To Kill A Mockingbird Courage

The act of courage has been used for millions of years, from David fighting the giant Goliath to characters in To Kill A Mockingbird showing acts of courage. The text took place in the 1930s, during a time when whites and blacks were divided and the years of the great depression. Maycomb county was the small town where everyone knows everyone else’s business. In To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows that standing for what’s right leads to the act of courage and how it can influence to change a small town like Maycomb.
To begin, Miss Dubose showed she had a courage because she decided to stop her morphine addiction right before she died. “‘Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict’, said Atticus. ‘She took it as a pain killer for a long time because
the doctor gave it to her.. She’d have spent the rest of her life on it and died but instead she wanted to change. She said “she meant to break herself of it before she died, and that’s what she did.” (Lee 92).This quote shows that Mrs. Dubose is courageous because it shows how even though she could have gave up and accepted her death with the addiction she decided to end her life on a good note, and end her addiction. She was just a mean old lady who disliked people or talking with anyone, she was just miserable, but it turns out she was very courageous and determined. To add, “‘Come closer’, said Mrs. Dubose. ‘Come to the side of the bed’.” (Lee 89) This quote shows how Mrs. Dubose is courageous because it shows that even though she knew the kids disliked her because of how mean and disrespectful she was towards them, and for what Mrs. Dubose said to Jem about Atticus, she was extremely intent to end her morphine addiction. Yet, if it meant facing the children that doesn’t like her at all and making them miserable for weeks having them read books.
Next off, is Boo Radley, more of a mystery character but when Scout and Jem lives were on the line, he saved them. Scout said "By the time I reached the corner the man was crossing or yard. Light from our front door framed Atticus for an instant; He ran down the steps and together, he and the man took Jem inside" (Lee 223). This exemplifies how even though Boo Radley never leaves the house he was imprisoned in, he was in such despair of Scout and Jem, that he ran into action to save the two from Bob Ewell. Scout explained, "Boo was about six and a half feet tall, 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 13) The kids talked about Boo Radley as he was a monster but he still had enough guts to help them when they were in danger.
Thirdly, Atticus protects an African American man, Tom Robinson in a town complete of prejudice people.
First of all, he has volunteered to protect the town when there was a mad dog. Scout narrated “The rifle cracked. Tim Johnson leaped, flopped over and crumpled on the sidewalk in a brown-and-white heap” (Lee 80). He protects his town and all of its people from the extreme Tim Johnson. In the passage, Atticus shows his commitment to defend Maycomb and get rid of the prejudice that most of the people in the town have. Besides the other members of Maycomb, Atticus treats the Blacks as equals. For example, he takes position with Calpurnia, who helps around in the house, and even gives her a nickname calling her “Cal” and motivates his children to do the same. He even states, after Scout asks him if he is a “nigger-lover”, “I do my best to love everybody” (90). Fighting for your morals against a town that has Whites being the superior race is very brave and a noble act. Finally, Atticus believes in justice for all. “There’s nothing more sickening to me than a low-grade white man who’ll take advantage of a Negro’s ignorance” (188). He knows Tom Robinson’s case will not favor him, but he goes in and tries anyway to keep his morals and integrity. The bravery in this comes again from the idea of defiance, but also from the idea of equality between the
ethnicities.
Lastly, Scout showed a great amount of courage. Scout views everyone like their perfect and sees good in everyone’s heart. She has the fighting spirit in her to always believe that people are good, even when they show otherwise. When there was a mob outside of the courthouse, she told Mr. Cunningham “I go to school with Walter” (Lee 156). This threw Mr. Cunningham off, as he was acting in violence, she made him think of his son. Then she continues “He’s in my grade and does right well. He’s a good boy.. a real nice boy” (Lee 156). When she stated that he’s a good boy it was ironic because his dad was doing something bad. She used courage because a mob can be very harmful to people but she stood up to the mob and saw that their was some good in Mr, Cunningham. Ultimately, the mob scene could have ended in a harsh way, like leading to an innocent person’s death but Scout saved all this from unraveling.
To conclude, In To Kill a Mockingbird courage is demonstrated through what the characters believe in, and showed if they stand for their beliefs the surrounding people will question their previous thoughts. Miss Dubose, Boo Radley, Scout and Atticus all showed great examples of being courageous and standing up to something that is not right. Their actions will help other people in the town to see that you have to treat everyone equally and that as a town everyone can improve as a person.