Of the substantial body of work that has been examined in depth during the course, one particular theme that is recurring repeatedly is that of "courage in the face of adversity", such that the major characters are confronted with the formidable obstacles expected of them and, more often than not, overcome them. Perhaps the most famous definition of courage is not the absence of fear, but the willingness to act in spite of it. According to literature, the characters in these works demonstrate courage in their decision to overcome their own fear to achieve the goal they have set for themselves. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an original essay. However, they may also occasionally stumble throughout their journey, as their character flaws can hinder them, especially given a difficult set of circumstances that challenge the protagonist. physically and/or mentally. To some extent, these brief but notable moments throughout these stories test the limits of these major characters and determine whether or not they will exceed their own expectations or fail and succumb to their weaknesses. Both Odysseus and Gilgamesh are heroes who demonstrate courage in their clashes with various gods and mythical monsters. Paulina, on the other hand, expresses her own brand of courage in her courageous retorts to Leontes after seeing the queen harassed with accusations and insults. To this recurring theme of courage in these stories as a frame of reference are added its parallels in the real world where courage is demonstrated by ordinary people. Odysseus displays courage in The Odyssey during the course of the story, but one of the most important aspects of it was his descent into the Underworld to consult the dead prophet Tiresias and find out how to return home from that point on. Land not intended for the living, Ulysses and his crew bear witness to this and are seized with terror when the spirits of the deceased gather around the blood of the sheep they sacrificed to bring Tiresias out of the tomb: “The souls of the dead gathered, the ghosts /Weary brides, young men and old men... They drifted towards the pit from all sides/With a strange cry, and a pale fear seized me. (Book responsibility of captain of As the spirits gather around them, Odysseus pushes them back and orders them to form a line so that conversations can take place with each of them: "I myself have drawn my sharp sword and I sat guarding the weak skulls of blood/Until I had questioned Teiresias” (Book XI, lines 45-47) This illustrates his courage and daring in commanding around a horde of apathetic ghosts. Here Odysseus comes face to face with the shadow of death itself, which includes the sight of his own mother among the spirits, and yet he does not flinch. After experiencing enormous difficulty resisting the sight of old friends and family, who are only shadows of their former selves, Odysseus comes to his senses and stays focused on the task at hand, which for him means return home to his wife, his son and his kingdom. He proved that fortune does indeed favor the bold when it comes to surviving one difficult situation after another. Likewise, the story of Odysseus and his courage could be about ordinary people struggling to accept and overcome the death of a loved one, but who canmuster up the courage to overcome this adversity and keep going. While Odysseus is forced to continue his journey both by his actions and those of his own crew, as well as by the whims of the fickle gods, Gilgamesh, on the contrary, pursues different paths of danger wherever he finds himself, accompanied by his faithful companion, Enkidu. For Gilgamesh, these "hunts" could be interpreted as attempts to test his own strength against that of the various monsters he encounters along the way. It can be argued that courage does not necessarily involve being rushed into these conflicts against someone's free will and forced to participate in ongoing hostilities, but facing the conflict regardless of one's personal discontent. An example of Gilgamesh's courage is when he defeats the beast, Humbaba, who resides in the cedar forest and refuses to let anyone pass: “My friend? Humbaba is the guardian of the cedar forest, / Finish him off to kill him, make him disappear... Before Enlil [king of the gods] the first to hear of this! (Tablet V, lines 65-69) Simply mustering the level of courage necessary to face the beast is extraordinary in itself. Gilgamesh's willingness to put himself in harm's way so that the path through the cedar forest would be open to all is just one tremendous act of courage noted in the epic, among other things. Gilgamesh's style often involves throwing himself into these conflicts in order to demonstrate not only his raw strength, but also his mental acuity to overcome obstacles when he encounters them. His partial divinity plays a significant role in how Gilgamesh is portrayed as a larger-than-life, carefree adrenaline junkie with the strength to fight these mythical monsters. Despite his divinity, Gilgamesh is still subject to the same natural laws as everyone else. and willingly puts himself in these situations, just so he can live life to the fullest and show courage in the face of fear. Likewise, if you take a soldier who enlists in any branch of the military, he does so knowing that he will be embroiled in high-stakes conflicts far from home, with a high probability of be seriously injured or even killed in combat. . The courage of the troops for their enormous sacrifices, putting themselves in danger for the greater good, matches Gilgamesh's own expeditions and slaying of monsters not only for himself, but also for that of his people. Building on this idea, Paulina from The Winter's Tale could be seen as fitting into this model of courage, as she is willing to act despite fear as she puts herself in a life or death situation when she comes to Hermione's defense after her husband, Leontes, falsely accuses her. and insults him in front of his court. In return, Paulina implies that Leontes' behavior borders on tyranny and that everyone in the room thinks the same thing, even though she is the only one inclined to announce it: "I don't care." It is a heretic who makes the fire, not the one who burns in it. I will not call you a tyrant; But this very cruel use of your queen, incapable of producing more accusations than your weak imagination, has something tyrannical about it. (2.3.112-115) Extremely courageous of her, Paulina has a clear understanding of the difficult situation into which she has thrust herself. Knowing that Leontes had become more deranged and unpredictable, Paulina nevertheless engages him and assumes the role of opponent. emphasizing that his delusions are unfounded and are signs of his increasingly paranoid and delusional behavior. She refutes his suspicions of his wife's infidelity which only exacerbate his already diminished state of mind, and resists his escalating and overly dramatic threats, which ironically only proves his point..