With great effort, he confronted

[keannu]

I can understand "confronted" means "to face in hostility or difiance as his brother didn't show any sympathy,
but does "with great effort" mean "he didn't have such courage, so he worked up courage to confront his brother"? Is it because his brother is an older one hard to deal with? There can be numerous reasons probably.

ex)When his son, Justin, told him he was dropping out of college, Seth did his best to hid his disappoinment. Still, he was upset and needed someone to talk to. Hoping that his brother would understand, Seth gave him a call. It wasn't easy for Seth to talk about his feelings, so he started out making small talk. After a few minutes he told his brother that Justin was dropping out of college and that he was very discouraged about it. There was a pause, and then his brother went on to talk about something else. Seth was shocked. How could his brother be so unsympathetic? With great effort, he confronted his brother, saying, "Didn't you hear what I said?" His brother replied that he had never thought of Seth as someone who needed emotional support.

st86

 

[5jj]

The answer is in the text.

ex)When his son, Justin, told him he was dropping out of college, Seth did his best to hid his disappoinment. Still, he was upset and needed someone to talk to. Hoping that his brother would understand, Seth gave him a call. It wasn't easy for Seth to talk about his feelings, so he started out making small talk. After a few minutes he told his brother that Justin was dropping out of college and that he was very discouraged about it. There was a pause, and then his brother went on to talk about something else. Seth was shocked. How could his brother be so unsympathetic? With great effort, he confronted his brother, saying, "Didn't you hear what I said?" His brother replied that he had never thought of Seth as someone who needed emotional support.