wit

Complementary virtues¶

• conversational competence
• humor

Contrasting vices¶

• boorishness
• dullness

Virtues possibly in tension¶

• humility
• silence

How to acquire or strengthen it¶

TBD

Notes and links¶

• Aristotle on wit

Mentioned elsewhere¶

• One of the virtues discussed in Aristotle’s Nicomachean Ethics

Inspirational quotes¶

• “There is no worse harm for a person with a strong intellect than the temptation to make witty remarks that blame and mock his neighbors. Making jokes and blaming and mocking others is like covering a dead body with a nice sauce and presenting it as a meal. Without the sauce, you would turn away, but with it, you find you can easily eat this distasteful meal.” —Tolstoy
• “Our very manner of joking should be neither wanton nor indecent, but genteel and good-humoured… in our very jokes there should appear some gleam of a virtuous nature.” —Cicero, De Officiis I.29