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Taylor Schroeder
Mr.Brewer
Pre-AP World Lit
18 December 2014
Moral Courage

In the book Cry The Beloved Country, Absalom showed moral courage in a big way.
Absalom had killed a man. He didnt mean to even kill the man, but he did. The policemen came
around looking for the man who murdered Arthur Jarvis. They found Absalom and asked him if he
knew where they could find Johannes, a guy that was there when the crime happened but didnt
kill Arthur. Instead of Absalom saying no and going on with his day, he confessed that it was him
who killed Arthur. Absalom even went and showed the policemen where he had buried the
revolver that had killed Arthur Jarvis. He said, I have only to say, that I killed this man, but I did
not mean to kill him, I was only afraid. (Paton 236)
Moral courage is about being brave.You are willing to put yourself out there not caring
what people think of you or what the consequences are. Moral courage is exactly what it sounds
like. Morals are someones beliefs or standards; courage is being able to do something thats
fearful. You stand up for your beliefs even if that means facing fears. Moral courage could even be
telling the truth despite the consequences. You can show moral courage by not just being verbal
but physical also. Instead of seeing a problem and talking about it you could do something to
change it yourself.
Morals are your beliefs that make you who you are. My morals are that I dont drink and
do drugs. In high school peer pressure is really bad with drugs and alcohol. If someone were to ask
me to do drugs or drink, I'm going to stick to my morals and say no. Standing up for your morals is

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the right thing to do. If you see someone getting beat up and you don't believe in bullying, the right
thing to do is stand up for the person. Nothing is ever quiet, except for fools (Paton 224). People
in the wrong sit back and dont speak up.
It takes a lot to show courage. A lot of people are scared. People are scared of what people
will think about them or theyre scared of the consequences. In Cry The Beloved Country, Kumalo,
Absalom's dad, if face to face with Arthur Jarvis dad. Arthur's dad didnt know that Kumalo was
the father of the killer that killed his son. Kumalo was courageous and confessed that he was the
father of Absalom. Arthurs father did not show anger towards him, he showed him respect. When
you show courage people respect you more. If you try to stand up for something and people see
that youre scared, they arent going to take you seriously. If you are the one being bullied you
could show courage. Take what they say and dont fight back. Anne Sexton wrote a powerful line
in her poem to show moral courage: You powered your sorrow, gave it a back rub and then you
covered it with a blanket and after it had slept a while it woke to the wings of the roses and was
transformed, (Sexton line 33-38). This means you take what people say and become a stronger
person.
An act of moral courage can be other things besides doing what is right and sticking to your
morals. It could be an act of love. The quote, If your buddy saved you and died himself in so
doing, then his courage was not courage, it was love.(Sexton line 22-25). People fear of dying,
but not of dying for the ones they love. That is the greatest way to say courage.
Selcia Elsworthy describes courage as wisdom in action. (Elsworthy) .Moral courage is
something people deal with every day. Standing up for your morals is very important . You can't be
scared of what people are going to think of you or what the consequences are. Moral courage is
about being brave, it's about having no fear.

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Works Cited
Elsworthy, Selcia. Fighting With Nonviolence Ted Talk.TED. Dec. 18, 2014
Sexton, Anne. Courage Dec. 18, 2014
Paton, Alan, and Alan Paton. Cry, the Beloved Country: A Story of Comfort in Desolation. New
York: C. Scribner's Sons, 1948. Print.