Stumble It!In my previous post on The Virtues (Part 1) I took a very cursory look at establishing what a virtue is. The point was not an exhaustive definition, just a working understanding. This time we’ll look at a specific virtue–courage.
As Always, The Virtues are Easy and Hard to Define
What is courage? I know this sounds simple, but is it? First blush tells me that courage is doing something that is scary. Courage is when we know we have to do something we really do not want to do. When we think of courage we think of our hands getting a little sweaty and starting to shake. Perhaps our stomach tightens up or gets butterflies. Some not only think they might lose their lunch–they actually do! We are truly terrified. In the face of such feelings and symptoms we encounter an opportunity to exercise the virtue of courage. We think of courage as not the absence of fear, but acting as planned in spite of that fear.
A Little Deeper – Courage as More than Simply Overcoming Fear
But is this right? On second thought, this seems a very shallow understanding of courage. Courage is more than acting against fear. A very quick example. Does a thief, terrified of the consequences he may face, and thus fearful in his act of theft, but who commits the act nonetheless, act with courage? Does a high wire artist, fearing for her life, but willing to walk across the high wire act with courage? Some would say yes to both examples, other no. Where is the truth of the matter?
We’ll look at these questions in The Virtues (Part 3).
Tags: brave, bravery, courage, discouraged, Ethics, fear, foolishness, fortitude, intimidation, intrepidity, opposition, pain, Philosophy, reckless, recklessness, scandal, shame, The Virtues, Theology, virtue, virtues, will
