Courage and cowardice in everyday life.

Cowardice- this is a characteristic of a person’s behavior in a certain situation, expressed by a refusal to take any action (act) due to fear or any phobias. Counts negative quality and the direct opposite of courage and courage. The expression “coward”, “cowardly” is derived from the word cowardice. The word “cowardice” itself, in turn, is a derivative of the word coward And to tremble, to run. Driving force cowardice is fear. Cowardice should be distinguished from excessive caution or prudence.

Cowardice is flight from a perceived danger without an adequate and prompt preliminary assessment. (V.D. Rumyantsev)

The appearance and manifestation of cowardice

Fear itself is normal and natural defense mechanism any living creature. This mechanism reflects the instinct of self-preservation. However, life circumstances often require overcoming fear, and therefore suppressing this natural instinct. Often a person is unable to do this. In addition, a person may overcome fear in some circumstances and not overcome it in others. For example, the same person may be terrified of heights, but not afraid to get into a fight with a group of hooligans. Or a person may not be afraid to jump with a parachute from an airplane, but may be terrified of the wrath of his boss at work.

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An excerpt characterizing cowardice

Just as it is difficult to explain why and where ants rush from a scattered hummock, some away from the hummock, dragging specks, eggs and dead bodies, others back into the hummock - why they collide, catch up with each other, fight - it is just as difficult It would be possible to explain the reasons that forced the Russian people, after the French left, to crowd into the place that was formerly called Moscow. But just as, looking at the ants scattered around a devastated hummock, despite the complete destruction of the hummock, one can see from the tenacity, energy, and countless swarming insects that everything has been destroyed except for something indestructible, immaterial, which makes up the entire strength of the hummock - so too and Moscow, in the month of October, despite the fact that there were no authorities, no churches, no shrines, no wealth, no houses, Moscow was the same as it was in August. Everything was destroyed, except for something insubstantial, but powerful and indestructible.
The motives of people striving from all sides to Moscow after its cleansing from the enemy were very diverse, personal, and at first for the most part- wild animals. There was only one impulse common to everyone - this desire to go there, to that place that was formerly called Moscow, to carry out their activities there.
A week later there were already fifteen thousand inhabitants in Moscow, after two there were twenty-five thousand, etc. Rising and rising, this number by the autumn of 1813 reached a figure exceeding the population of the 12th year.
The first Russian people who entered Moscow were the Cossacks of the Wintzingerode detachment, men from neighboring villages and residents who fled from Moscow and were hiding in its environs. The Russians who entered devastated Moscow, finding it plundered, also began to plunder. They continued what the French were doing. Convoys of men came to Moscow in order to take away to the villages everything that had been thrown along the ruined Moscow houses and streets. The Cossacks took what they could to their headquarters; the owners of the houses took everything that they found in other houses and brought it to themselves under the pretext that it was their property.

Every person has fears, but not everyone can overcome them and become brave. A person who can cope with his fears and overcome them is called brave. Courage manifests itself not only in extreme situations, but also in Everyday life. There are people who cannot even muster the courage to ask for help. Now there are more and more such people and they need to be helped to get rid of cowardice and cultivate courage in themselves.

What helps a person become brave?

Fears can significantly complicate our lives, interfere with raising a family, work, and even ordinary everyday activities. A brave person is not one who does not experience fear, but one who can resist it and not panic in an emergency situation.

Fear can manifest itself in different ways depending on the degree and reasons for its occurrence. It can be horror, fearfulness, anxiety, painful anticipation, intimidation, panic, inability to think adequately, downtroddenness, blind submission. Fear can completely control the mind.

Fears do not appear out of nowhere. We acquire them gradually throughout life, based on our own or others' experiences. Fear is caused by a feeling of danger.

There are also completely stupid fears (fear of being unloved, fear of being alone, fear of losing a job), in some cases fears turn into mania.

To have courage, you need to learn to control your fear. But how to do that.

First, determine what exactly you are afraid of, what causes you to feel fear, panic or horror. Write down all your fears in a notebook. What emotions do the other events they describe evoke in you?

