Harper Lee’s definition of “courage” is shown when in the book it says “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” (Lee 149). Lee wants to show that courage is when you know you shouldn’t do something but you do it anyways. Scout, Atticus, and Mrs. Dubose all share that trait of courage when Scout is told not to fight but still does anyway, when Atticus takes on a case he’s not even sure he would win and when Mrs. Dubose has to fight about her morphine addiction. To start off, in this quote Scout is asking Atticus about the Tom Robinson case; “‘Atticus, are we …show more content…
Dubose won, all ninety-eight pounds of her. According to her views, she died beholden to nothing and nobody. She was the bravest person I ever knew” (Lee 149). I think that it shows the courage that even though morphine is extremely addictive Mrs. Dubose tried her hardest to be free of it even when she knew it would be hard. She seems like a strong woman and that she was grown up on the principle to always try your hardest and never give up. She knew she couldn’t do it right away so she was clever enough to do it slowly. Finally, in this quote Scout is fighting with Francis even though she was not supposed to; “This time, I split my knuckle to the bone on his front teeth. My left impaired, I sailed in with my right, but not for long. Uncle Jack pinned my arms to my sides and said ‘Stand still!’” (Lee 112) This shows courage because even though she was told not to fight even if it is to protect someone. I think this shows that she will not tolerate people talking bad about the people she cares about and that she is extremely loyal. Based on my findings I can see that Harper Lee uses Scout, Atticus, and Mrs. Dubose in these ways to show courage by showing that they will fight for what is right no matter if they get in trouble or will have problems along the
To Begin, Lee exhibits that courage is people who keep trying even though success is not possible every time. While explaining Mrs. Dubose’s death to Jem, Atticus states, “I wanted you to see what real courage is instead of getting the idea courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you began anyway and see it through no matter what” (Lee 199). Lee juxtaposes “man with a gun” with “getting licked before you began” to show what real courage is and what courage is not. Lee further takes “getting licked before you began”, when Atticus is explaining the case to Scout. Atticus says, “Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win” (Lee 101) L...
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.
Then Scout encounters the seeming vindictiveness of Mrs. Dubose. After this she dies, Atticus explains to them how courageous the lady was because she knew she was dying but was determined to die free of morphine which had preciously controlled her. She fought against great odds, even though she knew that she would lose. The above lesser experiences prepare Scout for the greater test of Courage: the is Atticus’ fight for Tom’s life even though he knows that he will lose the case and even though he knows that he is fighting against tremendous odds. This realization forces Scout to quit fighting with her fists and try to combat others opinions with her head rather than her physical violence.
Dubose passes away. “It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what” (Lee 149). Atticus explains to Jem and Scout what true courage is, because Jem and Scout saw Atticus shoot the mad dog, they thought that was courage. Atticus contrarily tells them that courage isn’t always a man with a gun in his hand, but it’s a person who’s brave, and does the right thing no matter what people think of them. This subsequently leads to my final quote, which is Atticus further explaining why Mrs. Dubose was the most courageous women he had ever met. “You rarely win, but sometimes you do. Mrs. Dubose won, all ninety-eight pounds of her. According to her views, she died beholden to nothing and nobody. She was the bravest person I ever knew” (Lee
By fighting with her head, it can save Scout from a lot of trouble. One of the most valuable life lessons in To Kill a Mockingbird is about courage. Courage is not always physical, it can be mental too. After Mrs. Dubose passes away, Atticus tells Jem she was the bravest person he knew. Atticus says," According to Mrs. Dubose views, she died beholden to nothing and nobody” (page 149).
Atticus Finch demonstrates both moral and physical courage through his decisions of taking on and fighting Tom Robinson’s case, despite all the critics and setbacks, by putting his own life at risk to protect his client and doing all in his power to bring justice. 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 pain.
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.
"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.
To begin with, Jem and Scout determine that courage means doing what is right, even if it involves life threatening risks. In chapter eleven, Jem Finch, has ruined the patches of Mrs. Dubose’s lovely camellias. As soon as Atticus has heard of Jem’s little act of rebellion, he gives Mrs. Dubose the opportunity of deciding Jem’s punishment. Specifically, she establishes that Jem shall read to her every day after school. After Jem has finished his retribution, Atticus informs him of Mrs. Dubose’s death. As a result, Atticus speaks of Mrs. Dubose’s bravery. Jem starts to ask his father why he thinks this of Mrs. Dubose. Atticus replies, “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. You rarely win, but sometimes you do” (Lee 112). Accordingly, Atticus is trying to show that heroism comes from the people who do what their gut says is right, because that is courage. Mrs. Dubose wanted to die a pure woman instead of someone who had an addiction, which she successfully succeeded in. Another example of courage comes from when Atticus ta...
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. On the way back Atticus just walked by and told Mrs. Dubose, ?you look as pretty as a picture? Mrs. Dubose was so stunned that she could not say a word back to him. Later Jem and scout leaned how courageous Mrs. Dubose really was after Jem cut up her camellia bushes, the kids found out that she was a morphine attic brave enough to get off the drug that killed her.
Courage is one of the traits that are in “To Kill a Mockingbird” Multiple characters show courage in the story like Scout, Jem, Atticus, and Tom Robinson. In the story “To Kill a Mockingbird” courage is something hard to come by in the story because of all the racist and rude comments that get
Some people think that courage is facing your fears, facing difficult times, or even having a kind heart. But that's not what courage is all about. Harper Lee says that true courage is standing up for what you believe even when you might have something at risk. In the book “To Kill A Mockingbird” there are many examples of Atticus showing courage.
"…[Mrs. Dubose] had her own views about things, a lot different from mine… I wanted you to see something about her -- 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…" (112). This is said by Atticus after Jem asks why Atticus makes him read to her. Atticus explains to Jem that Mrs. Dubose is a very courageous person and has the heart of a champion. And in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Mrs. Dubose symbolizes a strong mind, the will and determination to never give up, and audacity.
Atticus defines courage to Jem. "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" (112). A man with a gun, in his eyes, is not a man, but a coward. It takes little character to point a gun and pull a trigger, but it takes mountains of courage to accept a challenge in which you are already defeated. Nothing to do but reverse fate, overturn the thoughts and predictions which stands looking down with a grin upon its face. This feat maybe impossible, but not totally forsaken, for courage prevails over cowardice.