Prudence

Prudence is the practical capacity to judge which actions are appropriate in particular circumstances. It joins sound deliberation with attention to concrete details and ends.

Practical reason: Reasoning directed toward deciding how to act in pursuit of worthwhile ends. Prudence is practical reason applied to particular choices and circumstances.
Rashness: Hasty action taken without adequate consideration of relevant risks or reasons. Rashness lacks the deliberation that distinguishes prudent action.
Aristotle: An ancient Greek philosopher whose works shaped logic, natural science, and ethics. Aristotle developed the influential account of practical wisdom in the Nicomachean Ethics.
Practical wisdom: The capacity to make sound judgments about how to live and act in concrete situations. Prudence is often understood as practical wisdom applied to choice.
Cardinal virtues: The four principal virtues in classical and Christian traditions: prudence, justice, temperance, and fortitude. Prudence is one of the four virtues traditionally treated as foundational.
Deliberation: Careful consideration of possible actions and their likely consequences before deciding. Prudence weighs feasible courses of action before settling on one.
Cowardice: Excessive fear that leads someone to avoid dangers or responsibilities that should be faced. Prudence assesses danger without treating safety as the only good.
Nicomachean Ethics: Aristotle’s treatise on human flourishing, virtue, and the good life. Its sixth book explains prudence as a virtue of practical reasoning.
Moral dilemmas: Situations in which moral requirements or values conflict and no option satisfies them all. Prudence helps weigh competing reasons when duties or goods pull in different directions.
Moral responsibility: The status of being answerable for actions and their morally significant consequences. Prudence informs whether a person could reasonably foresee and assess an action’s effects.

Linked from 11 pages