Atticus Finch: Complexities of Morality

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Rights and Responsibilities

Potter Stewart, a notable associate justice in the Supreme Court once said, “Ethics is knowing the difference between what you have the right to do and what is right to do.” By this, he means that being moral and ethical isn’t always dependent of the limitations of law, but what is truly the moral thing to do. Atticus Finch, the main protagonist in To Kill a Mockingbird , is the father of Scout and Jem Finch. He is morally upright, believing in perspective and equality, no matter race or background. In Harper Lee’s classic novel, Atticus Finch undergoes multiple changes in his morals as he learns that morality is more complex than he thought it was.

In To Kill a Mockingbird, Mrs. Dubose, the neighbor of the Finch family, demonstrates extraordinary courage, which in turn, teaches Atticus what courage, an aspect of morality, is, and how being moral is not about the end result. In the beginning of To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus shoots and kills a rabid dog, inadvertently instilling in his kids the idea that courage is a man with a gun. Atticus knows this is not the case. After attacking Mrs. Dubose’s plants, Jem has to read to her. Unbeknownst to him, Mrs. Dubose was dying and she was addicted to painkillers. Yet as a final act, she breaks this addiction. Atticus remarks, “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his …show more content…

In To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch, the father of Jem and Scout and defender of Tom Robinson, is a moral goal post. Yet he too learns about morality, that it is complex and non clear cut. Morality isn’t black or white, not dependent on the outcome or laws, but what is truly the right and courageous thing to do. Through Mrs. Dubose, Tom Robinson’s conviction, and the murder of Bob Ewell, Atticus Finch learns just how complex morality

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