To Comment on the Character of Silvio in Alexander Pushkin's "The Shot", I would say that Silvio is nither a hero nor a coward, he is instead, simply, a very honorable character. Silvio has enough honor to not kill a man who he considers to not take his life serously enough for a duel to be worthwhile, for if a man does not concider death to be punishment than the point of the duel is moot. Silvio also has enough honor to not kill a defenceless man and to instead give him as much of a chance at life as Silvio himself. He also has enough decency to allow his enemy to live and to not kill or discrace the man infront of his wife, and instead to forget his need for revenge and to leave the house without killing the man. Silvio is not a hero because of his flaw of a petty need for revenge, but at the same time is not a coward as he is willing to risk his live for the sake of a fair fight.