To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee

1009 Words3 Pages

The Modern Mind of a Trailblazing Man

Courage is something that lives in all of us. However, many don’t use the virtue. Many let the aspect of fear obstruct with being brave and courageous. However throughout the novel, To Kill a Mocking Bird, Atticus Finch dares to travel ‘the road not taken,’ and has a mind of a modern man living through the Great Depression. Atticus is a treasured lawyer in the novel and is an inspirational role model for his kids and many others in Maycomb County. Atticus is seen taking the road not taken by others; when he is defending Tom Robinson, thus proving that he puts others before himself and most importantly when he uses teaching methods and values that are immensely different than other peoples.

In the novel, Atticus defends a colored individual in a racist and sexist society. He willingly accepts the responsibility of defending Tom Robinson; a man accused of raping and abusing a white woman named, Mayella Ewell. Atticus accepts the label ‘nigger lover’ and takes the case knowing he is going to lose no matter how hard he tries to succeed. His simple objective is that he could stand in front of Jem and Scout with dignity and be a good role model. Atticus says ‘I wanted you to see what real courage is...You rarely win, but sometimes you do.’ (pg. 149) By saying this he means that it’s not always about winning something, losing can also be beneficial. In this situation Atticus also shows how he takes a road many others wouldn't have taken: everyone else would want to hear that he or she has won the case instead of losing in front of the jury and all who came to see. Living in the racist and prejudice society of Maycomb, Atticus knows people will believe a white person over a black person because...

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...ing this he means that there is no point in hiding anything, from kids if they ask you a question answer it truthfully. Thus, Atticus’ teaching methods are enormously different than of other people such as the Radleys, Cunninghams etc.

In conclusion, Atticus shows praiseworthy courage and behavior, in many instances, throughout the story by taking the road not taken. Not by fighting or killing, but by standing up for what he believed in; in a civilized and determined way. His strongest motivation; however, were his kids. He is unique compared to others by taking this road as he defended a black man, putting people before himself and his teaching methods are different. Atticus has made a vast amount of changes to Jem and Scout and has been a great role model. He wants to live without regrets, and to him that's the only way you can say you really lived at all.

