In intellectual history, there is a traditional distinction…

In intellectual history, there is a traditional distinction between ancient and modern virtues. The ancient virtues can be understood in terms of the traditional cardinal virtues of courage, temperance, justice, and wisdom. Later came the seven heavenly virtues, which were the four cardinal virtues plus faith, hope, and love. This transition can be understood in terms of a lowering of time preference in which society changed to be less dependent on war and more on trade and diplomacy. Yet, the modern virtues were not absent in ancient times. Instead, they were the virtues of the lower class which didn't write. The ancient virtues were the virtues of the upper class. We can see evidence of modern virtues in ancient times in works like Grimm's Fairy Tales, Aesop's fables, and Hesiod.