Call It Courage

A novel of 117 pages, it is about a boy who tries to overcome his fear of the sea.

Call It Courage is a story set in the Pacific Islands. It chronicles the journey of Mafatu, the son of the chief of Hikueru Island, Tavana Nui. Mafatu is afraid of the sea due to witnessing his mother die while he was a young child, which makes him a shame to his father, and referred to as a coward among his tribe. So one night Mafatu takes a dugout canoe and sets sail into the ocean without knowing where he will end up. He is caught in a storm and the canoe is lost. He lands on a deserted island and learns to hunt and fish for himself, along with his companions Uri, a yellow dog, and Kivi, an albatross.

Soon Mafatu finds a sacrificial altar built by cannibals from a neighboring island. Mafatu realizes he has inhabited the island for about a week and begins designing his escape by making a canoe. He gathers things he will need to survive a trip across the ocean. He finds a spear point on the terrible altar and uses it to hunt.

After a number of encounters with natural foes, including a hammerhead shark, a wild boar, and an octopus, all of which he successfully kills, this is when he realizes he is gaining courage and learning to deal with the things that have frightened him. The cannibals return and he makes a daring escape from them, returning home at last to his village. The experience has transformed him into an imposing figure. His father does not recognize him at first, but then he proudly accepts him on his return. Mafatu's story is told throughout the ages to the future generations by his tribe's people. It is a 5 chapter book.

The book was originally published in 1940 and has had numerous printings since then, and has been translated into many languages, including:

• Afrikaans - Die seun wat bang was
• Spanish - Estos es coraje
• French - Le Garcon qui avait peur
• German - Mafatu heißt "Starkes Herz"
• Dutch - Mafatu: een jongen die moed had
• Finnish
• Swedish - Kalla det mod
• Norwegian
• Persian
• Mandarin Chinese - Dahai de haizi
• Japanese
• Samoan - Alaga ia, o le lototele!, translated by Fanaafi Ma`ia`i Larkin, 1965.
• Hindi
• Turkish
• Indonesian
• Arabic
• Hebrew
• Urdu
• Braille
• Portuguese - Mafatu o menino destemido

The Wonderful World of Disney: Call it Courage
Also known as	Disneyland: Call it Courage
Written by	Benjamin Manliness (writer) Armstrong Sperry (book)
Directed by	Roy Edward Disney
Starring	Evan Marinate
Narrated by	Don Ho
Theme music composer	Robert F. Brenner
Country of origin	United States
Original language(s)	English
Production
Editor(s)	Toby Brown
Running time	47 min.
Production company(s)	Walt Disney Pictures
Release
Original release	1 April 1973 (Season 19, Episode 20)

Call it Courage was filmed for television with a teleplay by Benjamin Masselink and a narration by Don Ho, and appeared on The Wonderful World of Disney for the first time on 1 April 1973 (Season 19, Episode 20).[1][2]

• Call It Courage on IMDb