How Does Arthur Radley Show Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird
1324 Words | 3 Pages
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.
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To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
836 Words | 2 Pages
Scout learned a number of things in the book, but most of them all refer back to a statement that Atticus and Calpurnia said, which goes, “It’s a sin to kill a mockingbird because all they do is sing their hearts our for us.” (Lee, pg. 90). Scout learned that about people, too. She learned that some people don’t do anything to you, so it would be a sin to do something mean in return. Over the course of the story Scout becomes more mature and learns the most important facts of life. She was living through a very difficult time and most of that helped her get through.
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To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
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Atticus Finch is a man who fought for what he believed in. He stood up for what he
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To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
2185 Words | 5 Pages
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee seems like a complete replica of the lives of people living in a small Southern U.S. town. The themes expressed in this novel are as relevant today as when this novel was written, and also the most significant literary devices used by Lee. The novel brings forward many important themes, such as the importance of education, recognition of inner courage, and the misfortunes of prejudice. This novel was written in the 1930s. This was the period of the “Great Depression” when it was very common to see people without jobs, homes and food. In those days, the rivalry between the whites and the blacks deepened even more due to the competition for the few available jobs. A very famous court case at that time was the Scottsboro trials. These trials were based on the accusation against nine black men for raping two white women. These trials began on March 25, 1931. The Scottsboro trials were very similar to Tom Robinson’s trial. The similarities include the time factor and also the fact that in both cases, white women accused black men.
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Atticus Finch In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee
628 Words | 2 Pages
Atticus is a person who wants to give people a new way of seeing things in certain situations. He treats his children with the utmost respect, and has the same respectable attitude in the house as on the streets. “First of all, ‘he said,’ if
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Courage in To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
972 Words | 2 Pages
Courage exists in several forms in Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. As defined by Atticus Finch, real courage is “.when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what” (149). The novel explores the how this real courage can be shown in different ways through the lives of many characters in Maycomb, particularly, Tom Robinson, Mrs. Dubose, and Atticus. Their courage is evident through their lifestyle, actions, and beliefs. One of the characters who showed real courage is Tom Robinson.
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Respect in To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
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Atticus is a great leader of his family, teaching his children morals and life lessons. He makes them better people by showing them how to deal with the trial and people making fun of them. Atticus teaches Scout how to respect other people. First, Scout learns to respect Atticus, then to respect "Boo" Radley, and finally to respect a whole race of people, negroes. He makes it a common practice to live his life as he would like his children to live theirs, and thus displays the attributes of an honest, respectable, and kind man. Throughout the trial process, Atticus shows Jem and Scout that true courage is standing up for what you believe in and that all human beings, despite their race, deserve respect. "You never really understand a person until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." This quote shows that Atticus wants his children to get along with people, and so other people will respect them for whom they are.
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To Kill A Mockingbird Quotes To Show Courage
1174 Words | 3 Pages
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.
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Atticus As A Model Parent
482 Words | 1 Pages
When he is confronted by awkward issues Atticus never tries to hide or cover up the truth. He tells Uncle Jack at Finches landing that when a child asks you something, “answer him, for goodness sake.” After Atticus is confronted by the mob outside the county jail, he doesn’t try to pretend that they weren’t there to hurt him. He admits that Mr Cunningham might have “hurt me a little.” When Scout asks Atticus if they are poor, the usual response would be to say no, so as not to scare Scout.
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To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
563 Words | 2 Pages
“Atticus had said it was the polite thing to talk to people about what they are interested in, not about what you are interested in.
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To Kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee
1063 Words | 3 Pages
Nelle Harper Lee was born on April 28, 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama. She is the youngest of four children, which is why she says she has a knack for writing. She devoted her life to writing and even gave up other jobs that she loved like working for the airline company and going to college. Her first attempt at writing “To Kill a Mocking Bird” was declined by every publisher, because she only wrote a series of short stories. Upon revising the book, she made it into one of the best selling novels around. She was even congratulated by those publishers that said she would never be able to write books well enough. That was all the motivation that she needed.
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Atticus Finch
899 Words | 2 Pages
...hem. He is a father that wants to be involved in his children's lives and wants them to know that he will be behind them all the way in whatever they decide to do. Atticus will never turn down an opportunity to talk to his children, especially if he can make a teaching moment out it. His counsel is a welcome part of the children's lives and even through his fatherly wisdom, they still consider him a friend.
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Atticus Shows Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird
301 Words | 1 Pages
Courage is a major theme in “To Kill A Mockingbird” that has many asking the question, “What character shows the most courage?” To answer the question, Atticus shows the most courage. He shows courage by taking up a case that causes tragedies and distrust between families. As well as setting examples for his children, by doing the right thing. Despite what many people believe, Atticus shows the most courage because he is always facing challenges and setting examples to do the right thing for his children.
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To Kill A Mockingbird Atticus Parenting Style
736 Words | 2 Pages
Atticus has a very distinct parenting style. He treats his children like they are his equals, and he gives them all the respect he would if they were adults. Atticus understands how his kids think, and he makes an effort to get to know them and how their minds
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Examples Of Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird
1646 Words | 4 Pages
This whole story had tons of examples of Atticus having courage. There are some that stand out more than the others. The first one connects to what was just talked about, with Jem standing up. It takes place at Tom’s cell late at night. The text says, “‘He in they're, Mr. Finch?’ a man said. ‘He is,’ we heard Atticus answer, ‘and he’s asleep. Don’t wake him up.’...‘You know what we want,’ another man said. ‘Get aside from the door, Mr. Finch.’‘You can turn around and go home again, Walter,’ Atticus said pleasantly. ‘Heck Tate’s around somewhere.’”(202) This quote shows that late at night Atticus stayed in front of Tom’s cell to protect him so he wouldn’t be killed from the mob! They could have killed him, and I think that he was well aware of that. However, he still protected and told the men to go away. The second way that Atticus shows true courage was him defending Tom Robinson in his case. Atticus didn’t have to defend Tom in this case. He could have just let them say that Tom is guilty and they would kill him. However, Atticus saw that no matter what skin color, Tom is a person and he was blamed for something he knows he didn’t do. He decided to have true courage and defend the innocent Tom Robinson from Bob and Mayella Ewell. He tried his best and worked hard to prove that Tom did not rape Mayella, that Mayella lied and that she even broke a social code in Maycomb (kissing/liking a black man when she is a white women). What motivates Atticus is because he just knows what right and wrong. Being racist is wrong, blaming someone for something they didn’t do is wrong, and watching it happen in front of your eyes and not doing anything, is wrong as well. That’s why Atticus is helping Tom because he knows that he did nothing wrong, and that the Ewells are just using him because he is black and the Ewells and white so they think they can get anyway with whatever with
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