Preview

The Role Of Atticus In To Kill A Mockingbird, By Harper Lee

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
408 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
The Role Of Atticus In To Kill A Mockingbird, By Harper Lee
Scout, let us start by saying, has an amazing father, he respects her choices, he lets her be herself, and most importantly he makes her feel needed. Atticus has been described as one of the most moral people in all of literature, I liken him to Scout's jiminy cricket. He tries to Scout a code of living, not all that different than what would be socially acceptable today. "You never really understand a person until you things from his point of view", this, spoken so truthfully by Atticus, is what the reader, the townsfolk, the judge, the jury, Jem, Atticus and especially Scout have to keep in mind throughout this entire book. The whole major plot point in this book, the trial, is all about people misjudging Tom, and if they had just actually

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    In “To Kill A Mockingbird,” by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch is a moral man because he sets good examples for his children because he portrays a leading figure by using his words, not fists, not judging a person until you get to understand who they are, and being able to get along with just about anyone. Atticus believed in fighting with words, not fists. “Hold your head high and keep those fists down”(Lee 76), as the story develops, Atticus reveals that he is a moral man by believing in the power of words, and that fists are not necessary in settling a feud/argument, I also envision that this applies especially to him because he is lawyer and uses words in his…

    • 304 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Courage is characterized as mental or moral strength to surpass notions of fear. As demonstrated by Atticus Finch and Mrs Dubose in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, the development of courage gives the character’s strength and courage to hold their heads high, while fearing none. Harper Lee depicts the theme of courage incalculable amount of times, detailing courage as “ when you know you’re licked before you being, but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what.” (Chapter 11, Page 124) All of the characters have an alternate kind of perspective of what courage is exactly, which will be examined in depth.…

    • 126 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, Atticus is the father of two children, Jem, and Scout. In the novel Atticus is a lawyer who is representing a colored man. The idea of a white man representing a colored man causes a lot of controversy between him and his children throughout the town. Through all the rumors, and arguments Atticus continues to keep a good mindset and continues to be a good example to Jem and Scout. Atticus appears to try to be a role model to his children.…

    • 428 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Atticus Finch is a smart man worthy of being lawyer. In the fictional novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee that tells the story of a young girl Scout Finch, who is coming of age. Scout in the beginning of the novel did not have much tolerance and soon as the novel progressed she came to decide that not everyone will agree with her. Scout who is always around Atticus makes up a part of that impact in her life. The advice given for Scout help to build her to be good well being. To being told that everyone is equal. Atticus is a brave, intelligent, and responsible man.…

    • 688 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    During the Tom Robinson trial, Atticus could not have portrayed his evidence in a more professional and convincing manner. Unfortunately, Tom Robinson was found guilty by the jury and was sentenced to death. Atticus’s son, Jem, expresses his rejection to the unfair treatment of blacks by stating, “‘How could they do it, how could they?’” Atticus responds, “‘I don’t know, but they did it. They’ve done it before and they did it tonight and they’ll do it again and when they do it—it seems that only children weep.’” Both Jem’s development of maturity and disapproval of the verdict of the Tom Robinson case play an important role in the point that Lee is trying to prove through this story. Scout is far too young for her opinion to be considered valid. However, Jem, no longer a little boy at this stage of the story, can be listened to if he states an opinion for the simple fact that he is not a “little kid”. He also preserves his innocence due to his small age. Therefore, when he states that the verdict of the case was not only wrong, but irrelevant and unfair, it makes you inquire whether the case was a fair one or…

    • 713 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Scout is five at the beginning of the book and does not really understand the world as it is at her age. In the end, Scout has truly learned what she needs to know at her age and more. Atticus has clearly noticed, for he says in the novel: "'This is their home, sister,' said Atticus"(Lee 131). In this quote Atticus is talking to his sister, Alexandra, about the trial and why he let the kids stay. When the trial is taking place, this is truly the first time Scout is really exposed to the real world. Atticus felt like this is the world Jem and Scout are growing up in and he felt the need to show them now before it is too late.…

    • 698 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jem and scout are young and have not experienced the world very much but they are not too young to be exposed to evil. Atticus, Jem and Scout’s dad, Tries his hardest to make sure Jem and Scout don’t have to ever experience evil but he knows that there is no way to not too. At the time, Atticus is defending a black man, Tom Robbinson, and a lot of the town disagrees with it. Since Atticus is defending Tom, A lot of the kids give Jem and Scout a hard time because of what their parents tell them. In the book, Atticus says, “What bothers me is that Scout and Jem will have to asorb some pretty ugly things soon.…

    • 575 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    He intentionally makes time to spend quality time with Scout and Jem, and he has a deep passion for the equality of the blacks. Being a lawyer, he was assigned a case to defend Tom Robinson, a gentle and kind slave, from an accusation of rape on a poor teenage girl. Atticus truly believed in Tom’s innocence, and diligently made his case for Tom’s freedom. When the jury determined Tom guilty, seemingly on a prejudice basis, and sent him to prison, Atticus still did not give up hope, “Not time to worry yet, Scout. We’ve got a good chance.” (293) Despite the odds, he still showed passion, and maintained a hopeful outlook on Tom’s…

