Standing Up For What Is Right Analysis

In Harper Lee’s novel ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’, the main character Scout’s journey of maturation is charted as she progresses in her moral education and gains a broader, more adult perspective of the world around her. Scout learns the vital need for utilising tolerance, compassion and empathy when dealing with others, no matter an individual’s reputation or the circumstance. She is also exposed to the terrible injustice and racial prejudice that overcomes Maycomb’s community, and sees how this outright bigotry has severe consequences. Atticus also teaches Scout the meaning of true courage, in both a physical and a moral sense, and how true bravery is often not appreciated by the majority. Harper

Atticus is guarding the jailhouse to make sure no one hurts Tom Robinson before his trial, when he is approached by Walter Cunningham and his fellow goons. Atticus shows his bravery by standing his ground for what he believes is right in front of his son. When Scout lashes out to her father’s side, Jem holds onto her and tries to stop her from interfering. Then Jem refuses to go home and stands up for his father’s side although the odds were against them, while trying to protect his sister from harm. In page 152, chapter 15, Scout says, “... but from the way he stood, Jem was not thinking of budging.” This shows us that Jem has matured from the boy who would do anything if dared, to a young man who can barricade his emotions and proceed with reason in difficult situations.

Over the course of the novel, the reader watches Jem mature from age 10 to age 13, growing up from a brave and playful boy, to a calm, collected young man similar to the likes of his father Atticus. One of the most important life lessons that Atticus teaches Jem is to always do the right thing even if it’s the hardest thing to do. Atticus Finch is known as a man who is “the same in his house as he is on the public streets.” (Lee, pg. 61) He lived by morals, and always abade by them. After Atticus took up the court case of Tom Robinson, a coloured man, he had many people insult him and make fun of him. Atticus knew that he couldn’t refuse the case, as he stated “before I can live with other folks I’ve got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience.”(Lee, pg.140) Atticus took the job that no person wanted, especially knowing that he was going to lose the case before it even began. In doing so, Atticus shows Jem that you should always be a man of your morals, that you should always do the right thing even if it is the hardest thing to do. Although he has a hard time understanding Atticus’ actions at first, Jem begins to comprehend his father’s values in the world around him, with more mature eyes.

A remarkable American soldier and author named William T. Sherman once stated, “Courage, a perfect sensibility of the measure of danger, and a mental willingness to endure It.” Going against what society says and sticking to your beliefs is an act of courage. In the realistic fiction novel, ‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee, an average southern family, the Finches, fights against the racism of a small town. Harper Lee’s message is expressed by symbolism through the two characters Tom Robinson and Boo Radley, the bildungsroman of Scout, and the hero archetype of Atticus .Harper Lee portrays that courage should be shown through loyalty not popularity.

In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee gives us the character Atticus Finch to give us an example of what courage is through symbolism, pathos, and irony. In this analysis I will talk about about how Atticus’s actions and words all seem to try to teach us something, and that something is courage. We can see the biggest example of Atticus’s courage when he has to talk about Tom Robinson’s case or when he talked to the kids about what Mrs. Dubose was trying to do before her death. Atticus’s courage is the type that allows him to do what he thinks is right even if people don’t agree with him or if it seems hopeless to try. Atticus is also seen trying to pass down his courage and wisdom to his kids throughout the story.

Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” is a powerful exploration of courage. One can see the courage and bravery in Scout in situations that would normally be difficult for a girl in her age. The first situation is when a boy in her school named

"Courage isn't an absence of fear. It's doing what you are afraid to do. It's having the power to let go of the familiar and forge ahead into new territory." ~John Maxwell. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout (Jean Louise Finch), Jem (Jeremy Atticus Finch), and Atticus Finch display acts of valor that contribute, and in some cases encourage their rectitude. Harper Lee demonstrates that acting courageously can lead to an improved, sustained, or newly developed personal integrity.

