Look at this to get the idea:

http://faculty.erau.edu/schliepr/ethics/aristotle.html

I to want to compile is table of virtues for the magician or magic. So I am looking for extremes related to our magic, and the golden mean.

Don’t get hung up on the word “virtues” I am simply seeking externs related to our magic and looking for the golden mean.

Wizened humility

A magician who is professional, but mildly self-effacing and approachable, has a better chance of gaining a loyal, long-term following than a brash, egocentric "I'm the Greatest" stuffed-shirt who chafes everyone.

Thank you.

I’m not very good with words.

If “Self Conceited” was the Excess then what would be the Deficiency and the Mean?

I am thinking:
“Self Conceited” = Excess
“Self Assured” = Mean
“Self Consciousness” = Deficiency

I think it should be: self-conceit, self-assurance, self-conciousness

Sheese...I really don't want to kill another thread with a lecture on Greek Philosophy....

But, from an Aristotelian perspective, the mean would be between boasting about something you are capable of and hiding what you are capable of. In other words, one should be confident without being either arrogant or shy.

There. I made a contribution without lecturing. I'm being moderate.

The more I have studied magic, the more I have come to believe that there is a perfect magician, or perfect performance of magic, that is the Golden Mean. It is the Means of all things related to our magic. For example: A magician should not be a Buffoon or Boorish but the Mean of them that is Witty. A magician should not be Self-conceited or Self-conscious but the Mean of them, that is Self-assured. So a magician should be Witty, Self-assured and so on. However it goes on and into our magic itself and the psychology of it and the performance and all and so on. I think it is all to do with the natural order of things and how humans think. I have seen we have two brains, the left and right hemispheres and we might call one side the heart and other the mind. A perfect performance appeals equally to both hemispheres. Whit’s Horns of the Dilemma appeals to the mind and the theatrical side appeals to heart.

In any event what I am doing is this. I have drawn a Pentagram, only because the symbol is magical and embodies the proportion of the Golden Ratio. Around the Pentagram I drew a couple of circles a bit like this: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Pentacle_3.svg
Between the margins of the circles I am writing the Excess’s and the Deficiencies and in the middle chamber, the Means. Just as an aide-mémoire to remind me what I think is good and what bad in magic.

So I just want stuff to put in the circle margin and the cente.

Do ya follow me Mr Haydn?

By the way Whit; On “Whit's Theory of Magic” on your site, I placed a question and a video two weeks ago and I would be obliged if you could look at that film. I am sure you will enjoy the film if you have not noticed it yet. It is regarding the brains hemispheres. The lady giving the lecture is a wonderful anyway.

Tommy, I know you posted that video over on Whit's site for Whit to respond, but I must say that I found the video unbelievably inspirational. It brought me to real tears, I kid you not.

When someone said, "You should be moderate in all things," I used to reply, "Then I should be moderate about being moderate!"

People should be moderate about many things, however, I'm not sure what that specifically has to do with being a magician.

A performer plays a role. They can be the most arrogant, conceited, jerk, in real life, and the audience might never see that side of them. Conversely, a nice guy can play a villain, and the audience won't hold that against him if they realize it's just a role.

Some performers let their real selves show through. Some don't.

tommy wrote:

If I understand you correctly, then I disagree. First, there is no accounting for taste, i.e. people differ. Second, once someone was your "perfect" magician, they would cease to be the person to completely emulate. Variety is the spice of life. Magic is about the extraordinary, and an extraordinary character isn't out of place in magic. The commonplace cannot be extraordinary!

One thing is for sure, the ultimate magician should pull a rabbit out of a hat!

It not commonplace.

The Golden Mean appeals to our natural instinct which why the great artists etc have made use of it for centuries.

The Golden Mean can be used in ways that are purely intellectual in nature, such is the art in magic.

A magic trick consists of so much action and so much bosh:

“It will have been seen by the foregoing that the presentation of a card trick may contain much more bosh than action, and indeed the performance of the one just described might be advantageously prolonged by a great deal more nonsense. In all card entertainments the more palaver the more the interest is excited, and the address and patter of the performer will count as much if not more than his skill in manipulation.” The concluding advice from the card trick “ The Exclusive Coterie.” -S W Errdnase-

How much more bosh than action?

The answer lies in the Golden Mean; It is 62% bosh and 38% action.
In this proportion it appeals to our natural instinct.

If the presentation of a trick seems to you instinctively more than 62% bosh then it probably is too theatrical. A novice will often present a trick with not enough bosh.

The action proportion of the trick appeals to our natural instinct of thinking analytically. While the bosh trick appeals to our natural instinct of thinking imaginatively. The bosh and action are separate but communicate with each other. This is same with human brains and that is why it appeals to our natural instincts.

I don't know, Tommy.

Here's a compliment to soften the coming criticism: I think you might be on to something here, and it's worth working on.

The criticism? It's all your own. There's no Aristotle in what you're talking about.

What you are calling the "golden mean" is an ethical proposition. It applies to healthy "habits" for those who live in a well-ordered community. It doesn't apply at all to an entertainer. Sometimes the entertainer achieves his goals through exaggeration and hyperbole--especially comedians. Aristotle himself traces the comic tradition of ancient Greece to the "phallic parades". Just as ancient actors wore masks on their faces, comic actors wore giant phalluses around their mid section. It was shock and awe humor--much like today.

If I could do REAL magic, I wouldn't be moderate. I would part the red sea and stuff like that. If, as a fake magician, I could come up with a way to part the red sea, well, I'd do it. I would do big and spectacular--I'd try to outdo Copperfield.

I wouldn't be moderate in entertaining people. Not at all. As I've said before, I have no desire to make people better or improve their lives or make a difference in the world. But I would like to SHATTER their perception of reality, just for the fun of it.

We do not suggest it’s a good thing to half kill someone or take a little poison with your food but we are merely suggesting the golden mean is quite interesting and useful in many ways. Its called many things but the whole thing is the same simple thing as its all about natural balance it seems. It is used in classical music and painting and all kinds of things. There is no reason it can't be used in the art in magic. I like it cos its magical anyway.