How Does Atticus Show Courage

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Courage is the quality of mind that enables one to face hardships with confidence, resolution, and gain a firm control of oneself. Many of the characters in To Kill a Mockingbird showed courage in their own way. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee’s characters, Atticus, Ms. Dubose, and Boo Radley, reveal the true meaning of moral courage, doing what is right even when facing oppositions.
Atticus shows his moral courage by taking on Tom Robinson’s case. When Atticus took on Tom Robinson’s case as his lawyer, he knew that he wasn’t going to win, but he knows it’s better to try than to give up. Atticus tells Jem and Scout that he is doing it, “simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason not to try.” Atticus also …show more content…

Atticus's moral and physical courage is evident when he makes the decision to stand guard over Tom Robinson alone at the jail. He risks his own personal safety when he faces the lynch mob though he claims that they only " 'might have hurt me a little.' " Another example comes when he picks up his rifle again after 30 years to kill the mad dog that threatens his neighborhood. Atticus had laid down his gun because, according to Miss Maudie, "... God had given him an unfair advantage over most living things. I guess he decided he wouldn't have to shoot till he had to, and he had to today." Also Atticus stood up to his sister Alexandra's bullying tactics when she tried to force him to fire Calpurnia, telling her that their black housekeeper was a "... faithful member of this family and you'll simply have to accept things the way they are." Atticus shows moral courage just by accepting to defend a black man accused of raping a white woman since, "... I'd hoped to get through life without a case of this kind..." (Chapter 9) Inside the courtroom, Atticus is forced to "rain questions" upon Mayella, bringing her to tears before she refuses to answer any more of his questions. It is a moral dilemma for the gentlemanly Atticus, who treats women with respect and does not look forward to browbeating a teenage girl. When Atticus turned away from

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