Laurin Wilson
Ethics 1100
October 2, 2014
Dr. Adadevoh vs. Individual Courage
“Courage is knowing what not to fear (IV). In the Republic, Plato’s try to explain courage through the idea of knowledge and being a just person. I will argue why Dr. Ameyo Adadevoh is an example of courage according to the definition Plato presents.
Dr. Ameyo Adadevoh was a physician who showed true courage. She was working in Nigeria at the First Consultant Hospital at the same time as the Liberian American; Patrick Sawyer was being diagnosed with Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). When Dr. Adadevoh found out about this patient, she took it upon herself to ensure that he remained secluded at the hospital, rather than letting him leave. She knew that letting him leave the hospital, would be putting her whole country into danger of contracting this fatal disease. She became a hero of Nigeria because she decided risk her own life, when she “physically restrain[ed] this infected person from escaping from the hospital when the latter attempted to do so, having been communicated that he was Ebola-positive” (spyghana.com). Her commitment and heroic gestures of treating Sawyer and restraining him prevented the viruses to spread into Nigeria, but it didn’t save Dr. Adadevoh because was exposed to the virus from primary contact and shortly afterwards passes away.
Plato’s true definition about someone being courageous is knowledge. Knowledge “is just that part, as courage is being able to act with knowledge of being afraid and being in danger, and to act with honor and thus virtue” (IV). Knowing Plato’s explanation of being courageous, then Dr. Adadevoh case can be an example of someone representing courage. The doctor was known for being very knowledgeable in her field and knew the dangers of coming in contact with Sawyer. She also knew that she needed to take action by not just saving one critically ill patient, but she put “her life on the line in a desperate situation so that a whole nation might be saved”(spyghana.com). This scenario, Plato would argue that this is the purest form of courage because she was faced with a very possible death, yet she still stuck to her beliefs.
Plato also explains courage through the idea of a just and unjust person. The just person “isn’t concerned with someone’s doing his own externally, but with what is inside him, with what is truly himself and his own”(IV, 443c-e). In the situation,