Courage and Honor in to Kill a Mockingbird

Courage and honor are powerful words and can instigate powerful social change. The novel, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, is an engaging novel, that goes back to the times where racism exists and some people fight for equality and peace. The main characters in the novel are defined by their courage and honor; they are faced with many decisions that many people inside their community don’t feel is a big deal. The characters that will be discussed are: Atticus Finch, Scout, and Boo Radley. All of them have shown courage, honor, and have instigated the beginnings of social change by fighting for what’s right. As a result, these characters are important and very crucial to the book.

Atticus Finch is a very intriguing character in the novel. He is different from the other white people, he isn’t discriminative/racist. His courage and loyalty to stand up for what is right, is proven many times in the novel, which instigates social change. He gives many life-lessons to his kids, which they don’t understand at first, but later do, teaching people that nobody is above another, no matter what color, race, etc. Atticus proves that he doesn’t want his children to grow up discriminative, but wants them to grow up and show equality/patience, in this quote: “Jem, see if you can stand in Bob Ewell’s shoes a minute. I destroyed his last shred of credibility at that trial, if he had any to begin with. The man had to have some kind of comeback, his kind always does. So if spitting in my face and threatening me saved Mayella Ewell one extra beating, that’s something I’ll gladly take.” (Lee, 292). This quote shows us that Atticus tries to explain to his son that you can’t always think about yourself and discriminate others for what they did to you. He tells his son that he probably save Mayella a beating, she didn’t deserve so that’s all that matters. No matter that she and her dad tried to discriminate and hurt them, you shouldn’t have the same reactions. We don’t see things the way we do.

We learn that Atticus wants to teach his kids that courage isn’t always power and nothing in life is achieved easily in this quote: “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know 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,149). This quote shows us that Atticus sends his kids to read to an addict to teach them a different form of courage. We learn from this quote that not everything needs to be the way it’s expected/portrayed. We can also learn from this quote, if we look deeper, that when you know something is wrong, and try to right it, don’t succumb to the talks, expectations, or discrimination of people. Courage is standing up for what's right; doing the right thing even if the communities against you.

In this final quote, we learn that Atticus doesn’t agree with the discrimination against white people and the unequality, in this quote: “The one place where a man ought to get a square deal is in a courtroom, be he any color of the rainbow, but people have a way of carrying their resentments right into a jury box. As you grow older, you'll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don't you forget it — whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that white man is trash.” (Lee, 295). This quote shows us that Atticus, even though he’s a white man, definitely doesn’t agree with racism, and is something he teaches his children whatever chance he gets. Him being against discrimination and working very hard to help Tom Robinson, is what instigates social change. The jury are astonished and take a lot longer than normal to decide who the victor was. However, in the end discrimination takes over and the black person loses. If there is anything we can take from Atticus Finch, is that we shouldn’t discriminate, should stand up for what’s right and change starts from you.

Scout is a little girl who is a tomboy. She wears overalls, and is talked about amongst the ladies about how her father didn’t do a good job in raising her to be a ‘lady’. Scout doesn’t understand why she must be like them, and instead, wants to be out and wants to help people. She is very courageous in the novel and it shows throughout the novel and her tomboy nature is what instigates social change.

Scout explains to us her comfort with boys in this quote: “I was more at home in my father's world. People like Mr. Heck Tate did not trap you with innocent questions to make fun of you; even Jem was not highly critical unless you said something stupid. Ladies seemed to live in faint horror of men, seemed unwilling to approve wholeheartedly of them. But I liked them. There was something about them, no matter how much they cussed and drank and gambled and chewed; no matter how undelectable they were, there was something about them that I instinctively liked... they weren't.” (Lee, 313). In this quote, Scout explains to us how she felt more comfortable in a man’s world. We figure out that Scout isn’t a normal lady. She wants to be a lady who could do the things a man could do, instead of gossiping, and staying at home. This is the first sign of a change coming. Since Scout is stubborn and persistent, she will do everything she can to make sure she is able to be an equal amongst men, even though she will certainly be discriminated against.

In this next quote, we read about how Scout is courageous and protects her father, from being discrimated: “A nigger-lover. I ain’t very sure what it means, but the way Francis said it—tell you one thing right now, Uncle Jack, I’ll be — I swear before God if I’ll sit there and let him say somethin‘ about Atticus.” (Lee,114). We learn here that Scout is still a child and can’t fully comprehend what the word ‘nigger-lover’, but even from a small age, knew it was a word of evil. We can tell that she still has a lot to learn, but whatever Atticus is teaching her, she tries to implement.

As a final on Scout, I’ve put a quote that talks about how Scout hates how her Aunt is determined to make her a ‘proper’ woman: “I never understood her preoccupation with heredity. Somewhere, I had received the impression that Fine Folks were people who did the best they could with the sense they had, but Aunt Alexandra was of the opinion, obliquely expressed, that the longer a family had been squatting on one patch of land the finer it was.” (Lee, 173). This quote teaches us that Scout feels that Aunt Alexandra’s view is one-sided and partly discriminative towards women. Scout just wants to live a life in which she has the freedom to choose what he wants to do, and this is the social change that she instigates. By putting her intentions out to anyone who asked, she opens the world for all girls her age (in the future), who think the can’t be what they want.

The mysterious, evil person that never leaves his home has been around in Maycomb for a while. However, not everything is as it seems. Boo Radley, supposedly stabbed his father for revenge, and is evil, according to the people of Maycomb. We soon learn why he’s stayed away from the townspeople, and that he’s not as everyone seems to think he is. He is a figure of social change because of his quietness, which people discriminate.

As a starter, we will look at the interpretation the community has made on Boo: “Jem gave a reasonable description of Boo: Boo was about six-and-a-half feet tall, judging from his tracks; he dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, that’s why his hands were bloodstained—if you ate an animal raw, you could never wash the blood off. There was a long jagged scar that ran across his face; what teeth he had were yellow and rotten; his eyes popped, and he drooled most of the time.” (Lee, 16). In this quote, we see that people imagine Arthur Radley as evil, which we learn is not true. He is a normal human, but because he stays at home and is never seen, the community made their own conclusion. We learn that nothing is as it seems and that we shouldn’t agree so readily with what others have to say. We should analyze, and make judgements ourselves.

In this quote, we get a description of Arthur Radley after he saves Jem and Scout: “I looked from his hands to his sand-stained khaki pants; my eyes traveled up his thin frame to his torn denim shirt. His face was as white as his hands, but for a shadow on his jutting chin. His cheeks were thin to hollowness; his mouth was wide; there were shallow, almost delicate indentations at his temples, and his gray eyes were so colorless I thought he was blind. His hair was dead and thin, almost feathery on top of his head.” (Lee,362). In this passage, we find out just how wrong the community was. Arthur Radley is a kind man who has a kind heart. He saved Jem and Scout and killed Ewell to save them. He’s quiet and a complete opposite from the stories that described him. This description will instigate social change, starting from Scout and Jem. The change will be that discrimination based on events someone’s made up, isn’t right. As I said before, see the events for yourself, analyze them, and then make the RIGHT judgement.

As the final quote, I’m showing you one of his characteristics: “Will you take me home?” (Lee, 372). This sentence teaches us just how vulnerable Arthur is. The people have him confused with someone else! He’s like a child, vulnerable but brave, when it’s needed. We finally understand at the end of the book why he’s never come out of his house, and why he’s like a child. He can’t stand the racism and discrimination the people throw around, and stays locked up to avoid it. Staying out of the world, in solitary for so long, has made him vulnerable like a little child.

In conclusion, in the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the characters showed ample amounts of courage, bravery, and when faced with decisions, made good ones. Atticus Finch’s unwavering loyalty to Tom, and his teachings have definitely gone a long way. Scout has transformed from being a little girl, to one who knows how to stand up for what's right, and make knowledgeable choices. Finally, Boo Radley, the scary being of Maycomb, has shown bravery and protected those who were innocent. They are all beautiful characters, that have chosen their roles in the world, which inspired others, instigating social change. It’s only the beginning for social change but the result of this amazing novel is that bravery, courage, and honor, wins above all.