Courage is a volitional act performed consciously, the implementation of which requires the individual to overcome fear .
Courage is one of the virtues that reflects moral strength in overcoming fear. Courage often appears as the ability to endure suffering, including physical pain.
Content
In antiquity
In antiquity, courage was considered as one of the four main virtues (along with moderation , cunning and justice ).
According to Aristotle, courage is overcoming the fear of death and willingness to pay virtue of behavior by risking one’s own life: “He who deliberately rushes into danger for good and is not afraid of it is courageous, and this is courage.” According to Aristotle, courage is the only worthy way of behavior in battle; why there was an idea of him as a specifically male virtue ( Greek. ἀνδρεία , as in Russian, is the same root with the word "man").
Courage was used as an ethical justification for the existence of aristocratic estates through military activity; with Plato, courage is a virtue of the guard class. Among the Romans, courage ( lat. Virtus ) is a synonym not only for military valor , but also for virtues in general.
In the Middle Ages
Courage ( fortitudo ) remained the main virtue of medieval chivalry , directly related to honor . Courage was one of the four cardinal virtues . The opposite of courage, Thomas Aquinas called fear ( timor ), but the extreme form of fearlessness ( audacia ) carries the features of recklessness. Courage is characterized by patience ( patientia ), as well as constancy, endurance, indomitability, tenacity and firmness , combined in the term constantia . And hostility to it ( mollities ) is hostile to it.
In modern times
In the course of the transition to industrial society ( new time ), the value of courage falls, as “the industrial spirit triumphed over the military and aristocratic spirit” ( Nietzsche ). In the ethics of the New Age, courage becomes secondary or even takes on a negative connotation: for example, Hobbes sees the fear of death as a useful force for peace. Spinoza puts courage at the end of the list of "affects". According to Kant, courage is the ability “to dare that which commands duty”; Kant notes that the fear of mockery requires more courage than fighting to overcome. Among the famous philosophers of modern times, one Nietzsche tried unsuccessfully to return courage to the main role in ethics.
Now courage is often used simply as a synonym for universal moral firmness , and it is losing the meaning of masculine virtue (for example, the phrase "courageous woman" in many languages - including Russian - does not contain a contradiction). This is facilitated by modern theories and practical experiences of non-violence , when non-violent struggle is seen as more courageous than violent ( Mahatma Gandhi ).
In Warfare
In military affairs, courage is regularly manifested by military personnel in extreme situations, for example, during military (combat) operations , therefore courage is associated with armed confrontation. In many states and countries there are state (departmental) awards, with the name - “ For courage ”.
See also
- Virtue
- Femininity
- Masculinity
- Bushido
- Dharma
- Karma