To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Overview

In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch is a very compelling character. Atticus grew up on a cotton farm and eventually becomes a defense lawyer. Atticus is the voice of reason in the town of Maycomb and in the novel. He functions as the moral backbone of Maycomb, a person to whom others turn in times of doubt and trouble. Atticus's strong sense of justice, sympathy and ability to understand others, and parenting of his children all show all reveal what kind of a person Atticus is.

Discussion

Tom Robinson was very much a victim of this society, which saw the black man as inferior, intellectually, socially and morally. At Tom Robinson's trial, Atticus Finch tries to appeal to an already biased jury's sense of justice and decency. Atticus' appeal however, falls on deaf ears so typical of the social and political context in which it existed. The jury had already decided on its verdict that Tom Robinson was guilty of the rape of Mayella Ewell not because he had committed the crime thanks to Atticus's cross-examination of the evidence, but because he was black and she, white. Throughout this novel, Atticus shows Scout what is important in life by teaching her timely lessons. Scout, at the age of six, is beginning to make observations and judgments of others. Atticus wants Scout to think about things from a perspective other than her own. He tells her, "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view; until you climb in his skin and walk around in it." Atticus believes that without realizing a person's situation, it is impossible to determine anything significant about them. If Scout decides to follow his advice, she will be less likely to make rash, negative opinions about others and will be more empathic to everyone around her.

Atticus doesn't abide by the norms of the pride white community in Maycomb. Not only does he defend Tom Robinson, but he also chooses to go himself to his wife to break the news about his death. The agony and pity of the late prisoner's wife and not her color is what mattered to him. Atticus has chosen to defend his morals and his belief of justice regardless to the ethic associations of Tom Robinson's case. Unlike other characters in the novel, Atticus perceives the Negros as equal human beings who have the right