Sweetness is a feminine virtue or appears to be one since it is courage without violence or strength without harshness.
It is first of all a real or desired peace and what is more like love than generosity or compassion. Generosity wants to do good to others; gentleness refuses to do them harm. Compassion suffers from the suffering of others; gentleness refuses to produce or increase it.
It is a kind of natural or spontaneous kindness and therefore almost synonymous with civilisation.
Gentleness is only so, owing nothing to fear, since non-violence, taken to the extreme, would prevent it from effectively combating criminal and barbaric violence. Non-violence is only good if it is effective. The choice is not a question of principle, but of circumstance, because there is just and necessary anger, just as there are justified wars and violence: gentleness decides and provides.