The Moral Vision
Keeping Calm in the Face of Adversity
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shouts of ‘No one!’ Almost all of the soldiers
belonging to the enemy camp rushed to the side of
Napolean, who emerged victorious and once more
ascended the throne of France. If, in the destitute
state he was in at that time, he had attempted to do
battle with the French army, he would surely have
been slaughtered on that very battlefield.
Whatever a man’s resources, if he has to deal
effectively with a situation, he must be able to make
a proper assessment of it. And this he will not be
able to do if he panics in the face of danger. It is
only if he does not lose his nerve and keeps his
mind open to what is practical that he will be able
to overcome the obstacles in his path. Inevitably, his
success depends upon his being able to make a
well-considered choice of whatever material and
mental resources are available to him and then
putting them to proper use. History abounds in
instances of the weak overcoming the strong,
simply by strategic deployments of resources. The
reason for such success is not far to seek: often the
enemy is not as strong as he appears to be.
Everyone has his Achilles heel. It is just a question
of finding it and then ruthlessly exploiting it. Just as
