It has long, restless explorers mysteries of the human soul, worried about the question of why different people in the same situation behave quite differently. Many explanations were given sages and philosophers this amazing phenomenon, and most theories over time irretrievably gurgled into oblivion (the river of forgetfulness). However, one prominent sage, philosopher and famous doctor named Hippocrates, still managed to come up with something interesting. A torch of Greek medicine invented such a thing as a “temperament”. This theory is still alive and feels well in modern psychology.

By temperament grandfather Hippocrates understood as a set of specific individual psychological characteristics of man and his anatomical and physical properties. The word temperament is come from the Greek meaning “hodgepodge”. That is what we in the middle are mixed and it is our temperament. All in all, Hippocrates identified four basic temperaments, depending on what kind of “sap” is dominant in the human body. These four vital juices very well with the four elements of the elements: fire, water, wind and earth.

Who has more so-called “yellow bile” that corresponds to the element of fire, such a person has a hot temper and temperament is choleric. Choleric quickly ignited and quickly depart, always somewhere in a hurry, not very patient, it is very difficult to sit in one place and so on.

The opposite is, choleric man with lots of “lymph” (from the Greek – sputum). It conforms to the earth element. This is called the phlegmatic temperament. Man phlegmatic always very calm, balanced, sometimes it may seem that there are very phlegmatic slow and inhibited. Obvious examples of phlegmatic temperament are “hot Estonian guys”. Although phlegmatic, as a rule, never in a hurry, but always have time.

The owner of the third type of temperament is more blood, making it agile, lively and fun. The corresponding element of air. And probably guessed, this medium is called sanguine temperament. Sanguine usually funny and cheerful, very harmoniously combines tranquility and activity. As for me, the sanguine temperament is the most beautiful and comfortable.

Finally, the fourth type of temperament where are people in the body of which is dominant, as well as choleric, bile, but not yellow, and black, and the element of water. A melancholic temperament is called. Melancholic have the most maudlin character, the representatives of this temperament are more likely than other people are depressed, less adapted for life. On the other hand, are very sensitive melancholic people (although this time the sensitivity plays a cruel joke with them, because sensitive people are easily offended) thin feel the world around them. Maybe that’s why some of them are a lot of outstanding creative people: artists, musicians, poets. For example, melancholic were Taras Shevchenko, Rene Descartes, Albrecht Durer, Frederic Chopin, Pyotr Tchaikovsky.

Of course, in our time, scientists’ ideas about psychological temperament changed a bit, but not so very much. In modern psychology, the temperament is no longer associated with the life juices. According to modern psychologists – it is a type of temperament higher nervous activity, which describes how we perceive the world. And finally propose to look good caricature of how the representatives of the four temperaments react differently to the same event.