How Does Atticus Change In To Kill A Mockingbird

In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper, society’s darker aspects are drawn out on the form of racism and violence forced on two small children in Maycomb, Alabama during the 1930s who are going through great change in their lives and their country. As the story develops, Scout, the main character, has perceptions that change as time passes. Calpurnia, the family’s black maid, seen as mean and unfair in the beginning, and is seen in the end as someone with considerable skill and intellect. Atticus, her father is introduced as someone who seems old and simple and is later seen as very skillful and wise.

In the beginning of the novel, Scout believes that Calpurnia is very mean because she does not let Scout get away with anything, and at

the end Scout recognizes Calpurnia’s skill and knowledge. In the early chapters Scout only looks at Calpurnia as someone who likes to discipline her frequently and painfully. The full extent becomes evident when they have Walter Cunningham over for dinner and Calpurnia says “if you can’t act fit to eat at the table you can just sit here and eat in the kitchen” and Scout narrates “ Calpurnia sent me through the swinging doors with a stinging smack” (Lee 33). Scout does not appreciate Calpurnia in her entirety because she is focusing on Calpurnia hitting her and not on her mistake of being rude to Walter. As the story progresses Scout does start to take notice of Calpurnia’s life and her skills. This is shown when she asks Calpurnia “why do you talk nigger talk to the- to your folks when you know it’s not right?” (Lee 167) Scout is starting to see Calpurnia as a whole with her community at the church, her above-average intelligence, and the skills she can teach such as how she taught Zeebo to read. Near the end of the story Scout builds a strong bond with Calpurnia and starts wanting to learn from her. This is shown at Aunt Alexandra’s gathering when Scout narrates “I tried pressing my behind against the door as Calpurnia had done, but the door didn’t budge. Grinning she held it open for me” (Lee 307). Scout starts to look up to Calpurnia as a role model when she tries to mimic Calpurnia’s method for opening doors. It also shows the bond on both sides because Calpurnia grins and helps Scout and Scout takes notice of her affection. Ultimately, it is clear that Scout sees Calpurnia in different ways as the story develops as she sees Calpurnia as mean and old in the beginning and caring and skillful in the end.

Early in the story of To Kill A Mockingbird Scout believes that Atticus is an old simple man, but her feelings of shame go away as the story develops and she realizes that he is a hard-working and wise man.

When Scout is younger, in the early chapters of the novel, she thinks that Atticus cannot do anything impressive. When in conversation with Miss Maudie, Scout hears “Did you know he [Atticus] can play a Jew’s Harp?” and the novel then reads “This modest accomplishment served to make me even more ashamed of him”(Lee 120). Scout doesn’t understand the significance of her father’s skills because she is focusing on the skills that would be more pertinent to herself. When she is younger, she does not have the maturity to understand the real skills Atticus has. Going forward from this point, Scout begins to see that Atticus does have skills that impress her. After Atticus skillfully shoots Tim Johnson, Miss Maudie asks Scout “Still think your father can’t do anything? Still ashamed of him?” which is followed by “ ‘Nome’ I said meekly”(Lee 129). There are many things Scout still does not know about her father that can impress her because she is truly amazed by this feat, which is shown in the meekness of her reply. Scout also still lacks the understanding of her father’s more important skills because she is only impressed by his skill with a gun. As Scout begins to really mature near the end of the story, she begins to feel Atticus’ influence and how his true skills impact herself and her surroundings. After making a mistake at the country pageant, Scout is comforted by her brother, Jem, and she thinks “Jem was becoming almost as good at Atticus at making you feel right when things went wrong”(Lee 347). Scout is taking notice of her father’s skills and their effects because she remarks on how Atticus, and now Jem, make her feel good which would have been passed over in the earlier chapters. She is also noticing his skills in her surroundings because it is not Atticus

who is comforting her here, but Jem. In the end, it is clear that Scout’s opinions on Atticus do change going from seeing him as a simple old man to a skillful influence on herself and her environment.

In many parts of the story, Scout’s views change and develop, such as how she sees Calpurnia as mean and old in the beginning and sees her as intelligent and skillful in the end, and sees her father, Atticus, as tired and boring in the beginning and sees him as a wise influence in the end. These ideas are relevant because the changes in life are still very present in modern day society. The changes Scout experiences are changes that everyone goes through and it is important that the changes happen in a safe and open environment.