Chapter, Speaking Of Courage by Tim O'Brien Is about Norman Bowker witnessing his friend get killed and now feels guilt and a lack of purpose. One explanation is when Tim O’Brien writes “I could've won the silver star for valor” a phrase that shows guilt is “I could have won”. This is a sign that he feels guilty about all of it. Norman Bowker is a tragic hero who wanted to save Kiowa from the sewage field but he didn't want to put himself in danger even with all the bravery he couldn't save him which would lead both of them to die if he didn't let go of Kiowa. He feels like he has a lack of purpose because he wasn't able to save him.…
1. What does Beowulf mean when he says that an undoomed man can escape death in battle if his courage is good?…
These people at the end of the day, it is unfortunate that they had to have their life taken from them but in the state of war, you don’t have time to worry about others because your life is on the line and you don’t want to be the one who gets killed. Many times in the book, scenes have been described showing how these men have died such as, “When he went ahh ooo, right then Ted Lavender was shot in the head on his way back from peeing.” (Pg.12) “His jaw was in his throat, his upper lip and teeth were gone, his one eye was shut, his other eye was a star-shaped hole….” (Pg.118) “Speaking of courage was written in 1975 at the suggestion of Norman Bowker, who three years later hanged himself in the locker room of the YMCA in his hometown of in central Iowa” (Pg.149) “He was under the mud and water, folded in with the war, and their only thought was to find him and dig him out and then move on to someplace dry and warm.” (Pg.155) “His face was suddenly brown and shining. A handsome kid, really. Sharp grey eyes, lean and narrow-twisted, and when he died it was almost beautiful, the way the sunlight came around him and lifted him up and sucked…
Another main theme in this learning the meaning of courage and finding your own. In chapter one there is a flashback of Henry leaving for the Union Army. His mother gives him a speech and tells him no matter what he needs to do the right thing. This gives him a new meaning of the word courage. He learns that having the courage to do the right thing is just as important as having the courage to fight for what you believe in. I think Henry didn’t find his true courage until towards the end of the story. The sun ray coming through the cloud symbolizes Henry’s peace with himself.…
1. “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. Courage is when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what” (149).…
However a deeper reading of the book suggests a more sophisticated view: that often the real test is not the physical struggle at the time of battle, but the vital moments of learning and thoughtfulness following and preceding the fight. Over their lifetimes, heroes must become great by learning to face these mental challenges and being able to make the right decisions in those moments. Lines 2163-2210 are not only a key time when the reader is shown the more complex view, but this passage in itself also forms one of the hero’s crucial moments of…
Many of the characters in The Things They Carried exemplify tremendous pride in their actions, causing them to do good or bad things that they would not have the courage to do otherwise. O’Brien’s personal experience shows that the fear of being shamed before one’s fellow soldiers is a powerful motivating factor in war. He does not want to fight in a war he believes is unjust, but he does not want to be thought of as a coward. This same attitude among numerous characters sets a consistent theme in the novel.…
Valor is often seen as an upside to someone’s personality, but when very brave, it mistakenly leads to being brave in situations where the dispute is unfavorable. Excessive bravery leads to careless or unneeded acts, times when doing something is insane. Having too much courage results in recklessness. Courage takes over rationality, the outcome being unwise choices, which leads to consequences. In both passages the qualities of bravery leads to unnecessary risks.…
Courage is needed to overcome losses and to find the willpower needed to continue fighting for what you believe in. P.K, without courage, would not have been able to move on after the deaths of his loved ones. As the numbers of those…
True bravery is when you’re aware that the odds are against you, however, you have the ability to persevere through it. Even though you don’t want to complete the task ahead of you, an inner force brings you the motivation to do it. Sincere courageousness doesn’t always entail violence; in fact, courage comes from the choices made within that affect yourself or those around you. The outcome may not always be to your advantage, but occasionally you get lucky. Atticus is trying to show his children that having the guts to finish what seems impossible is a great quality to possess. He’s trying to prove that weapons won’t always determine one’s bravery. In this case, their neighbor Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict. She was determined to overcome her addiction before she passed. Since the drug is highly addictive, she knew that the challenge would be extremely difficult, however, she persisted anyway. The result was that Mrs. Dubose did in fact overcome her addiction prior to her death. She displayed genuine courage because she trampled through her withdraws without batting an eye. In real life, the story of Mrs. Dubose’s courageousness is an important life lesson. It teaches that willpower and strength of mind are crucial to reach the end as a champion. Knowing that the odds are against you yet still trucking to achieve the goal is true courage. Obstacles may thwart you temporarily, but in the end courage will allow you to crush the obstacles and keep going. It’s bravery that is necessary for the journey called life.…
Gene's reflections on the war at the end of the novel convey important thematic information to the reader, especially on the post-traumatic growth of victims of the war. During the course of their senior year, the entire class is worried about being enlisting. Brave talk of performing a…
These four football players do have the courage to do the right thing. These players do the right thing because someone in their lives is helping them. The grocery store security caught video of these four young men getting into Buddy’s (A grocery store). The store manager was thinking they broke in but that changed her point of view. The players all grabbed what they needed and set the money on the counter, then left. Those four men went to another store and told them that Buddy’s was unlocked. Then the store called the police on them. These young men never got arrested for it and they all got an reward. In the end of this passage, it's saying you can’t judge a book by its cover. Also these four football players shared out, who encouraged them to do the right thing. It states, “ These four young men had that someone when it mattered most.” I think these four football players learned that doing the right thing, helps them do great things in…
Often, one will find himself relying less and less on his peers while his friendships disintegrate and life moves along. As he puffs out his chest, clenches his fists and puts on a courageous face, he gains confidence and bravery to follow his conscience. Even if an individual wants to fit in and be part of the group, he needs to stop and do what is morally right, not compromise his values just to be accepted. The braver the person is, the better he grows his personal integrity. In this poem, Auden realizes that to build one’s morals, he must be courageous and trust in himself. He states, “Fight back, then, with such courage you have...” (5. 2) Auden is implying that no matter what happens, one must fight back for himself in order to stay honest and true. In another stanza, the poet writes, “Smile again on the shore of your esteem... the storm has changed you: you will not forget, ever.”(1. 2-4) He is basically saying that an individual…
Both men were faced with very difficult situations, and both men made very important and drastic decisions. The decisions that they made determined the men that they really…
Coward of the County Kenny Rogers Must you always fight to be a man? In the song Coward of the County by Kenny Rogers a young man lives by his father’s words of “you don't have to fight to be a man.” The first conflict of the story involves the young man’s father dying behind bars. The young man’s father died in prison when he was 10 years old.…