Sophrosyne Sophrosyne Sophrosyne () is an ancient Greek concept of an ideal of excellence of character and soundness of mind, which when combined in one well-balanced individual leads to other qualities, such as temperance, moderation, prudence, purity, decorum and self-control. In other languages there is no equivalent word. In Greek literature sophrosyne is considered an important quality, and is sometimes expressed in opposition to the concept of hubris. A noted example of this occurs in Homer's "The Iliad". When Agamemnon decides to take the queen, Briseis, away from Achilles, it is seen as Agamemnon behaving with hubris and lacking sophrosyne. In
Instruction in Ancient Greek Instruction in Ancient Greek Ancient Greek language is still taught in some parts of the world. One of the very few schooling systems where Ancient Greek is still a compulsory subject, is Italy. Ancient Greek is usually treated as a written language in formal instruction. In Italy, Ancient Greek is a compulsory subject only for "liceo classico" schools students. Students of different Italian schools aren't required to study Ancient Greek. Since "liceo classico" students amount to 6.7 percent of Italian high school students, it can be concluded that about 6.7 percent of Italian students actually study Ancient Greek. Inside "liceo