Note too that a faithful study of the liberal arts humanizes character and permits it not to be cruel.

The line asserts a classical humanist premise: sustained engagement with the “liberal arts” (studia liberalia—disciplines suited to free persons, such as literature, rhetoric, philosophy) refines moral temperament. “Humanizes character” suggests that education cultivates empathy, self-restraint, and sociability, countering the brutishness that can accompany ignorance or unchecked power. The claim also implies an ethical function for the arts beyond utility: learning is not merely ornamental but formative, shaping how one treats others. In a Roman context, where elite education was tied to civic identity and public life, the sentiment frames cultural study as a safeguard against cruelty—an argument for paideia as moral training.