“I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.” This goes very well with my essay and also this story overall. The author sticks with the theme of courage throughout the entire book, and shows a little bit of it in almost every person in the book. In the story To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee defines courage within Atticus, Jem, and Scout, and believes that courage is more than just being a good person to your peers.
The first person I am going to talk about is Atticus Finch, and how he showed courage throughout the story. The first example is when Atticus fights for Tom Robinson at the court trial. When Scout asks him, “Atticus, are we going to win it?” and Atticus answers, “No, honey” (76), he is showing courage because as much as he knows he is going to lose the trial, Atticus still fights for Tom because he is a good friend of his, and he also wanted to fight for someone that Atticus knew was innocent. He shows courage because he knows that other people of Maycomb may not agree or like him as much for fighting for a black man, but he does it anyways. My second example is when Atticus tells the kids that “Mrs. Dubose was a great lady” (112), even when Mrs. Dubose really wasn’t very respectful to Atticus at all. Atticus says “she had her own views about things, a lot different from mine.” It shows that he understands that people can be different, and he has the courage to be himself and have his own opinions and share them with other people. My third example is when Atticus says, “If you just learn a single trick, Scout, you'll get along a lot better wi...
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... go along with that, Jem also read to Mrs. Dubose like she asked him to. When Jem says to Atticus, “I cleaned it up for her and said I was sorry, but I ain’t, and that I’d work on ‘em ever Saturday and try to make ‘em grow back out” (105), it shows that Jem doesn’t like the job he has to do, but he does it anyways just to make his father happy. Jem is courageous in this chapter because he tries his hardest to make Atticus happy, even if he disagrees with him.
In this story, Harper Lee describes courage throughout this story by showing it through each one of the characters, who all have different ways of showing bravery and courage to their peers. Between Atticus, Jem, and Scout, they all show plenty of examples throughout the book. Courage is a good thing to have in life, and it will help you get through some hard times, like it helped these characters in the book.
Courage is a deed that can be portrayed in many ways. In the Historical Fiction novel To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee, there are many acts of racism and problematic cases where acts of courage are demonstrated in different and unique ways that can only be deciphered if one reads in between the lines of the words. There are three characters in particular who show courage in diverse ways. First, there is Arthur Radley who anonymously shows courage by performing tasks that cause him to face the outside world where he’s been isolated from for so long. Secondly, there is Scout Finch who demonstrates courage through her adolescent age. Lastly, there is Atticus Finch who displays courage through his selfless and kind actions. Therefore, in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses diverse characters to represent different acts of courage.
Courage in To Kill a Mockingbird In To Kill a Mockingbird, by author Harper Lee, several of the characters in the book share a similar character trait. Atticus Finch, Mrs. Dubose and Boo Radley all show courage throughout the book in their own individual ways. In different events, all three characters were faced with a challenge that they could either turn away from and accept or try to defeat. In Lee’s novel, a few of the main events that occur in the book include Atticus Finch defending a black man, Mrs. Dubose is challenged with overcoming an addiction, and Boo Radley must brave the outdoors to save the Radley children. Throughout the book, the characters change and one begins to understand what life in the small town of Maycomb is like, as the Finch family and friends grow and mature throughout the events happening while encountering social prejudice, courage, and the mockingbirds of life.
Jem and Scout encounter courage many times on their journey to adulthood. Courage is often defined as a quality that people have that allows them to face danger with bravery. Jem understands courage a little earlier than Scout. In chapter 11, Mrs. Dubose says some hateful words about Atticus, which leads Jem to smashing her flowers. As a punishment Jem had to read to her every day after school for two hours. A conversation between Atticus and Jem shows how he felt about...
Without courageous people, human society would not progress. This is evident in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, whereby a few heroic individuals inspire transformations in a racist community. One of the characters who shows bravery is Tom Robinson. Even though he knows he will most likely lose, he goes on trial and fights for justice and truth. Another person who displays inner strength is Boo Radley. He is able to break out of his comfort zone and stand up for what is right, despite his fear. The most daring character in the novel is Atticus Finch. Although most of the town is against him, he continues onward and faces hatred with dignity and respect. Each of these extraordinary individuals represent Harper Lee’s belief that real courage is doing the right thing, even if it requires standing up against the majority.
"Courage isn't an absence of fear. It's doing what you are afraid to do. It's having the power to let go of the familiar and forge ahead into new territory." ~John Maxwell. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout (Jean Louise Finch), Jem (Jeremy Atticus Finch), and Atticus Finch display acts of valor that contribute, and in some cases encourage their rectitude. Harper Lee demonstrates that acting courageously can lead to an improved, sustained, or newly developed personal integrity.
Courage exists in several forms in Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. As defined by Atticus Finch, real courage is “.when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what” (149). The novel explores the how this real courage can be shown in different ways through the lives of many characters in Maycomb, particularly, Tom Robinson, Mrs. Dubose, and Atticus. Their courage is evident through their lifestyle, actions, and beliefs. One of the characters who showed real courage is Tom Robinson.