Carefully analyze the compiled list. Determine what you fear most. You need to know the enemy by sight.

Find out the reason for your fear. Knowing the cause, it is easier to choose methods of control. Most often, the causes of fear lie in the child’s childhood. If possible, talk to your parents (maybe you were bitten by a dog as a child and since then you have become afraid of animals)

To become brave you need to increase your self-esteem. Often a person is afraid to show his ignorance, look stupid, or fail a test. Fear paralyzes the brain, and as a result, you will not be able to answer even the questions for which you have prepared. Therefore, decide whether you need such a satellite.

To become courageous, you need to realistically assess the situation. In a calm environment, imagine a situation that makes you feel afraid. Why is it dangerous for you? this situation? How to get out of it with the least negative consequences? Explore several options for solving the problem.

A sense of humor, a reliable assistant in the fight against fears. Find something funny in a situation or subject that frightens you and fear retreat.

Conquer fear, let courage become your companion on the path to success.

How to become bolder and more confident in yourself

To get rid of cowardice, you need to start small. For example, there is no need to be afraid to ask sellers about a product; a person has every right to do so. Many suffer from shyness and cannot speak to stranger. Don't be afraid of it, you just need to try it 5-10 times and you'll even like it.

True, there are people who are not able to take such a significant step right away. There is nothing terrible here, they first need to change something in themselves. You can start with the most ordinary thing - image. Having changed something in himself, a person changed as a person, and his confidence was revealed in him.

People are indecisive because they do not know how others will react to their actions. You should not be afraid of the opinions of others, because there will always be those who will support you and those who will criticize you. Even if you do nothing, the same thing will happen. Criticism from strangers is inevitable; you don’t need to pay attention to it.

Almost all people approach strangers hesitantly, and this is their mistake. To become brave, you need to be sociable and confident, you should not close yourself off.

After all this, you can begin to take more decisive and extreme actions. Skydiving is good method become bolder for people who are afraid of heights.

Seeing a brave person, almost everyone says: “And I want to be the same.” In order to become as brave, you need to observe brave people, be around them, study their manners, behavior, imagine yourself in their place, this will significantly speed up the process of cultivating courage.

The final step is self-tuning. It's not difficult at all and very effective. To become more decisive and bolder, a person simply must not forget about what he wants to achieve and repeat it to himself every day.

It will not be difficult for a brave person to realize his dream, to fulfill the goal he has set for himself. You need to be able to overcome your fears, because in order to defeat the whole World, you must first defeat yourself.

How to get rid of cowardice and fear

Cowardice ruins a person's life. The inability to overcome fears is the main problem which lies in one’s own weakness. Fears weaken the psyche, which prevents a person from fully enjoying life and realizing himself in different areas of life. You cannot indulge your fears, otherwise you will never become confident. How to stop being a coward?

Physical inequality

One of the reasons for cowardice is often some kind of deficiency or poor development of physical abilities. Everyone can remember moments from their childhood when teenagers began to offend weaker or younger peers. They cannot answer anything in return and the only thing left is to close themselves off and do nothing else to change the situation.

How to stop being a coward

Solving the problem of lack of physical fitness is not difficult. To become brave, just enroll in a section for developing strength abilities (bodybuilding, weightlifting, boxing and other sports). After just a few months of training, you will begin to feel the strength in your hands that you will need for self-defense.

How to get rid of cowardice if, despite good physical fitness, fears overcome you? The whole problem here is what to overcome psychological reason cowardice is much harder. You need to gather your courage and still decisively meet your fears. Write them down on a piece of paper, before carefully thinking about your behavior in different life situations. Write them all down in order from most important to least important.

After you complete the task, find the three most minor fears, and then recreate the situation in which they manifested themselves. Do this as soon as possible by doing what you really want. If everything worked out, be sure to praise yourself and reward yourself with something for the small victory. Otherwise, try to repeat the tasks again and again until you achieve success. Gradually move on to larger fears, and you will see how your mental stability will increase significantly over time.

