Mattie Ross In 'True Grit' By Charles Portis

Taylor 1
In True Grit, Charles Portis highlights Mattie Ross crossing boundaries of her vengeful reprisal for her father’s murderer, in contrast to her religious standards of forgiveness towards sinners like Tom Chaney. By doing so, Mattie encourages Rooster Cogburn to adopt a less judgmental sensibility towards criminals.
Even though, Mattie was a young, sheltered Presbyterian girl it did not stop her from leaving Dardanelle on a lust of revenge. She idolized her father and had an enormous grudge against sinners, but was committing sins herself. With the plenty intelligence of the law and the value of money, it allowed her to use her knowledge to her advantage. Determined to put her strategy into action she told Rooster “Here is the money. I aim to get Tom Chaney and if you are not game I will find somebody who is game...I am not paying for talk" (Portis 96). She knew if Rooster took on the challenge to work for her, she constantly needed to remind herself that she was not traveling to be with Jesus.
In spite of Mattie leaving her beliefs back at home, she was still driving. She kept in mind that “If you want anything done right, you will have to see to it yourself every time" (Portis 78). While traveling, hunting for Tom Chaney, she

She was able to return home at peace and back to her Presbyterian life. Mattie took the law into her own hands believing it was the right thing to do. Perhaps being a Christian did not matter while she was out to hunt and kill. Mattie now have murder on her hands by gaining justice for her father. Having Tom Chaney dead was her duty that she knew had to carry out. Will God forgive her or have she forgiving herself? In True Grit, Charles Portis
Taylor 3 demonstrated many frontiers. In this day in age many still cross the boundaries wanting revenge but trying to live by religious standards to obey the value of