How Is Atticus Difficult To Defend A Black Man

When living in an all white and racist society in the 20th century, it is very difficult to defend a black man, but sometimes doing the right thing, when being judged is even more difficult. In the book, To Kill A Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee, is a novel about Atticus Finch and his family who resides in Maycomb County, Alabama. In the novel, Atticus is struck with the challenging decision of whether to defend Tom Robinson (a black man) from the case of raping Mayella Ewell. Despite what other people say and think, Atticus decides to defend him with all of his experience in the bar because he always follows his morals and he always treats everyone with equality.

The first reason it makes sense for Atticus to defend Tom Robinson is that

he always follows his morals. When Tom Robinson was moved to the Maycomb jail, Atticus came and sat outside, so that he could watch out for Tom, if anything ever happened, For example, in the book it states, “The Maycomb jail was the most venerable … Atticus was sitting propped …”(201-207). This shows that Atticus tried to protect Tom Robinson by staying with him, which is what Atticus believes in, which he follows his morals. One day a group of men came to Atticus’s house to talk about moving Tom Robinson. In the book, it states “They all seemed to be talking at once … moving’ him to the county jail tomorrow …”(194). This shows that Atticus cares and tries to help Tom by protecting him, which demonstrates what he does is what he thinks is right. In conclusion, it makes sense for Atticus to defend Tom Robinson is that he always does what he thinks is right.

The second reason it makes sense for Atticus to defend Tom Robinson is that he treats everyone with equality. When Atticus and Aunt Alexandra were arguing about whether to let Calpurnia go. In the book, it states, “Calpurnia tells you … Calpurnia’s not leaving this house until she wants to … a faithful member of this family ..”(182). This quote shows that even though Calpurnia is black, he still considers her as a family member. Also, when Atticus stands up for Tom Robinson, in the book, it states, “ I have nothing but pity in my heart for the chief witness for the state … putting a man’s life at stake … get rid of her own guilt.” This quote shows that he tried his hardest to save Tom by urging the jury to do their job, which shows his trait of equality because Tom is black, thus shows that even if Tom was white, he would still try as hard to defend him. In conclusion, it makes sense for Atticus to defend Tom Robinson because he always treats everyone with equality.

Some might say that it doesn’t make sense for Atticus to defend Tom Robinson because it puts his family in danger, from the