The Emperor's Club

        The Emperor’s Club by Michael Hoffman is an outstanding film that portrays the idea of a temperate person. The protagonist, William Hundert is a passionate and well-liked professor who teaches ancient culture at St.Benedict’s academy. His charisma leads him to be respected amongst peers and students. Especially, Martin, Deepak and Louis are hard-working students who aspire to obtain his attention and recognition. However, Sedgewick Bell, the rebellious and spoiled teenager challenges Hundert’s authority the moment he steps into his classroom. Though Hundert works hard to transform Sedgewick into a honest scholar, Hundert fails and is often manipulated by Sedgewick in the process.
        The characters are perfect illustrations of understanding the differences between continent, weak-willed and temperate people. Martin is an embodiment of a continent person. A continent person has unruly desires but manages to control them. Though he feels the urge to go off the school's guidelines, he always follows rules and prioritizes his duties as a student. For example, when the boys rowed to St.Mary's, Martin repeatedly tried to stop them and suggested the right thing to do. Sedgewick is a weak-willed person because he is manipulated by his desires rather than his ethics and morals. A weak willed person cannot keep their desires under control. For example, he cheats numerous times in order for people to acknowledge his academic excellence. Finally, Mr.Hundert is an exceptional example of a temperate person. Hoffman illustrates this when Hundert could've called Segewick out for cheating, instead he waited to talk to him one-on-one. A temperate person has natural desires, or through habit, or second nature, but they are directed toward that which is good for them.
        I believe that the majority of the people are weak-willed people. Because human beings are always wanting to improve and it is our natural instinct to desire what we don't have, we are subjected to be continent. For example, the rest of the boys in the school followed Segewick's intolerable actions and behaviors later in the school years. In addition, at the reunion party, Segewick's classmates supported him in his senate elections though they knew his actions were inappropriate and ethically wrong.