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What Real Courage Looks Like in To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Decent Essays

In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, This essay is going to prove how Atticus and Mrs. Dubose both show their own version of moral courage and how it has influenced others in this novel. The first point is that Atticus shows moral courage by fighting for what he believes in, no matter the consequence or the result. The second point is how Mrs. Dubose shows a specific meaning of moral courage by overcoming a tough physical and mental obstacle.
First of all, what is moral courage? Moral courage, in Atticus’s case, is fighting for what you believe in no matter what the consequences or result will be. At their house, Scout had asked Atticus why he had taken up the Tom Robinson case, Atticus replied with “For a number of reasons,’ said Atticus. ‘The main one is, if I didn’t I couldn’t hold up my head in town, I couldn’t represent this county in the legislature, I couldn’t even tell you or Jem not to do something again.’” (Pgs. 75-76) In this quote, Atticus was appointed to be Tom Robinson’s lawyer, even though Atticus knows that he won’t win the case, and understands that he is "licked" before he even begins. He knows that Tom is innocent and that he must fight for him, because no one else will. This makes Scout question Atticus’s decision on defending a Negro, not understanding that only Atticus could have taken that case. This quote proves the thesis because Atticus shows his own special type of moral courage by standing up to the communities’ racism, knowing that

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