one's own activities to guard against laziness. Upholding one's convictions at all times, especially when no one else is watching (integrity).

(The vice "acedia" is more commonly known as "sloth")."

Determination is a string part of this particular virtue, which also links back to knights of medieval ages, but establishes a strong link with modern soldiers. More specifically, soldiers that have come back from war with life changing injuries and trauma civilians could never truly understand, but still haven't given up on life and are still mentally fighting for everyone they care about. If this is the virtue I choose for my project, this is the route I would take with my work.

Patience

"Forbearance and endurance through moderation. Resolving conflicts and injustice peacefully, as opposed to resorting to violence. Accepting the grace to forgive;^[3] to show mercy to sinners. Creating a sense of peaceful stability and community rather than suffering, hostility, and antagonism."

The first part of the description of this virtue links back to Priests and Preachers, but the last sentence is what gave me an idea for this particular virtue. Peace also plays a strong role in this virtue, and who protects the peace in our society? The police, and super heroes. Maybe a combination of the two would be too strong of a contrast to be effective but I will definitely look into these two different roles if I choose this virtue.

Kindness

"Charity, compassion and friendship for its own sake. Empathy and trust without prejudice or resentment. Unselfish love and voluntary kindness without bias or spite. Having positive outlooks and cheerful demeanor; to inspire kindness in others."

Compassion and friendship, two words in the description of this virtue that have given me a great idea. What is mans best friend? A dog. Dogs always love you, get upset when you are upset and are always positive. Therefore, there is no better way to present this particular virtue than with some variation of a dog. Or a Dragon, since Dragon and Rider forge an epic bond from when the egg first hatches to their first flight together.

Humility

"Modest behavior, selflessness, and the giving of respect. Humility is not thinking less of yourself, it is thinking of yourself less. It is a spirit of self-examination; a hermeneutic of suspicion toward yourself and charity toward people you disagree with. The courage of the heart necessary to undertake tasks which are difficult, tedious or unglamorous, and to graciously accept the sacrifices involved. Reverence for those who have wisdom and those who selflessly teach in love. Giving credit where credit is due; not unfairly glorifying one's own self. Being faithful to promises, no matter how big or small they may be. Refraining from despair and the ability to confront fear and uncertainty, or intimidation."

Everything about this virtue screams hero, of some description. Be it a superhero as I have looked at before for Patience, or a soldier fighting for his/her country as I have looked at for Diligence. This particular virtue would be easy to look at with these things in mind.