Courage has gone through many changes. It has been altered throughout races, cultures, religions, sex, and time. However, the core values of courage has always remained parallel. It is difficult to explain in words the meaning of courage, like describing a color, but everyone knows what courage is, how it feels, and how to perform it. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus explained to us a type of courage that was shown in Ms. Dubose. These attributes were also apparent in a man named Liu Xiaobo. Both Ms. Dubose, and Mr. Liu, rose above social views to fight for their beliefs, did not give up in times of trouble, and had the audacity to face demons that were far more powerful than themselves. Ms. Dubose and Liu Xiaobo were both …show more content…
Dubose, and Liu Xiaobo tried to do. It took tremendous courage to do so. One of the most known quotes in To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus tried to explain his idea of courage. to Jem. He said, I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do.(Lee 112) Jem had the conception that courage was a “manly man”, a man that was tough and could fight. However, using Ms. Dubose as an example, she explained a new type of courage to Jem. Ms. Dubose knew that her struggle was close to impossible to win, as many people failed to break addictions, yet she still tried to fight it, and winning at the end. The courage to do so was considered, by Atticus, real courage. This was also demonstrated by Liu Xiaobo. He went against the most powerful force in his country, the government. He knew that he would not win, as he says, “I hope that I will be the last victim…[and to] inspire others to do the same”. He says that he didn’t not expect to win, but only to inspire others. In other words, he was courageous enough to have sacrificed himself in order to get his voice heard. This related to Atticus saying that courage is “when you know you’re licked”, and you still persist. Liu Xiaobo knew