Dictionary- reference defines courage as “the quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty, danger, pain, etc., without fear; bravery” In the book, To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee expresses courage in many ways through the novel. In the novel, nearly every character display courage in their life. Courage is the inner desire to succeed and to do what is right, no matter what consequences of your decision. Throughout the novel, Atticus define courage as "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 you see it through no matter what.” One of the central topics of the novel is that a man of courage is a man who doesn’t run away but fight against his enemy even though they know they going to lose. Atticus Finch is probably one of the bravest people in the novel. Throughout the book, despite being called "nigger-lover" by many people in Maycomb, he had lots of courage in him to take the case and defend Tom Robinson even with all threats of violence. He also is brave in the face of danger, when facing the mob of men outside the jail-house even though he know he could get hurt or kill. “In the obedience to my father, there followed what I later realized was a sickeningly comic aspect of an unfunny situation: the men talked in near-whispers.“ You know what we want,” another man said. “Get aside from the door, Mr.Finch” ”.(pg.202) HE use himself as a human shield to protect Tom Robinson from the Cunningham. He knows that nobody in Maycoms is going to trust a Black ‘s man word against a White ‘man word and that he is probably going to lose the trial but he try his best to... ... middle of paper ... ...death, but to leave this world free of addiction. Atticus uses Mrs. Dubose as an example of true courage to show Jem that courage isn't a man with a gun, but someone who fights for what's right whether he or she wins or not. In conclusion, courage isn’t fighting or killing or doing something that is scary or dangerous. It is a person who stand to fight even though she/he will know that they will lose. All these characters display different forms of courage in the novel. Atticus risks his every day in his life of a Black man and he knows that he is going to lose. Jem and Scout try to protect his father from the mob outside the Jailhouse and they refuse to leave their father alone.Mrs. Dubose tries to die free from her morphine addiction even though she knows that she will die in the process. They all stood what they believe and they refuse to give up or surrender.
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.
“To Kill a Mockingbird” is a novel by Harper Lee, that teaches many themes, one of which being very important is courage. Many people think that courage is a man with a gun in his hand, but Lee’s definition is much different. She thinks that courage is when you know that you’re beaten before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what. The first quote I have to further explain this is early in the story when Atticus tells Jem and Scout about the court case he is handling. “Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win” (Lee 101). Atticus knows he won’t win the court case, but he still tries his best and doesn’t falter whatsoever. Many people scrutinize him for defending a negro, but he ignores them like he should, and shows maturity and courage.
In conclusion, true courage is the ability to confront something even if one is “licked from the start. Tom Robinson, Mrs. Dubose, and Atticus Finch all display real courage throughout Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Tom Robinson, being an African-American, living in a prejudiced town and having a crippled arm, still helped Mayella, gave a truthful testimony and tried to escape prison. Mrs. Dubose courageously overcame her morphine addiction despite her age and pains. Atticus’s real courage drove him to put aside the criticism and risk, and take up and fight the Tom Robinson’s controversial case. It is evident that these three characters in To Kill a Mockingbird display acts of real courage even when they know they are fighting a losing battle.
Courage is when you know you’re beaten. The character Atticus, for instance, who was a seasoned lawyer acted courageous defending Tom Robinson. Tom Robinson was a black man who was accused of raping a white girl. Atticus was appointed to defend him. Jem was happy because he thought his father had won the case but Reverend Sykes loathed telling Jem “Now don’t you be so confident, Mr. Jem, I ain’t ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man…”(Lee 208). Atticus was sure he wasn’t going to win the case, nevertheless he gave it a try. That didn’t stop Atticus from trying to defend his client Tom Robinson. Another part in the novel when Atticus was courageous was when he shot at the man street dog. Heck Tate the Maycomb Sheriff was not as courageous as Atticus so he handed Atticus the air rifles and with one shot Atticus took down the street dog. Miss Maudie says “I saw that, One Shot Finch” (Lee 97). Atticus was referred to as one-shot finch because of his shooting skills. The other incidence in the novel when Atticus portrays courage was when he was not scared when Bob Ewell threatened him. Bob Ewell was the man who accused Atticus’ defendant Tom Robinson of raping his daughter Mayella. Atticus thought Bob Ewell threatened him as some sort of revenge, but unfortunately Atticus was wrong because when Bob Ewell said ...
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.
Furthermore, Atticus showed true bravery when he went against Maycomb, a generally prejudice town, in order to defend Tom. He understood that taking the case would make him an object of scorn and ridicule. That no one would forgive him for believing in a black man's word rather than a white man's. Even his own sister expresses disapproval of his decision, practically telling him he was bringing disgrace on the family. But, no matter how much his reputation suffered, he did not change his mind. Standing up for his convictions was more important then what people thought about him..
Courage is the thing which can be found in a child to an old man. It needs a lot of courage to take out courage from the heart. It is like a brain. It depends on the person, how and when he uses it. This tiny word has the power to convey the whole gesture of a person. According to Harper Lee?s genius ?To Kill a Mockingbird?, Courage is when you know you are licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through it through no matter what.
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.
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.
Courage means overcoming obstacles to do what is right. In To Kill a Mockingbird, the idea of true courage plays an important role in the trial of Tom Robinson. Even though Atticus and his family receive ridicule and discredit from their peers and own family members, Atticus stills defends Tom. He explains his reasoning when Scout questions him. “I’m simply defending a Negro… For a number of reasons… The main one is, if I didn’t I couldn’t hold up my head in town…” (Lee 75). Atticus conveys that even though he would not be ridiculed for not de...
In the novel To Kill a Mocking Bird, courage can be seen in everyday life. Courage means strength in the face of pain or grief, as well as the ability to do something that frightens one. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, the characters of Boo, Atticus, and Scout display courage throughout the novel.
In conclusion, the book To Kill a Mockingbird has a lot of examples of courage. For example, Atticus shows it by defending Tom Robinson. Also Jem shows courage by not leaving his dad so he wouldn’t get hurt. Lastly, Boo helped Jem when he got attacked but Bob
Harper Lee’s definition of “courage” is still fighting for something when you know that you will most likely fail. As Harper Lee wrote in To Kill a Mockingbird “It’s when you know you’re likcked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what” (Lee 149). There are a few characters that stand out show courage in To Kill a Mockingbird and those characters are Scout, Atticus, and Mrs. Dubose. My first example of a character supporting Harper Lee’s definition of courage is, “‘Simply because we were licked a hundred years before is no reason for us not to try to win,’ Atticus said” (Lee 101). Cecil Jacobs said that Atticus defended niggers at school. Scout said that he wasn’t but asked Atticus about it when she went
What do you think of when you hear the words true courage? Maybe you think of standing up for someone being bullied, helping others in need, like being brave. With true courage, it’s a little more than those concepts. It’s when you do(or at least really try) the right thing, even if the task will be very difficult and perhaps impossible. In To Kill a Mockingbird, there are many brave people in Maycomb, that do very courageous things. There are three characters that really stand out, because of how they demonstrate true courage. The characters Atticus, Boo Radley, and Jem demonstrate having courage by doing the right thing by helping their family, friends, and other people in Maycomb.
“You will never be anything without courage” - Aristotle. Atticus Finch might have agreed with this definition, but his definition is slightly different: “It's when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.” (Lee 149) In the novel To Kill a Mocking Bird the author Harper Lee uses many characters to represent Atticus’ definition of courage. The town of Maycomb is said to be diseased with prejudice which makes their acts even more courageous. Atticus, Mrs. Dubose, and Boo Radley are all characters that show great courage in the novel.