#202 Virtues in English: Gratitude Perseverance Courage Prudence
Hi, everybody! I am Georgiana, your English teacher and founder of SpeakEnglishPodcast.com. My mission is to help you speak English fluently. In this episode: We're going to continue to learn virtues in English. Maybe we'll discover that we possess those virtues by the end of the episode, with a bit of luck. In the second part of the show, you'll practice your English with a new mini-story with questions and answers related to virtues. Remember that at SpeakEnglishPodcast.com, you can find the transcript of this episode. Ok. In a previous episode, I talked about these four virtues: - Loyalty - Sensitivity - Serenity - Resilience Today, we will look at four more virtues that I will further discuss and give examples. We will all end up very virtuous :) Let’s start! 1. Gratitude Okay, this is a virtue that is lacking in our society. It involves giving thanks, either in word or with an action. That is, you can reciprocate with gratitude to someone by helping them with something, or by showing kindness, etc. From the word gratitude, we get the word grateful. Example: "Pam has no gratitude towards her parents. Her parents saved all their lives so she could go to college. But she dropped out of college to travel the world with a backpack. " And while Pam surely has a great time, she has been very ungrateful towards her parents. Let's look at the next one: 2. Perseverance Well, this word I think is easy to remember. It means to be persistent in some projects, which typically may take quite some time. It is an essential virtue since it takes a lot of perseverance to achieve most things in life. We can take the example of athletes, who need to train every day at a very high level. This is very hard, and it requires perseverance. An example. Imagine yourself in a job interview: - What is your greatest virtue? - I am perseveran…presea…pers…perseverant person! :) Now that's a persevering person :) Let's see the next one: 3. Courage We can also use the word bravery instead of courage. A person with courage confronts danger without being afraid and even transforms it into determination. Many times courage is exhibited with passion. It can be found in soldiers, police officers, firefighters, ... But we can also find courage in any person and situation. An example: - Tom had the courage to ask for a raise. - And did he get it? - No. Now he is looking for a job. And last but not least: 4. Prudence Although courage and prudence seem like opposites, they are not. A prudent person is not a fearful or frightened person. They simply do not act impulsively. They avoid unnecessary risks. They act with caution. It is quite similar to wisdom. The difference I think, is subtle. A prudent person tends to have good judgment. That is, to make good decisions. A prudent person simply tries to avoid potentially dangerous situations by not acting impulsively. For example: A ship was sailing at sea when a fire broke out. The captain asks everyone to leave the ship immediately. A passenger is about to jump into the sea, but his very prudent wife tells him: "Tony, wait 1 hour, we just ate, and we haven't even digested yet." Well, this example has a certain humor. Sometimes an excess of prudence is not very wise :) What do you think? Do you have all the virtues, only some of them, or are you lacking in virtuosity? Ok. Today we have talked about these four virtues: Gratitude Perseverance Courage Prudence Get the transcript on my website: SpeakEnglishPodcast.com/podcast