Musonius Rufus, Lectures 3.6

Now as for courage, certainly it is to be expected that the educated woman will be more courageous than the uneducated, and one who has studied philosophy than one who has not; and she will not therefore submit to anything shameful because of fear of death or unwillingness to face hardship, and she will not be intimidated by anyone because he is of noble birth, or powerful, or wealthy, no, not even if he be the tyrant of her city.

For in fact she has schooled herself to be high-minded and to think of death not as an evil and life not as a good, and likewise not to shun hardship and never for a moment to seek ease and indolence.

So it is that such a woman is likely to be energetic, strong to endure pain, prepared to nourish her children at her own breast, and to serve her husband with her own hands, and willing to do things which some would consider no better than slaves' work.

I have sometimes heard people describe courage as a distinctly masculine virtue, though I wonder if these people understand either the true nature of courage, or the true nature of masculinity.

In such a case, both bravery and manhood are reduced merely to a sense of being stronger, tougher, or more aggressive than someone else. Certain sorts of men, of course, like to strut about, and show off, and intimidate others, and they insist that this is brave. To be fair, I see certain sorts of women behave this way as well. Is it still a virtue, however, if an animal could do it just as well as a man or a woman?

We are twice removed from the truth if we assume that courage is a matter of any sort of brutality, by way of any sort of confusion about manliness. Once again, consider the humanity first, and what is shared in common by all of humanity.

For the Ancients, courage was the commitment to doing what was right and good, in the face of danger, and most specifically in the face of death. It was not just the exercise of powerful emotion, of aggression in the face of fear, but the judgment of an informed conscience, where hardship was accepted as a means to character. The strength that was to be found in fortitude came from the mind, not merely from the gut.

Scowl and growl all you want, flex your muscles, and assume an imposing stance, and you are still no closer to courage. Look to the guidance of your moral compass, and get your priorities in order about what is greater and lesser in this life, and you will now find yourself on the path to being brave.

All people need this virtue to live well, both men and women, and it is only possible through first forming an understanding of what is good. It will seem ridiculous to the bully to say that true courage comes from the power of philosophy instead of the power of his fists, but this is only because he chooses not to reflect on who he is, and why he is here.

Musonius sees quite clearly how the brave woman will live out her life just as fully as the brave man. She would rather die before she surrenders to vice. She will bear pain in order to develop her moral worth. She will not be frightened or impressed by money and influence, because she knows that these are not the standards by which she should judge herself. She will bear whatever is necessary, even what other people may think is far beneath them, in order to show a respect for human dignity.

I have known many people who liked to draw attention to how brave they were, and how their boldness in taking risks was bringing them success in life. Yet I couldn’t help but ask, “What are you actually putting on the line? What is it going to bring you?”

“I’m standing up for myself, and taking what I want from people, so I can live my life the way I choose to live it! I’ll never get that by being weak!”

“You will fight to gain power over others, and insist on satisfying your desires?”

“Sure. That’s what life’s all about.”

Whenever I hear words like that, I am reminded why men and women so desperately need philosophy. It’s the only way we won’t confuse courage with conquest, or virtue with gratification. It is what helps us to see that anything is worth sacrificing for character, but character is never worth sacrificing for anything. That is the conviction of courage. 

Written in 4/1999