How Does Henry Fleming Show Courage

Henry Fleming is a young teenager who dreams of feeling the triumph of war. He is very self motivated and has thoughts of the field of battle. Henry decides to leave his home and mother to join the Union Army. Henry has wants to be a hero like in the Greek myths, so he enlists in the Union Army. His reasons for wanting to win glory are not fully supportive, but all the cons and negatives do not bring him down. Amongst all the horrors of war and death none were in his thoughts nor does he try. Instead, Henry desires to have a reputation. He has convinced himself that the war will bring him a great reward. Henry's mother did not accept his views of bravery, and discouraged him from enlisting. When Henry breaks the news to her that he has enlisted, there is a farewell scene and simply says if he finds himself in a situation where he will do something wrong or be killed, he should go with his feelings. She packs him some goods and now his thought of war, as the book goes on, slightly starts to shift. …show more content…
He is now getting anxious and is discovering parts of himself he didn't know were there. His entire motive is being questioned and shifted. He is now scared, desperate, unsure, of what he has done. His thoughts have gone from longing for home to influencing dark and scary images to describe common occurrences of war. Fear is corrupting his thoughts and consuming Henry. He torments himself by wondering if he will cower when the actual firing begins. Henry has even concluded that it would be best to get killed directly and end his