Theme: courage in the face of hardship

The theme I am thinking about writing about is that of courage in the face of hardship. Rieux, Rambert, Grand, and Tarrou are all characters that risk their lives daily to help those affected by the plague. Rieux, though it is his job as a doctor, commits himself whole-heartedly to the cause – putting his ill wife and personal troubles secondary to the plague effort. Rambert is at first a selfish coward – trying everything to escape the town. However, as the novel progresses, his character changes. He was previously so desperate to get out of the town he was going to leave illegally with the help of two guards. Through doing this he was prioritizing his escape over that of people whose whole families lay outside of the town, he was acting extremely selfish. He was also disregarding the fact that he could possibly have been single-handedly responsible for spreading the plague outside of quarantined Oran by illegally escaping. However, when finally given the opportunity, he passes it up. He feels he must stay to help fight the plague. He gives up his own happiness – escaping the plague and going home to his love in Paris – to help fight the plague that is ravaging the town.