What is 'Courage'?

Question

And stop telling me to ask the freakin Lion.

And stop telling me to ask the freakin Lion.

Mostly good answers, though. ;)

Answer 1

Courage, also known as fortitude, is the ability to confront fear, pain, danger, uncertainty or intimidation. It can be divided into "physical courage" — in face of physical pain, hardship, and threat of death — and "moral courage" — in the face of shame, scandal, and discouragement.

As a virtue, courage is covered extensively in Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics, its vice of deficiency being cowardice, and its vice of excess being recklessness.

It is well understood that physical and moral courage matters in the military, and there are ample illustrations of courage in religion, sometimes to the point of martyrdom.

Courage is one of the Four Cardinal Virtues of the Catholic Church. "Cardinal" meaning "pivotal" is applied to this virtue because to possess any virtue, a person must be able to sustain it in the face of difficulty.

The precise view of what constitutes courage not only varies among cultures, but among individuals. For instance, some define courage as lacking fear in a situation that would normally generate it. Others, in contrast, hold that courage requires one to have fear and then overcome it.

There are also more subtle distinctions in the definition of courage. For example, some distinguish between courage and foolhardiness in that a courageous person overcomes a justifiable fear for an even more noble purpose. If the fear is not justifiable or the purpose not noble, then the courage is either false, or foolhardy.

Moral courage, more than physical courage, is widely debated. It is frequently regarded as courage ven result in the individual feeling isolated from friends or colleagues.

Civil courage (sometimes also referred to as 'Social courage') is defined by many different standards, but the term is usually referred to when civilians stand up against something that is deemed unjust and evil, knowing that the consequences of their action might lead to their death, injury, or any other negative effect.

In many countries, such as France and Germany, civil courage is enforced by law; this means that if a crime is committed in public, the public is obliged to act, either by alerting the authorities, or by intervening in the conflict. If the crime is committed in a private environment, those that witness the crime are either to report it, or try to stop it.

The death of Kitty Genovese in 1964, Queens, New York, is often cited as a classic example of civil-courage failure. It is said that during a half-hour long attack, Kitty Genovese was raped and murdered in full view of thirty-eight witnesses, while none interfered. (Accounts differ, though; none of the witnesses claims to have witnessed the entire attack, many claim that they were not aware that Genovese was in danger, and some shouted at the attacker and called authorities.)

Criminologists argue that such passivity is a result of "big-city life," cultural emphasis on individualism, or a common expectation that "someone else" will intervene. Others believe that simple cowardice is another explanation of passivity.

Its accompanying animal is the lion. Often, Fortitude is depicted as having tamed the ferocious lion. Cf. e.g. the Tarot trump called Strength. It is sometimes seen as a depiction of the Catholic Church's triumph over sin

Answer 2

Courage is being able to recognize one's fear and then face it.
Courage is fighting for peace in a war stricken country.
Having the courage to fly, having the courage to stand up for something you believe in, having the courage to admit you made a mistake and then try to make things right...etc.

Answer 3

Courage is having the fortitude to face something in spite of the fear or danger or cowardly feelings one might have about a situation.

Answer 4

Courage can be:
● The absence of fear
● The decision that ones own safety and well being are unimportant compared to some greater ideal
● Ignoring social pressure to do what you know is right
● Doing what circumstances demand in spite of your fear

Answer 5

I think courage is having the ability to stand up for yourself or others, even if it means you are facing a fear or another obstacle of life.

Answer 6

Courage is the ablility to stand up in the face of adversity without fear of reprisal or ridicule.

Answer 7

Colonel Bill Welsh states:

"What is courage? Webster defines courage as, "the attitude of facing and dealing with anything recognized as dangerous, difficult or painful instead of withdrawing from it; quality of being fearless or brave; valor. The courage of one's convictions or the courage to do what one thinks is right."

There are many types of courage. It can be divided into two categories; physical courage and moral courage. The physical courage is the first half of the definition above; in the face of pain, danger or even death.

Moral courage would be found in the second half of the definition; doing what is considered to be right. Instead of physical harm one would face potential shame orscandal based on the circumstances and actions taken. I think when most of us think of courage, our immediate thought relates to physical courage.

Courage can also be found in people who are dealing with issues or problems that have been thrust upon them for example, disease or personal loss.

It takes great courage to look life in the eye and say I'm going to press on; I'm not going to let this get the better of me. This is a very easy thing to say but very difficult when it comes to actually having to deal with the incredible challenges in these situations.

Moral courage is different. Moral courage comes in making a choice. It comes in knowing what's right and doing what's right.

Lt. Col. Alan Peaslee, in his article on integrity for the Eye in the Sky, quoted George S. May, founder of the May Company as having said: " ... far more difficult than knowing what is right is doing what is right. Doing the right thing is not always easy, but it is always right." That's courage; having the courage to do what you know is right. It may not be the popular course of action but you have the courage to carry it out because you know it's right.

It takes moral courage to face many situations today; the peer pressure teenagers feel, for example, when being tempted for the first time to smoke a cigarette, drink or use drugs will take great moral courage on the individual's part to say no.

General George S. Patton once said; "Moral courage is the most valuable and usually the most absent characteristic in men."

Answer 8

Ask the lion

Answer 9

Courage is overcoming ones fears in order to do what must be done.

Answer 10

To me it means, courage is not the absence of fear, but the ability to act despite it.