Character of Atticus

Character of Atticus.
Atticus Finch is the father of Jem and Scout. His wife died when Scout was 2 and he is bringing the children up on his own, with the help of Calpurnia. Scout "says he played with us, read to us, and treated us with courteous detachment". It is clear he loves his children.
His family has been associated with Maycomb for many generations and he is related in some way to most families in the town.
He is a lawyer. He takes on Tom Robinson's case, knowing he'll lose, explaining to Scout that "every lawyer gets at least one case in his lifetime that affects him personally".
He is kind and caring. He paid for his brother's medical training; when Miss Maudie's house burnt down, he saved her favourite rocking chair; he is polite and civil to Mrs Dubose despite her rudeness to him “your father’s no better than the niggers and trash he works for”; he is committed to racial equality. ”I do my best to love everybody”.
He tries to get Jem and Scout to see things from other people's point of view.”You never really undersand a person until you consider things from his point of view…climb into his skin”.pg 35. He is scrupulously honest. He tells Jem and Scout the truth about their relatives - rather than the gilded version Aunt Alexandra prefers.
He has a dry sense of humor. For instance, when Jem is anxious about going to Mrs Dubose's to read because it is dark and spooky, Atticus tells him: "That should appeal to your imagination. Just imagine you're inside the Radley house".pg 112.
He always sees the best in people. Far from disliking Mrs Dubose, with her strongly racist views, he admires her for battling against her morphine addiction.”she was the bravest person I ever knew”.
The only person who has some influence over him is his sister, Aunt Alexandra, who tries to control how he brings up Jem and Scout. However, he does not give in to her request to drop Tom Robinson's case.

(Ch 4, pg 54-55)Atticus knows his children our too young to understand the problems of the society, yet he treats his children maturely and is scared that the sickness of Maycomb could also affect them negatively. He hopes that his children believe in realism and what seems right to them, rather than believe in the rumors, gossips, prejudices and the superstitious beliefs spread out through the town. Another one of the things that he fears can have harmful influence on them is the Tom Robinson’s trial. “I hope and pray I can get Jem and Scout through it without bitterness…without catching Maycomb’s usual sickness…I just hope that Jem and Scout come to me for their answers instead of listening to the town. I hope they trust me enough”.
Atticus has his own ways of rearing up his children, this also emphasizes his uniqueness. He indirectly, as well as directly, helps Scout understand the world, life and different people by allowing her to listen to parts of his conversations with people, for example when he talks to Jack Finch about her. “Atticus knew I was listening, and it was not until many years later that I realized he wanted me to hear every word he said”.
Atticus does not impose or make his children believe in everything he says, he makes them analyze the situation as well as experience it by themselves so that they can identify the differences and similarities between the people of divided groups in Maycomb. Their own analysis provides evidence for Atticus’ sayings which further develops their trust in him. He is the main character who brings out the theme of innocence and explains it to the readers when he instructs his children, “Shoot all the blue jays you want, if you can hit’em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird”. This line, said Atticus, links the title of the book with moral values he teaches his children.