Editing The Real 3 Virtues of Perl (section)

== Introduction ==
When Larry Wall revealed to the the Perl faithful in 1996 [1] that the ”Three Virtues of a Perl Programmer”

were: laziness, impatience, and hubris; he also described what he meant, which was in contrast to the actual

meanings of those terms. Unfortunately the words that he chose continue to be passed along as actual virtues,

while what he meant to convey has been lost to the sands of time. Worse of all, they are touted as virtues, when

in fact, they are all vices. The Perl Community aims to correct this situation by focusing on the actual virtues

described by Perl’s founder.

=== Virtues versus Vices ===
The concept of virtues is very old, dating back to Nicomachean Ethics. Aristotle identified virtues as character

traits that enable individuals to live a good life and achieve eudaimonia (flourishing or happiness). Examples include

courage, temperance, and justice. Virtue was seen as the ”golden mean” between two extremes (e.g., courage is the

balance between recklessness and cowardice). Aristotle’s virtues, such as courage, justice, and temperance emphasize

achieving a balanced and flourishing life through reason. These ideals directly influenced formal Christian virtues,

particularly through St. Thomas Aquinas’ prolific writings, which integrated them with faith, hope, and charity as

moral principles for spiritual growth. For example, the medieval codes of chivalry reflected this synthesis, urging

knights to embody classical virtues like courage, meekness, humility, and compassion, as seen in their oaths to

protect the weak and uphold justice.

Here we describe what Larry Wall meant in correct, virtuous, and perhaps even ''chivalrous'', terms.