- Aristotle wants to investigate each virtue. He begins with courage.
- It is first described as a mean between fear and confidence.
- There are things we should fear (i.e. a bad reputation, despite what Joan Jett says).
- But then, there are things we shouldn't fear, like poverty or sickness. These things are out of our control, so there's no point in worrying about them.
- The most frightening thing? Death. Of course.
- It's the point past where nothing good or bad can ever happen to us again.
- Courageous people don't fear death. It's especially noble and courageous not to fear death in war, since the danger factor is high.
- Courageous people, then, don't fear a noble death or a sudden one.
- They also act as manly men when they're faced with a death that isn't noble…or when they can't show off on the battlefield.