    • 585 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Even though there is a lot of judgement going on in this novel, someone always teaches to look from someone else's perspective. For example, when Miss Caroline was unintentionally making fun of D.C. for his appearance and hygiene at school without knowing about his home life and Scout attempted to stand up for him. In Chapter 3, Atticus explains to Scout, "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view--...until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." (Lee 30) He was trying to help Scout, his daughter understand that you don’t have the right to judge someone because you never know what is going on in their life. Atticus was a major part of his kids’ coming of age. He was a very intelligent man with an open mind and kind heart. He wanted his children to have those traits as well so they could go through life making the world a better place. In Chapter 9, Atticus says, "This time we aren't fighting the Yankees, we're fighting our friends. But remember this, no matter how bitter things get, they're still our friends and this is still our home." (Lee 102) He always knows what to do and always makes the right decisions. Just because there was conflict, that didn’t mean that they he needed to entirely befriend others with different opinions than him. When the reader gets to know Atticus and learn his morals, they look up to him as a role model and want to have the same open minded…

    • 1248 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Atticus Finch Essay

    • 739 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Atticus is introduced as the widower father of Jem and Scout, his two young kids whose mother died when Scout was two and Jem was six but she “never felt her absence”.(pg. 7) One defining feature is that he treats his kids as equals, even allowing them to call him by his first name. He is an intelligent and humble lawyer who is well-known throughout the town as being progressive and “was related by blood or marriage to nearly every family in the town”.(pg. 6) Scout’s father is chosen to represent Tom…

    • 739 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    From the beginning it is apparent Scout, and Atticus have a close connection with each other. Because Scout is curious to the whole meaning of her suffering for her dad to fight for a case that is going to lose, he shares a few words of wisdom. Atticus tells Scout that she should keep trying, because it is worth the bestow of justice. As time goes on, Scout learns about what is happening around the World, and her teacher talks about the Holocaust, and how there is nothing prejudice in America. Afterwards Scout overheard her teacher, Miss Gates say, “…It’s time somebody taught `em a lesson, they were getting way above themselves, an’ the next thing they think they can do is marry us (Lee 283).” Immediately after Scout sees the hypocrisy on how she says there is equality in America. Scout thinks that Miss Gates does not realize that there is inequality for blacks in Maycomb. Scout soon is able to see what Atticus was saying when he was talking about what is right. In addition to, the trial is what brought Scout to understand the idea of the definition of equality and justice. Tom Robinson was sentenced guilty for a crime one could assume he did not commit, Scout could truly fully understand what Atticus really meant when he was explaining power and equality. Scout is at a full transformation because of truly gaining the wisdom of…

    • 547 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Atticus no special from any other father, but in the way in teaching his children significant lessons in life is where he is similar to no other. He teaches scout that "If you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you'll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks." Scout shows she learns from her father from this when she distracts Mr. Cunningham and the lynch mob from getting Tom by talking about his son Walter and trading. Not only did she save her life but her fathers and Toms as well. When everyone was talking about Atticus being a nigger lover, he explained to his children to cope with it, how to deal with it and understand it. As well as helping with social skills, he also teaches her racism and the lessons of…

    • 740 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    To Kill a Mockingbird

    • 440 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Not only is Atticus a patient and understanding parent, he is also very honest with his children. During Tom Robinson’s trial, Scout is confused about everything that is going on. She begins to hear the word ‘rape’ a lot, and asks…

    • 440 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Atticus

    • 456 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Atticus does, however, prove to be a very good father. Whenever someone talks badly about her father, Scout will stand up to them and sometimes even do it violently. Everyone in the town, it seems, makes fun of Atticus because of the black American he is defending. They feel that he is a disgrace to his family and to the rest of the town. However, Atticus never lets that get to him, and he doesn’t want it to get to Scout either. When Scout asks her father about all of the bad things people are saying about him and the trial, he says “You might hear some ugly talk about it at school, but do one thing for me if you will: you just hold your head high and keep those fists down. No matter what anybody says to you, don’t let ‘em get your goat. Try fighting with your head for a change… it’s a good one, even if it does resist learning.” (101)…

    • 456 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    During the release of To Kill A Mockingbird the norm was to explore and break some rules as a kid. To Kill A Mockingbird was released 30 years after the story’s timeline. Obviously, To Kill A Mockingbird was marketed towards adults in their 30’s. Subtracting 30 from an age 30-39 gets you at most 9. Thus, readers of this book were pretty likely to be similar in age to Jem and Scout when they lived in the same time period. What this means is that Harper Lee subliminally snuck in child-like memories for the readers in this book, so they can look back on their memories, and how life was like before the civil rights act was signed. Readers could also compare their lives to Jem and Scout and identify things that they can relate to. This tactic is effective because the readers are more sympathetic towards Jem and Scout. Human nature also makes humans feel innocence towards a child. In fact even characters in the story feel innocence towards children, especially the scene where the mob was going to lynch Tom but they did not since Jem and Scout were watching, “‘I looked around and up at Mr Cunningham, whose face did a peculiar thing. He squatted down and took me by both shoulders.’”(206). Showing children's innocence and nostalgia are both factors that make readers understand Harper Lee’s message…

    • 744 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays