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Pericles claimed, in the Funeral Oration, that Athens had found a golden mean, a sober balance, in its institutions. And in golden letters was inscribed on the temple at Delphi: "Nothing too much. The modest Mean is best." Although the dictionary defines the Mean as "midway between extremes" and although a good principle may defeat its own purpose if carried too far, the philosophic Mean is only sometimes the midpoint; at other times it is not. For where there is a deficiency on one side, or an over-emphasis on the other, it may be necessary to move the point nearer or farther, according to the situation.

-- Notebooks Category 20: What Is Philosophy? > Chapter 3 : Its Requirements > # 351