Use affirmations

If you want to get rid of cowardice and become courageous, then every morning should start with a positive attitude. After waking up and before going to bed, repeat to yourself: “I believe in my strength. I am beautiful, brave and strong. I am making my dreams come true." It is better to do this in front of the mirror and out loud. Saying affirmations really helps to overcome barriers in the subconscious that arise after unsuccessful situations in life.

Few human vices have received as many criticisms and serious accusations as cowardice. Sometimes it is easier to say about yourself “scoundrel” than to admit that it is more consistent with reality - “coward”.

This is not surprising, for cowardice is the characteristic of the soul that we find it most difficult to admit; and how can one dare to make such a revelation, if cowardice presupposes precisely a complete inability to truthfully admit one’s shortcomings... after all, such a confession is frightening!

What is Cowardice and who is a Coward? Definitions

Cowardice is a criminal weakness based on fear. Why exactly criminal weakness? Because a coward is capable of committing almost any crime because of his fear.

Cowardice can also be defined as the inability to take necessary and responsible actions at a moment of certain danger due to fear. Let's take a closer look:

A coward is a slave to his fear, a person weak in spirit and will. If a person is a slave to fear, this means that he has completely surrendered to it, does not control himself (is not able to think with his head and make decisions), but obeys his fear 100%.

They say: “We always despise a coward and a traitor!” Why? Because if a person is a coward, then he is, in fact, a potential traitor and criminal; out of fear, he can deceive, frame, slander, betray, even abandon his child or a woman in danger, and much more. etc.

How does a Coward differ from a normal person who is afraid, in whom there is fear?

A worthy or simply normal person who is afraid is not capable of committing terrible crimes (deception, slander, betrayal, murder) because of fear, that is, he is able to overcome or at least control his fear. He has moral and ethical restrictions (principles) in his Soul that will not allow him to commit a criminal act out of fear.

A coward is like an animal driven by fear, in the power of which he does not understand anything and does everything to save his own skin, often at the expense of evil committed against others. Therefore, a coward is always despised, and cowardice is a shameful quality that evokes only contempt and disgust.

But since fear lives in almost every person, this line between cowardice and ordinary fear is often very thin, and until you get into extreme situation It’s hard to know whether you’re a coward or not.

If, even in spite of fear, you are able to do what you must, fulfill your duty, act with dignity, that is, embrace fear and overcome it for a good purpose - you are not a coward, you are a worthy person!

I hope I will make you happy if I say that everything can be treated, and fear can be eliminated, and a coward can re-educate himself, becoming a worthy person and even a fearless warrior.

What should we replace Cowardice and Fear with?

Cowardice is replaced by self-control and subjugation of your fear! With the help of your mind and will, right decisions and attitude, fear - you need to learn to keep it in a cage like a mad dog, always under your thumb, tightly controlling it. So that he is your slave, and not you his weak-willed servant.

Fear itself is replaced by such valiant qualities as Fearlessness and Courage. It is inherent the best people history and modernity: Warriors, Knights, Officers, Samurai, Spartans, Legionnaires, Rulers and simply strong and worthy men and women.

Eat beautiful saying: “A warrior dies only once and always with dignity, a coward dies thousands of times, every time he is afraid, and he always dies like a cowardly jackal.”

How to get rid of Cowardice? Algorithm

The work will consist of two parts:

Learn to overcome and control your fear. Essentially, stop being afraid of your fear and become its master, begin to subjugate it to yourself, your will, your spirit.
And after that, you can remove the fear itself and work directly with its causes.
Algorithm and practical steps:

1. It's always motivation. Create a motivation that will give you the strength and energy to go through this work on yourself to the end, to victory. Let me remind you that we always work with motivation in writing:

• Write a detailed list of at least 30 points - what troubles await you and what you will lose if you remain a slave to your fear, a coward, throughout your life. You must understand everything clearly and clearly Negative consequences your weakness and really want to get rid of it.
• Write down at least 30 reasons and reasons that are most important to you - what you will gain, what you will get rid of, who you can become, how your life will change if you become brave, get rid of cowardice and learn to conquer your fear.

