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“The courage of the soldiers depends upon the wisdom of the general.”
Leadership affects collective courage because people take greater risks when they trust the judgment guiding the group.
Source note: The Moral Sayings of Publius Syrus, saying 206, D. Lyman Jr. translation (1856).
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“It is not the critic who counts.”
Participation matters more than detached fault-finding when achievement requires risk, effort, mistakes, and responsibility for an outcome.
Source note: Citizenship in a Republic, commonly called the Man in the Arena speech; Roosevelt contrasts action with spectatorship.
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“The righteous are bold as a lion.”
The image links courage with a clear conscience, suggesting that moral confidence can reduce the impulse to flee without cause.
Source note: Proverbs 28:1 in the King James Version; concluding comparison of the verse.
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“The better part of valour is discretion.”
Voice: Fictional character · Falstaff
Courage is balanced with judgment here: avoiding a needless danger can sometimes be wiser than performing bravery for appearance.
Source note: Act 5, Scene 4; Falstaff reframes survival as a form of judgment.
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“These are the times that try men's souls.”
Crisis reveals commitment because principles become costly to maintain precisely when fear, fatigue, and uncertainty make retreat easier.
Source note: Opening of The American Crisis No. I; Paine addresses perseverance during a difficult stage of the American Revolution.
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“Nothing noble can be performed without danger.”
Avoiding every danger can also prevent worthy action; prudence needs to distinguish reckless exposure from risks that meaningful conduct sometimes requires.
Source note: Essays of Montaigne, Book I, Charles Cotton translation, in a discussion of distrust, security, and princely conduct.