谈勇气(On Courage)

　　hemingway often thought of courage as a person's ability to be calm and controlled in the face of death. his theme is presented in his novel "for whom the bell tolls?" the story "the old man and the sea" and in our textbook "a day's wait". by misunderstanding a different thermometer the boy thought he was running a high fever and would soon die. but he took his death bravely and waited quietly for it. the boy showed us he had courage.

　　i think such a definition of courage is far from enough. courage should not be limited and related only to death. in ordinary life there are common things that also show a person's courage. for example, on a bus trip, a thief was trying to steal a girl's purse. some people saw it, but kept quiet. they were afraid to be revenged by the thief. the brave stood out and stopped the thief.

　　courage means truth and justice to me. the person in a high position often hear songs in praise of him. some people are sincere. some are only flattering the superior in their own favor. the leader also needs courage to welcome criticism as well as those who have the courage to criticize him. such courage may come from mutual understanding. i think a man of courage will value truth and justice, and not hesitate in his actions to do what he thinks is right, there is no such word as fear in his dictionary.