Effects Of Fathers In To Kill A Mockingbird

The Father Effect

In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee gives the reader a look at different types of fathers to show their impact on a child’s life. The point that having a father present while growing up changes the way a child acts and develops exists vividly throughout the novel. How a father acts towards his children will affect the child’s views on situations they will face and how they will treat the people that they come across throughout their life. Atticus Finch, Bob Ewell, and Dill’s father all exemplify different types of fathers and how they impact their children's lives. Atticus wants his kids to act like adults hence he treats them like adults. For example, when Atticus asks Jem if Boo Radley has anything to do with

He wants to have a real relationship with his kids. Atticus says to Scout, “You just hold your head high and keep those fists down… Try fighting with your head for a change,” (76). He always makes sure to watch out for Jem and Scout; he knows when to get onto them and when to let them learn and make mistakes on their own which gives his kids a different kind of respect for him. When Scout gets in trouble for acting out towards Francis she talks to Uncle Jack about it. He tells her how disappointed he feels towards her and begins saying that she can not call people such things. Scout gets upset and starts saying to Uncle Jack, “You ain’t fair… you don’t understand children much… When Jem an’ I fuss Atticus doesn’t ever listen to just Jem’s side of it, he hears mine too,” (113). They recognize how fair Atticus acts towards them, therefore to endure different treatment feels absurd and Scout does not know how to react to it.

On the contrary, Bob Ewell demonstrates the characteristics of a bad father. For instance, he spends any money he gets to buy liquor for himself to relieve him of his problems; he never helps take care of his many kids, and Mayella ends up with the responsibility of trying to help them. As well as being a bad father, Bob Ewell is a bad person in general not caring about his goes out of his way to get revenge on Atticus by attacking Jem and Scout

He never gets directly introduced to the reader because he does not play a big part in Dill’s life. He does not pay much attention to Dill, never showing much interest in him or the befall of his life. Not having a father figure in his life, Dill makes up stories in hopes to fulfill the part in his life that he feels he is missing. Every summer he gets sent to stay with his aunt and he finds himself close with the Finch family, spending most of his time with them. As has been noted, Atticus treats his kids with great respect and it grows very apparent to Dill. Before he gets to know the family, when asked about his father he says he doesn’t have one, but as he commences to see what a positive father seems to look like through Atticus he feels left out. Dill shows that he has overtaken hurt and embarrassment so he begins giving physical descriptions of his father to Jem and Scout, all of which he knows are not true. In chapter four dill describes his father as taller then atticus was, with a black beard. Also in chapter 5 he explains that his dad was also president of L&N railroad. It comes to be evident that Dill's family lacks connection.He tells Scout he likes her but then goes about ignoring her. A thing as simple as interacting with his friends takes the fall for not having someone in his life to look up to and to learn