This is a very important task that needs to be completed first.

2. You must fully believe that you can get rid of cowardice, stop beating yourself up and destroying yourself because of this shortcoming. To do this, I bring you a combined text from the book “47 Principles of the Ancient Samurai or the Leader’s Code.” This is your attitude, read it completely and more than once:

Samurai Code of Honor. How cowardice is overcome

Some calculations from the texts of the Ancient Samurai, on the basis of which the highest leaders of Japan have been training for 700 years.

“It is important to realize that the one from whom not even a name remains and the one who became famous throughout the centuries fell, experiencing the same pain when their heads were cut off by the enemy. But if death is inevitable, the leader's task should be to die in an act of great valor capable of defeating both comrades and enemies.

How different this is from the fate of the coward, who is last in battle and first in flight. During an attack on the fortress, he is shielded by his comrades as a shield from the enemy. Struck, he falls and suffers a dog's death, and his comrades walk over his body. This is the greatest shame and should never be forgotten.

The main principle of a leader: right and wrong

If a Warrior knows how to achieve the first and avoid the second, then he will choose the unmistakable path of a leader. Understanding the essence of the phenomenon, we will see that it all comes down to cowardice.

As an example, consider an ancient battle. Those who are born brave will see nothing special in fighting under a hail of arrows and bullets. Devoted to fidelity and duty, he will expose his breast to the fire of the enemy and mount the enemy, showing in his magnificent valor an indescribably wonderful example. There is someone whose knees tremble and whose heart trembles, but he wonders: how can he act honorably in the midst of all the dangers?

And he continues to participate in the battle because he is ashamed to be the only one who hesitates in the face of his comrades. Thus he strengthens his resolve, and he will attack the enemy along with those who are brave by nature. And although at first he is weaker than the brave man, but after some repetitions of such experience he gets used to it and begins to follow the example of one born brave; in his exploits he grows into a Warrior, not inferior to one who was born fearless from the beginning.

So, in order to do the right thing, and in order to gain valor, there is no other way than the one that goes through a sense of shame and a clear conscience.

And when the time of our physical death comes, it will seem that only a moment has passed after reading these words. And by what code will we live in the short moments that follow?”

I hope this text inspired you as much as it did me :)

Therefore, the second thing you need to do is set a goal for yourself to learn to overcome your fear, turn your face to it, walk, step on it. This is a constant training in which your courage and fearlessness grow, and your cowardice melts before your eyes. Start doing what you are afraid of, but not with your greatest fear, and let you have the first positive experience in overcoming your fear, and in gaining initial control over it, so that you feel and believe - “Yes, I can do this!”

Courage. What it is? I think that courage is decisiveness in thoughts and actions, the ability to stand up for yourself and for other people who need your help, overcoming all sorts of fears: for example, fear of the dark, of someone else's brute force, of life's obstacles and difficulties. Is it easy to be brave? Not easy. This quality probably needs to be cultivated from childhood. Overcoming your fears, moving forward despite difficulties, developing willpower, not being afraid to defend your opinion - all this will help cultivate in yourself such a quality as courage. Synonyms for the word “courage” are “courage”, “determination”, “courage”. The antonym is “cowardice.” Cowardice is one of the human vices. We are afraid of many things in life, but fear and cowardice are not the same thing. I think that out of cowardice comes meanness. A coward will always hide in the shadows, remain on the sidelines, fearing for his own life, betray in order to save himself.

People can be brave and cowardly both in war and in everyday life. Let's look at examples from fiction.

“One of the most important human vices is cowardice,” these are the words of one of the heroes of M. Bulgakov’s work “The Master and Margarita.” The biblical chapters of the novel tell about the fifth procurator of Judea, Pontius Pilate, who “washed his hands” and did not take it upon himself to acquit the wandering philosopher Yeshua. Pilate was afraid of ruining his career, so he went against his conscience. There is no moral justification for his cowardice, for which he is severely punished: two thousand years of pangs of conscience have tormented the procurator.

