Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Essays on what is courage
What is courage explained
Essays on what is courage
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Recommended: Essays on what is courage
Courage and bravery is something every human needs to get them through the hardships of life that we all face. Sometimes courage and bravery is a hard mountain to climb and takes motivation, but we all need it to grow and mature. With courage and bravery the trick is to find it for oneself or recognize it in others. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses imagery, tone and motif to show that courage and bravery must be gained in order to grow. As conflict started, Atticus was brave enough to take on a case that no other white man would want to take on. In this novel, imagery is used to hypnotize the reader to feel the emotion and picture the scene at that time. “Dill and I took the other window. A crowd of men was standing around A very important literary device that lingers throughout the whole book is motif. ““First of all,” he said, “if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better will all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view-”. . “Sir?”. . “- until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” Atticus said I had learned many things today, and Miss Caroline had learned several things herself.”” (pg.39). This quote from the novel shows that climbing in others skin and walking around it, does take courage. Walking in others skin may be hard for others, especially if they haven’t been in another's position. However, many characters in this story learn to cope with this kind of courage. All in all, courage and bravery is an important aspect in life that every human needs to get through hardships. In order to support my theme, “courage and bravery must be gained in order to grow”; I used three literary elements, imagery, tone and motif to prove that courage and bravery must be gained no matter how young or old you are. In our world today, people must have these aspects in order to go further in life, such as taking on new opportunities, especially as high school students. No matter how hard things get in life we must continue to grow and learn by building courage and
Throughout the novel, Atticus’ assistance to Jem and Scout’s development becomes evident. Atticus takes every opportunity to attempt to teach his children the importance of having an open-mind. For instance, when Scout queries Atticus about Maycomb’s prejudice perspective, he tells her, “You never really understand a person until…you climb in their skin and walk around in it.” (Lee 30) Even during the early stages of the novel, it is apparent that Atticus endeavors to instill the values of empathy and tolerance within Jem and Scout by teaching them how to have multiple perspectives on a situation. In addition, Atticus also attempts to enlighten his children about peaceful resolution in society. For example, when Atticus is chosen to defend Tom Robinson, Atticus tells Scout, you might hear some ugly talk about it at school but…you just hold your head high and keep those fists down.”...
Courage is the ladder on which other themes in to kill a mockingbird mount on. With courage people tend to take risks, have strength to be compassionate, and the wisdom to be humble. How many times have you considered yourself as courageous? At the end of the novel, you see reasons why being courageous could help you as a reader live a better and braver life. In Conclusion, courage is the foundation of integrity.
The first important character to display an enormous amount of courage is Mrs. Dubose. She was a morphine addict for many years because it was prescribed to her as a pain killer. Mrs. Dubose could have just kept taking morphine and it would have made her life easier, but she chose otherwise. Instead she wanted to "die beholden to nothing and nobody". She showed determination and displayed lots of courage. Even though she said mean things about Atticus and his family, he paid no attention to that, just the fact that she was the most courageous person he knew. After Mrs. Dubose passed away Atticus explained to the children by saying, '"I wanted you to see something about her- I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the i...
Bravery is a very important theme in To Kill A Mockingbird. Many of the main characters show bravery in many different situations. These characters aren't always brave in the same ways, for example Atticus does the right thing even if he knows it won’t work out, Scout does scary things, while Calpurnia is courageous in general. This novel shows how important courage is in real life as well.
“You never really understood a person until you consider things from his point of view—until you climb into his skin and walk around it.” Atticus Finch is a man of extreme integrity. He, as both a lawyer and a human being, stands up for his democratic beliefs and encourages his children to stand up for their own, though they may stand alone. Harper Lee showed how far respect went in To Kill a Mockingbird when Atticus defended Tom Robinson in his rape trial. He did not think twice about being ridiculed by th...
Courage can be revealed in numerous ways, but it isn’t until one stands by their morals that true courage is expressed. Throughout “To Kill a Mockingbird,” many acts of true courage have been conveyed through the characters’ thoughts and actions of sticking by their morals. Harper Lee suggests that standing by one’s own morals is the truest form of courage.
