Dialogue

 1 Lache|            use of weapons—‘What is Courage?’ Laches thinks that he
 2 Lache|   definition, not only of military courage, but of courage of all sorts,
 3 Lache|           military courage, but of courage of all sorts, tried both
 4 Lache|        replies that this universal courage is endurance. But courage
 5 Lache|          courage is endurance. But courage is a good thing, and mere
 6 Lache|            sure that he knows what courage is, if he could only tell.~
 7 Lache|            to the effect that (1) ‘Courage is intelligence.’ Laches
 8 Lache|            a compliment to his own courage. Still, he does not like
 9 Lache|     Socrates resumes the argument. Courage has been defined to be intelligence
10 Lache|     knowledge of the terrible; and courage is not all virtue, but only
11 Lache|         say, of all good and evil. Courage, therefore, is the knowledge
12 Lache|      generally, must not only have courage, but also temperance, justice,
13 Lache|         ignorance of the nature of courage. They must go to school
14 Lache|           of the Dialogue—‘What is Courage?’ the antagonism of the
15 Lache|           that there was any other courage than that of the soldier;
16 Lache|            Socratic doctrine, that courage is knowledge. This is explained
17 Lache|       distinguishing the nature of courage. In this part of the Dialogue
18 Lache|         result. The two aspects of courage are never harmonized. The
19 Lache|       intimations of the nature of courage are allowed to appear: (
20 Lache|        allowed to appear: (1) That courage is moral as well as physical: (
21 Lache|            physical: (2) That true courage is inseparable from knowledge,
22 Lache|      Laches exhibits one aspect of courage; Nicias the other. The perfect
23 Lache|                         LACHES, OR COURAGE~PERSONS OF THE DIALOGUE:
24 Lache|            generally thought to be courage?~LACHES: Yes, certainly.~
25 Lache|          determining the nature of courage, and in the second place
26 Lache|            me, if you can, what is courage.~LACHES: Indeed, Socrates,
27 Lache|          answering; he is a man of courage who does not run away, but
28 Lache|         ask you not only about the courage of heavy-armed soldiers,
29 Lache|            soldiers, but about the courage of cavalry and every other
30 Lache|       enemy. There is this sort of courage—is there not, Laches?~LACHES:
31 Lache|          courageous, but some have courage in pleasures, and some in
32 Lache|             Now I was asking about courage and cowardice in general.
33 Lache|     general. And I will begin with courage, and once more ask, What
34 Lache|         cases, and which is called courage? Do you now understand what
35 Lache|            quality which is called courage, and which includes all
36 Lache|          LACHES: I should say that courage is a sort of endurance of
37 Lache|           my opinion, to be deemed courage. Hear my reason: I am sure,
38 Lache|            that you would consider courage to be a very noble quality.~
39 Lache|            sort of endurance to be courage— for it is not noble, but
40 Lache|           for it is not noble, but courage is noble?~LACHES: You are
41 Lache|         only the wise endurance is courage?~LACHES: True.~SOCRATES:
42 Lache|          firm and refuses; is that courage?~LACHES: No; that is not
43 Lache|            LACHES: No; that is not courage at all, any more than the
44 Lache|            true.~SOCRATES: Whereas courage was acknowledged to be a
45 Lache|       before held in dishonour, is courage.~LACHES: Very true.~SOCRATES:
46 Lache|          one would say that we had courage who saw us in action, but
47 Lache|         who heard us talking about courage just now.~LACHES: That is
48 Lache|           in the enquiry, and then courage will not laugh at our faint-heartedness
49 Lache| faint-heartedness in searching for courage; which after all may, very
50 Lache|            I do know the nature of courage; but, somehow or other,
51 Lache|            us what you think about courage.~NICIAS: I have been thinking,
52 Lache|            Laches are not defining courage in the right way; for you
53 Lache|         appears to me to mean that courage is a sort of wisdom.~LACHES:
54 Lache|          mean to say, Laches, that courage is the knowledge of that
55 Lache|        Laches?~LACHES: Why, surely courage is one thing, and wisdom
56 Lache|            you mean to affirm that courage is the knowledge of the
57 Lache|     assents to your doctrine, that courage is the knowledge of the
58 Lache|          He who takes your view of courage must affirm that a lion,
59 Lache|      equally little pretensions to courage.~LACHES: Capital, Socrates;
60 Lache|   universal opinion, to deny their courage.~NICIAS: Why, Laches, I
61 Lache|           between fearlessness and courage. I am of opinion that thoughtful
62 Lache|            opinion that thoughtful courage is a quality possessed by
63 Lache|           deprive of the honour of courage those whom all the world
64 Lache|           in Nicias’ definition of courage is worthy of examination.~
65 Lache|           we originally considered courage to be a part of virtue.~
66 Lache|         parts of virtue as well as courage. Would you not say the same?~
67 Lache|           of these things you call courage?~NICIAS: Precisely.~SOCRATES:
68 Lache|          my opinion.~SOCRATES: And courage, my friend, is, as you say,
69 Lache|            is true.~SOCRATES: Then courage is not the science which
70 Lache|          for they are future only; courage, like the other sciences,
71 Lache|      includes only a third part of courage; but our question extended
72 Lache|    extended to the whole nature of courage: and according to your view,
73 Lache|    according to your present view, courage is not only the knowledge
74 Lache|        SOCRATES: But then, Nicias, courage, according to this new definition
75 Lache|            But we were saying that courage is one of the parts of virtue?~
76 Lache|           have not discovered what courage is.~NICIAS: We have not.~
77 Lache|         ignorance of the nature of courage, but you look only to see