Courage is a word that used often or not, has it’s own meaning. Having courage to do the impossible is experienced in our everyday lives without even thinking, such as, taking out the trash, going to school, taking a step onto a unknown street, it happens to us all and can even have a dramatic impact on yourself, your future, and your life. In the book Night courage is experienced every single day of torture. Prisoners, such as Elie, face and fight for their own survival not knowing that their best weapon possessed in their hands was courage. Courage was a weapon, a very powerful weapon that could change your fate in an instant. Elie Wiesel showed the importance of courage not just during his life occurring memory but during our everyday lives, he shows and gives examples of how courage could be the savior to your most difficult times.
Courage is an attribute of good character that makes us worthy of respect. From the Bible to made-up stories; very old stories to Hollywood movies,our culture is rich with excellent stories of courage for the greater good. From David fighting Goliath in the Bible, the cowardly lion in The Wizard of Oz who gathers the courage to face the witch, to Harry Potter and stars war, kids are raised on a diet of heroic and motivational stories. History books tell colorful stories of social advocators, such as Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King , who chose to stand out against terribly unfair treatment at great personal risk. Small business
Courage can't just be said it has to be shown. In the book Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor, Mr. L.T. Morrision is the most brave, loyal, and kind person you will meet. Mr. Morrison showed courage by standing to the Wallaces, he moved Kaleb Wallace's car off the road, and when he stayed with the Logans even though he could get hurt Mr. Morrison’s actions proved that he knows what is right and he is going to stand up for that no matter what. Even though his parents were killed by whites, he stays calm and knows exactly how to deal with the situation. Mr. Morrison will give up anything for the people he loves.
Courage doesn 't just help you it can also help other people around you too. Roll of Thunder Hear My Cry, Mildred D. Taylor uses Cassie Logan as an example of courage, although she has faced many rough and harsh times she has used courage to overcome them. Cassie faces many challenges but some of the ones that stood out to me were, standing up to the teacher when Little Man did not want his book because of the condition that it was in, standing up for herself at the Mercantile when she was not waited on, and T.J when he was not being so nice to Cassie and the Loganś. Cassie was a very smart and intelligent person. She always wanted to know what was going on because she wanted to know if there was something that she could do to help. Cassie could always come up with a way to help
T. S. Eliot, a publisher and playwright, has said, “Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.” Courage has many ways of presenting itself to people. Whether it is through physical ways or moral ways depends on the situation. Most people see courage as physical, like a small dog saving a helpless kitten from a fire or a man jumping in front of a bullet for a loved one or complete stranger. There is also the moral side of courage. This can be the act of standing up to the authorities over certain beliefs or being pressured into doing something you know is wrong and not doing it, regardless of the consequences. Perseus, Odysseus, and Wesley Autrey are courageous.
In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Scout, Calpurnia, and Atticus stand out when courage comes to mind. These characters show courage in many unique ways with different situations. In the early 1930s, in the deep south, racial discrimination was a huge conflict, for example, the Jim Crows Laws were in play, and it legalized segregation between blacks and whites. Courage isn’t always shown in situations, but simply throughout growing up.
Courage has gone through many changes. It has been altered throughout races, cultures, religions, sex, and time. However, the core values of courage has always remained parallel. It is difficult to explain in words the meaning of courage, like describing a color, but everyone knows what courage is, how it feels, and how to perform it. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus explained to us a type of courage that was shown in Ms. Dubose. These attributes were also apparent in a man named Liu Xiaobo. Both Ms. Dubose, and Mr. Liu, rose above social views to fight for their beliefs, did not give up in times of trouble, and had the audacity to face demons that were far more powerful than themselves.
“ Courage sometimes skips a generation. Thank-you for bringing it back to our family”. The Help shows that courage is needed to bring about change. ‘Discuss
Courage is said to be one of the most important characteristics a person can possess. We all admire the ones that put their jobs and lives on the line. They are not afraid to go against what the human society believes in, and some put their lives on the line to protect their loved ones’ back home. Robert F Kennedy stated in Profiles of Courage, that “Courage is the virtue that President Kennedy most admired. He sought out those people who had demonstrated in some way, whether it was on the battlefield or a baseball diamond, in a speech or fighting for a cause, that they had courage, that they would stand up, that they could be counted on (Kennedy ix).