Courage is the ladder on which other themes in to kill a mockingbird mount on. With courage people tend to take risks, have strength to be compassionate, and the wisdom to be humble. How many times have you considered yourself as courageous? At the end of the novel, you see reasons why being courageous could help you as a reader live a better and braver life. In Conclusion, courage is the foundation of integrity.
Courage is not something that we are born with, it is a skill that takes time to learn and only a few are lucky enough to have it. To Kill a Mockingbird is not only about life in a world full of hate, it is about standing up for anyone’s beliefs being brave enough to do it. In this story, Harper Lee says “Courage is not a man with a gun in his hand. It's knowing you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do” (Lee 112). In To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee illustrates courage through Atticus Finch, Mrs. Dubose, and Arthur Radley.
To be courageous you cannot be deterred by possible outcomes that may involve danger or pain. To be courageous you have to be more than brave you have to be undaunted and have a heart of a lion. Through Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird courage and determination are embedded through the character’s actions. Atticus Finch, a lawyer in Maycomb County, explains to his son Jem, “I wanted him to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and see if through no matter what.(Lee 149)” Through this quote Harper Lee is trying to convey that, real courage is more than appearance it is a significant action
"Courage is when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what" According to Atticus Finch, an honest lawyer in Harper Lee's novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" courage is not a man with a gun in his hand. "Real courage" is when you fight for what is right regardless of whether you win or lose. Atticus fits into this definition of what "real courage" is and demonstrates it several times throughout the novel.
Firstly, Atticus demonstrated mental courage when he undertook the task of defending Tom Robinson, a black man who was wrongly accused of rape, in court. He had to persevere through many hardships in order to make a statement in the community. Atticus knew he would not win the case against the all white jury and like Mrs. Dubose in her struggle against morphine, Atticus lost before he even began. Nevertheless, Atticus knew that Tom was innocent and was willing to stand up for him because nobody else would. Since Atticus stayed true to himself and did only what is morally correct, he fought this case with great determination. He wanted the people of Maycomb to know the truth about what happened to Mayella Ewell, but even the truth would not free Tom Robinson. "That boy might go to the chair, but he's not going till the truth's told." (Lee, 146) Atticus showed true courage in going against Maycomb, a mostly prejudice town. He was given names like “nigger lover” and was looked down upon heavily but that did not stop him. On the other hand, Mayella Ewell decided to lie about the case because othe...
To many people, courage means bravery and admiration. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, it teaches us there is a different type of courage – moral courage. Moral courage means doing the right thing even if it risks disoblige, reputation, punishment, or being laughed at. The theme of moral courage seems underlying at first in the book, but through the actions of some characters it becomes apparent. Atticus Finch a lawyer, widower, and father shows this theme by defending and guarding a black man. Another character that shows the theme of moral courage is Ms. Dubose, a frail old lady, who was a drug addict fighting a battle with morphine. Through the interactions with these characters, Scout and Jem learn that courage is different than they expect it to.
Jem is confronted with a situation just like this. When Jem, Dill, and Scout try sending a note to Boo Radley, Arthur Radley sees them and mistakes them for an African American and tries to shoot them. In the process of Jem, Dill, and Scout running away, Jem loses his pants when they get caught on the fence in the Radley’s yard. When Atticus asks Jem where his pants are, Dill covers him by lying to Atticus, saying that he won the pants from Jem playing strip poker with matches. While Jem is in bed he decides that he is going to take a perilous journey and try to retrieve his pants. He tells Scout why when she asks and he tells her, “I--It’s like this, Scout” he muttered. “Atticus ain’t ever whipped me since I can remember. I wanta keep it that way,” (75). In other words, he hasn’t been severely punished by Atticus for a very long time and he doesn’t want to be punished now. Jem’s apparent courage is actually just cowardly self-protection. Jem thinks that courage is the image that people have of you. He thinks that your reputation is really what you need to work on to steer clear of any bad marks. But it is actually the ability to own up to your mistakes and take ownership for the wrong that you have done. Atticus would like for Jem to see that courage is not about making no mistakes. It is not about preserving a perfect image of yourself. Courage is the
Scout believes at the beginning of the book that courage is all to do with physical feats like fist fighting. Scout and Jem though Atticus was courageous when he shot the mad dog, but Atticus just shrugged it off telling his children that that is not ? real courage?. The children soon see that moral courage is more valuable after Miss Dubose said "Your father's no better than the niggers and trash he works for!" Chapter 11, Page 113 after they walked past her house.
Harper Lee achieved the most important dream of a writer; her book is timeless. The theme of To Kill a Mockingbird, courage, is one that no one can deny is a central idea not only in the novel but also in life. People believe that courage is something that everyone is born with, but I disagree. Atticus once told Scout, “"They're certainly entitled to think that, and they're entitled to full respect for their opinions," said Atticus, "but before I can live with other folks I've got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience.” Only courageous people can teach others to stand up for what they truly believe in.