According to Maya Angelou, "Courage is the most important of the virtues, because without courage you can't practice any other virtue consistently. You can practice any virtue erratically, but nothing consistently without courage."

They can be seen as independent variables in courage, and their relationship can affect how we respond to fear

According to Professor Daniel Putman, "courage involves deliberate choice in the face of painful or fearful circumstances for the sake of a worthy goal".

self-confidence; confidence in knowing one's skills and abilities and being able to determine when to fight fear or when to flee it.

Thucydides, a 5th century BCE Greek historian, wrote, "The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is before them, glory and danger alike, and yet notwithstanding, go out to meet it."

Without an appropriate balance between fear and confidence when facing a threat, one cannot have the courage to overcome it.

Fortitude is "to dare" according to Hobbes, but also to "resist stoutly in present dangers".

"Fear, although it might vary from person to person, is not completely relative and is only appropriate if it 'matches the danger of the situation'".[7] The same goes for confidence

"the danger of the situation", "the worthiness of the cause", "and the perception of one's ability".