After that “Jem was standing in the corner of the room, looking like the traitor he was. ‘Dill, I had to tell him,’ he said. ‘You can’t run three hundred miles off without your mother knowin’.’” (141). Jem was mature by telling Atticus because they can’t sneak around to try and fully feed him, and Atticus has the right to know who is in his house. In the end Jem saw it as the right thing to do and beneficial to both sides. Meanwhile, Scout doesn’t believe that, she thinks that he broke the “code of our childhood”(141) and calls him a

Throughout the novel, Jem is influenced by a variety of people and circumstances. His surroundings and the people that he grew up with influenced his outlook on life and persuaded him into a well developed young man. First and foremost, his father Atticus established morals, and guidelines and consequently lead him into adulthood. He provided wisdom and insight into a future for Jem, free from inequality and abundant in fairness. Mrs. Dubose, although biased and cruel, was a figure of courage for Jem to learn from. Throughout the case, Jem was constantly reiterating his opinion on how he believed none of it was right. At the end of the novel, Jem was put in the worst situation at such a young age, almost being murdered. Luckily, the outcome

In life, humans are the only living things that can possess the ability to have courage, but we do not find it in every individual. In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, Maycomb's definition is racism and prejudice, and characters need to overcome this with courage. Out of all of Maycomb, the most courageous individuals lies inside the Finch household, Scout for standing up for herself and others, Jem in his attempt to protect his family for which he loves very much, and Atticus for doing what he believes is right and not what others tell him is right.

Webster's dictionary defines courage as "mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty." According to Atticus Finch, one of the main characters in To Kill A Mockingbird, "Courage is when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what." (Chapter 11, Page 124) No matter how you define it, Harper Lee definitely portrays the theme of mental courage in this book. The book demonstrates that mental courage is fighting what you believe in no matter the consequence. It is one of the most predominant themes and is shown in many of the characters, including Atticus, Jem and Scout, who all show mental

Courage is an asset that is highly valuable. Having courage allows people to be confident in their own skin, put their social status at risk for doing what is right, and even in circumstances of criticism, being able to share their ideas. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the characters that came across the most courageous were Jem, Scout, and Miss Maudie. Jem shows courage by touching the infamous Radley house which everyone fears; Scout shows courage by defending her classmate when he was being taunted by the teacher, and Miss Maudie wears men’s clothes when the expectations of women in the society lean to women being feminine.

In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee demonstrates competing ideologies about courage. The mockingbird in the title symbolizes two victims of unfair treatment, Arthur “Boo Radley”, the neighborhood phantom, and Tom Robinson, a man wrongly accused of rape because he is a black man who takes pity for white women. The town’s immature behavior towards these two topics is a mere influence on Jem’s perspective about courage. Much like other people in town, Jem thinks that acting with true courage is avoiding fear instead of having integrity, inflicting harm on others is the solution. In the end, he begins to question how the mockingbirds are being treated after witnessing acts of his original interpretation of courage.

I have one question: Why does Jem stand up to Atticus and disobey his request? Atticus told Jem to go home when they were outside the jail with the mob but he refused. One reason he may have refused to go home is because he sensed that Atticus was in danger. He recognized the group to be a mob based on the situation. The group consisted of many people surrounding Atticus and they were inquiring as to Tom’s location. Jem knows that the group will hurt Atticus because he is standing up for Tom. Atticus was in their way and they wanted to lynch Tom before the trial. Jem knew his father would need help because he was outnumbered. Another possible reason that Jem stood up to Atticus is because he wants to show his that he is mature and gain respect

In addition, Jem abandons all of his childish morals: “Jem looked the floor. Then he rose and broke the remaining code of our childhood. He went out of the room and down the hall. ‘Atticus,’ his voice was distant, ‘can you come here a minute, sir?’” (p.187-188). Dill, Jem and Scout’s best friend, ran away from his home and came to the Finch’s house. Jem has broken “the remaining code of our childhood” by telling Atticus about Dill, rather than keeping it a secret. He has matured past his childhood years, and realizes that sometimes it is best to involve adults.