The biblical chapters echo the rest of the novel's chapters, which tell about Moscow in the 30s. Stalin's time political repression– all this is hidden in the subtext of the work. Cowardice lies at the heart of the opportunism, cowardice, and meanness of many of the novel's heroes. The author wants to say that it was she who led to the death of millions of people in Stalin’s camps and dungeons. "Cowardice - main reason meanness on earth” - one cannot but agree with these words of the writer.

A person must learn to cultivate courage and overcome cowardice from childhood. The writer Vladimir Zheleznikov speaks about this in his story “Scarecrow”. The heroine of this work, Lenka Bessoltseva, took on someone else’s guilt. Probably, at her age this is also a brave act. After all, she is still a teenager, and this is the first serious test in her life. For her courage, Lenka endures a lot: a boycott from her classmates, persecution - she is “chased” around the city - and even execution: a scarecrow in her dress is burned at the stake. And the one whose guilt she took upon herself is a coward. Lenkin’s classmate Somov, a handsome and successful boy, is afraid to break out of the “pack” of his own kind, to save Lenka, to admit to his not so great guilt. Cowardice leads to the first meanness in life. But the first meanness is the most difficult. Cross this line, and each time it will be easier to cross it. Zheleznikov's story teaches both children and adults to think about themselves, about their human qualities, about courage and cowardice.

Eduard Asadov has a poem “Coward”. Its plot is simple. Two heroes, “a guy with an athletic figure and a girl with a fragile stalk,” encounter two “shouldered dark silhouettes” in the evening. The author tells how a guy who had just talked about his exploits, about how he swam across the bay in a storm, “began, in a hurry, to unfasten his watch.” And the girl, the “sparrow soul,” burned the robbers with her words like fire, called them fascists, scum, and showed by her behavior that she was not at all afraid of them. The brave girl managed to protect both herself and her boyfriend. The “Sparrow Soul” turned out to be brave, and her companion turned out to be a coward. Asadov’s poem talks about ordinary young people and makes us think about what each of us would do in such a situation.

In conclusion, I would like to say that this topic of the essay interested me, because courage and cowardice play a big role in our lives, which is why it is so important to cultivate the best in ourselves. human qualities, become brave and strong, don't be a coward.

Sooner or later, life confronts every person with the problem of choice: to save yourself, your physical life, your comfortable and soft nest, where you are completely safe, or break the bonds of fear.

Perform an extraordinary Act (this word can only be sounded with a capital letter): save human life, help the widow, go against the stronger, standing up for justice. We offer a short essay “Courage and Cowardice” dedicated to this topic.

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Meaning of concepts

A quote from Maxim Gorky’s “Song of the Falcon” best characterizes the attitude towards brave people. They are admired, they are actions are praised. Surely all of us, listening to a story about someone’s feat, mentally try the situation on ourselves: “Could I do the same? Would I have the courage? First, let's figure out what this means. be brave.

What kind of person can be called brave? According to Ozhegov, this is “not knowing fear, decisive.” “Brave, undaunted” - this is the definition of another great expert V.I. Dalia.

A bit of reasoning

So, what is courage? From many it can be concluded that this special quality, allowing a person not to be afraid of anything that threatens life, health, position in society, or personal safety.

What does it mean to be brave and courageous? Go towards hostile circumstances, regardless of any risks?

This is partly true, but this concept is still worth considering more broadly and fully. Let's try to write an essay-discussion on this topic in order to “separate the wheat from the chaff.”

Essay “Courage and Cowardice” let's start with the introduction, where we will try to define these two concepts.

Can the absence of fear, the desire to rush “headlong” towards dangers be called courage? Of course you can't. But to be able to overcome own fears , doubts and always act as your conscience dictates, regardless of how the action will affect later life- This means to be brave.

Synonyms

When you begin to write about what courage is, the essay will be incomplete if you do not make an attempt to find the this concept, accurately reflecting the essence of the concept being analyzed:

• bravery,
• courage,
• fearlessness.

What are the qualities of courage and bravery? First of all - in the ability to fight back not the enemy and circumstances, but to myself: own hesitations, uncertainty, desire to avoid danger and difficulties.

Therefore, the story of a brave deed does not always tell of a large-scale feat. Sometimes this is a modest work about how the hero managed to help a child who was frightened by an upcoming plane flight. At the same time, he himself was so afraid of flying that during takeoff his heart “sank into his heels” from horror. And you yourself are not afraid to fly - that’s already not courage, but just an act of kindness to the child.

Attention! Do you want to become a brave man– overcome your fear by helping others.

The essence of antithesis

Two opposing concepts are inseparable from each other. One man's most courageous act is illustrated by another's cowardice. At the same time, the coward leads different arguments, allowing him to justify himself in his own eyes and in front of others. Why didn’t you help a first-grader whose tablet was taken away by two older children? How could I have done this, the frightened one will answer when:

• there were two of them, and I was alone;
• they are still stronger;
• Next came the physical education teacher - so he should have intervened, because he was an adult.

Personal courage manifests itself in different ways. What does it mean to be a real hero:

• rush into a fight and protect the weak, although he himself has never fought;
• bring the old woman out of the burning house;
• object to the boss who unfairly deprived a competent specialist of his bonus due to personal hostility.

Final essay on courage such actions should not be about, like jumping out of a third-story window or running across a red light. It will be a story not about courage, but about stupidity and recklessness.

No one is interested in such pseudo-bravery: doesn't benefit people, it only makes things worse for both the “hero” himself and his loved ones.

What are we talking about when we talk about courage? Not only about overcoming your own fears, but also that our action must give benefit to someone who really needs help.

The classics' point of view

Examples of courage are often found in works of art. Unforgettable classics and more modern authors talk about brave deeds. These stories are remembered for a long time, because this topic affects everyone, regardless of specific circumstances.

The most famous examples brave deeds in literature:

• the heroism of the girls from the story “The Dawns Here Are Quiet...” by Boris Vasiliev;
• durability unknown soldier from the book by the same author “Not on the Lists,” who defended the Brest Fortress almost literally to the last drop of blood;
• the courage of the “weakling” Pierre Bezukhov from Leo Tolstoy’s “”, who rushed to save a girl from a burning house and protected a young Armenian woman from French marauders;
• the brave actions of the teacher from Rasputin’s French Lessons, who was not afraid to be fired in difficult, hungry times because she tried to help a little boy.

There are a lot of books whose characters are truly brave people. And in life, what does it mean to be fearless? a brave person in real conditions?

Cluster plan for writing an essay on the topic “Courage and Cowardice.”

Life examples

Most often you have to face the need risk yourself to save yourself other representatives of such professions as:

• firefighter,
• pilot,
• military,
• rescuer.

But what kind of person do we call courageous? Only a rescuer or a fire fighter? Everything in life is much more complicated.

Examples of courage that we can observe in life include duel of 1837 Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin and his courageous behavior in last days before death. He would raised a challenge to society, not only to enemies, but also to friends who did not understand him, defending themselves and their innocent wife. Only after his death did the poet’s relatives realize that he had to go through. Until the end of their days, many blamed themselves for inaction, which left him alone to fight with the whole world.

Truly brave people are Evgenia Ginzburg and her husband, whom she met in the Stalinist camps of the late 30s. last century. He helped others giving yourself completely and not thinking about the need survive on your own. In terrible conditions, he remained a Man with a capital M.

From the latter - the life story of Elizaveta Petrovna Glinka, whom everyone lovingly called Doctor Lisa. Having founded a charitable foundation, this woman always went to help where it was needed, bullets whistled and blood flowed. She I wasn't thinking about myself, but only about those for whom her support could save life or make her last days and hours at least a little happier.

Courage and cowardice. Direction of the final essay

How to prepare for the final essay

Conclusion

Everyone has their own arguments that support the concepts of “courage and cowardice.” When preparing a final essay on this topic, any student is free to bring own point of view.

But, whatever the words, the main judge in this case is conscience. It is she who suggests which act should be called brave and which one should be ashamed, how manifestations of cowardice. Let's listen to her and our own hearts.