Dictionary- reference defines courage as “the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery” In the book, To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee expresses courage in many ways through the novel. In the novel, nearly every character display courage in their life. Courage is the inner desire to succeed and to do what is right, no matter what consequences of your decision. Throughout the novel, Atticus define courage as "I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what.” One of the central topics of the novel is that a man of courage is a man who doesn’t run away but fight against his enemy even though they know they going to lose.
To begin with, Harper Lee uses the literary element conflict to express moral courage. Conflict is a struggle between opposing forces usually between a protagonist and antagonist. The character that demonstrated moral courage throughout the novel was Atticus. He was known to be the most respected man in Maycomb because of his wisdom, and his admirable behavior. In the novel, Atticus got appointed a case where he had to defend a African American man, Tom Robinson, that was accused of raping a white woman named Mayella Ewell.During this time, there was an extreme amount of racial tension and discrimination of races. The fact that
“It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to your enemies, but just as much to stand up to your friends,” remarks J.K. Rowling in her book Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Jem Finch, a boy from a small town in the South struggles to fully understand this idea. To Kill a Mockingbird suggests that real courage is standing up for others regardless of the what it may cost you. As a young boy, Jem’s understanding of courage and bravery are wrapped up in how others might view you, rather than who you really are inside. A little later he sees courage as having a clean record with others. Then Jem learns that courage is not giving up on someone or something even if you know you’re probably not going to win. Finally, Jem uses
The world’s greatest innovator Steve Jobs once said, ”Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most importantly, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition.” Whenever someone explains what courage is, a person’s definition would be about overcoming fear or having bravery. Despite that, courage can be an individual handling what society is asking from them and going by what their hearts say and dealing with their own problems. This concept comes into play in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, where several of Lee’s characters experience courage by going against societal means. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee connects the characters going through their own conviction to show her theme that courage is going against society’s beliefs and handling one’s situation.
Courage is a strong word, feeling and thought. It is grace under pressure. Courage is doing something that is discomforting to make others better. It is having mental strength and doing something you never thought could be done. Courage is a trait, a trait hard to show for it looks different for everyone. In To Kill a Mockingbird, you can see courage through the actions of Atticus Finch, Mrs. Dubose and Boo Radley because they all did something that was out of their comfort zone. They are faced with a challenge and they accept it for what it is. They do not hide away when they face problems or bumps on the road.
President Ronald Reagan once said “Those who say that we're in a time when there are no heroes, they just don't know where to look.” Reagan knew how to be leader, help fix the United States. In some way Reagan went further that most presidents would of during a presidency. A hero is someone overcoming adversity and keeping those you hold dear safe, at the same time teaching them respect of not only themselves, but of others. Heroism can be demonstrated in the real world, or in nonfiction. In “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee Atticus is an example of a hero. President Abraham Lincoln freed countless slaves from slavery, and helped pull the states back into a whole nation. Music teacher Jesse Flores helped countless student achieve in their promising music career.
Courage is a characteristic that everyone contains inside their heart. But there are various definitions of courage. Some may say that courage is an act of bravery. Other might define courage as the inner strength to do what is right. Like Chae Richardson defines that “Courage is not living without fear. Courage is being scared to death and doing the right thing anyway.” But real courage is defined by Harper Lee, the author of To Kill A Mockingbird, suggest that courage exists “when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what” (112). The author uses the character of Atticus, Mrs.Dubose, and Jem to reveal that real courage is displayed when an individual successfully conquers what seems to be an impossible situation.
Courage exists in several forms in Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. As defined by Atticus Finch, real courage "…when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what” (149). The novel explores the how this real courage can be shown in different ways through the lives of many characters in Maycomb, particularly, Tom Robinson, Mrs. Dubose, and Atticus. Their courage is evident through their lifestyle, actions, and beliefs.
Many Children receive Bravery Awards every year around the world, and none of them hold any weapons or punch someone in the face to prove that they are brave, unlike what the majority of people picture it. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Atticus believed that true bravery and courage is facing the negativities of life and society persistently, and by sticking to your belief no matter what the cost is. Jem and Mrs. Dubose are two characters that strongly apply to Atticus’s meaning of bravery and courage.