Virtue is a property of character that determines the constant moral course of action of a person.
The content of the concept changed depending on the change in the criterion of morally good at different stages of development of the ethical consciousness of mankind.
The ancient Greeks distinguished four main D.: wisdom, courage, justice and moderation, tried to reduce them to one beginning and, according to Socrates, saw in wisdom the highest D., containing all others, and in the mind — the source of D.
Aristotle was the first to distinguish the virtues of the will from the D. mind. The first he called ethical and believed that they represent the middle between two extremes; the second — dianoetic — denote the correct attitude of the mind to objects and to lower D.
The Stoics saw in wisdom the highest D., in the sage — the ideal of man.
Christianity, having a negative attitude towards the intellectualism of the Greeks, saw in the will the essence of the human character and opposed the 4 main Greek D. 3 theological ones: faith, hope and love.
Thomas Aquinas has 10 D.: 3 intellectual — wisdom, science and knowledge, 4 basic Greek and 3 aforementioned theological.
Similar concepts are freedom of the spirit and the highest good.
Dmitry Morozov:
How much I was told about virtue in the first years of Kitezh! Where does “virtuous behavior” come from? From a deep, often hidden, childish confidence that in response to good behavior, the world around them will also show kindness, in some mystical way give them happiness, that is, in exchange for work and willingness to endure harsh conditions, it will provide them with security, the opportunity to be carefree, make them masters of his life.