In Haper Lee’s novel, To Kill A mockingbird, the trial tests Atticus’s courage as it tries to see if he will snap underpressure or raise to the occasion. Yet snapping Atticus’s courage would not be a fate for him. The damsel in distress dynamitc is never just a saving the girl from the bad guy. It’s to take a battle meant for someone else knowing if someone didn’t fight, niether would the victum; and Atticus fought for the children of the man who was attacking him. “So if spitting in my face and threatening me saved Mayella Ewell one extra beating, that’s something I’ll gladly take. He had to take it out on somebody and I’d rather it be me than that houseful of children out there. You understand?” (Lee 222). Atticus saw the rippling effects
The meaning of courage is when one has the mindset that enables them to face fear, difficulty, pain, or danger. Courage or bravery can come out in a person for a number of reasons. When people think of someone as “courageous” they usually think that they have done a huge deed for someone or really made a difference when, in actuality, it sometimes takes a courageous person to profess their love or even admit that they were wrong about something. Most of the efforts made by someone usually require a certain amount of courage. Fear, following one’s heart, standing up for what is right, and facing suffering with dignity and faith all require courage.
There are some very courageous people in the world today! For example, I think military members are very courageous, as well as law enforcement and other authorities. Generally I think courage applies to anyone who lays their life on the line for a cause such as defending the U.S.A. Also I would say that anyone who helps in any major situations is courageous.
Cornel West discusses courage in many aspects. In the first section, he talks about how it takes courage to examine yourself. Often times, we are quick to judge others on their decisions and beliefs. However, when the tables are turned around, we cower when having to criticize ourselves. In order to help fix the flaws in our system, we need to be able to critically think about ourselves. If we cannot dissect our own thoughts and the reasons behind why we tend to conform to what society thinks, then how do we expect to get a deeper understanding about broader social phenomenons? Personally, I believe that many people are afraid to analyze their selves because of the fear of what they will uncover. They may discover things mentally and emotionally that they are not ready to cope with.
“Courage doesn 't always roar. Sometimes courage is the quiet voice at the end of the day saying ‘I’ll try again tomorrow’” - Mary Anne Radmacher. Through this quote one can see the advantages of real courage. One can really understand the true meaning of courage by reading the books To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie. The book by Harper Lee is written by a 9 year old’s perspective named Scout. Throughout the book she discovers many mockingbirds in her society and the trouble they have to live through. This helps the reader identify many subtopics in the book like prejudice vs tolerance, compassion vs ignorance and more importantly courage vs cowardice. She deciphers the true meaning of courage vs cowardice when she meets the mystery character, Boo Radley. The book by Sherman Alexie too has similar themes and settings. It’s based on the struggles Indian’s face in America due to their race. The book uses a teenagers perspective to exhibit these struggles. This helps teenagers connect to the book as even they might have perspectives similar to of Junior’s (main character). Both the authors use similar literary devices like external conflict, internal conflict and characterization to keep the reader interested in the text. In both the texts one can see that the thematic idea conveyed is that courageous people don’t roar about their strength, but they use it to benefit the community as a whole.
Courage is having the ability to act, despite fear, pain, or uncertainty. Courage does not suppress fear but allows one to continue in the face of fear. I made the decision, for example, to tell my parents about my sexuality. I am gay, and I knew the scrutiny I could face at home, and in society if I told my parents. Although fearful, I was courageous, and shared with them that I was going though. I educated them and wanted our relationship to keep growing. I had to stay strong, and true to myself despite my mother and father not understanding my sexuality. I found strength inside myself to move beyond fear and become truly happy. It took courage to achieve happiness despite not living within society’s standards. It is easy to be comfortable, but it takes courage to stand up, be yourself, and live a fulfilling life. Courage is one of the most essential virtues, because without courage one cannot exhibit any other virtue