COURAGE IS THE MOST EXCITING OF THE CANONICAL VIRTUES. ONE RECENT student ranks courage alongside love as the most popular theme in world literature (Miller, 2000: 8-12). By contrast, other virtues, such as justice, patience, or self-control, are the favorite topics of abstract philosophizing, but, on the face of it, they are boring to contemplate (cf. Shklar, 1990: 15-19; Miller, 2000: 8). The peculiar allure of courage is one clue to its darker, more problematic dimensions. To ...