True Courage
What is true courage? Could courage come from an old lady, or a man without a gun in his hand, or just from the urge to protect people you care about? At the beginning of the story the character Scout thinks that courage is when you do a physical act that is very precarious or frightening. It is hard for young children at that age to realize that greater courage can be shown in other aspects of life. But in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Scout and her brother, Jem Finch learn that courage can take many forms.
In To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout sees her father, Atticus, shoot a mad dog. Although Atticus does not think of it as a very courageous act, Jem and Scout were proud of their father. He was not trying to prove anything, yet they were still impressed. Later on in the story, Jem and Scout encounter the malevolent Mrs. Dubose. When she talks bad about Atticus, Jem decides that the best way to settle things is to destroy Mrs. Dubose's camellias. After Atticus hears about this, he makes Jem read to her every afternoon for a month. Jem and Scout soon find out that Mrs. Dubose was a very sick lady, and took morphine to assuage her pain. It was not until after she died that Atticus explains to Jem and Scout how courageous she was because she knew she was dying but was still determined to die free of her morphine addiction. He said “I wanted you to see what real courage is instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand” (149) to show them that courage isn’t always about doing something violent. Mrs. Dubose fought against great odds, even though she knew that it would cause her great suffering and eventually lead to her demise.
Atticus demonstrates courage when he accepts the task of d...
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... meant killing somebody. Atticus showed courage when he went along with Heck Tate’s lie about what really happened the night Bob Ewell was found stabbed to death. Atticus put his life and career in the line. He knew, as an official of the law, that withholding information from an investigation could have gotten him disbarred or thrown in jail. Nonetheless, like many times before, doing what was right and fair prevailed in Atticus's way of thinking.
As the evidence shows, courage can come from many different people in different ways. It’s important for others to understand because people have to understand that there are different types of courage. Courage is not just some courageous rescue or killing an enormous, wild animal. In reality, courage can come in all shapes and sizes and can come from anyone no matter what color they are or how big or strong they are.
Many people believe that to have courage, you must conquer something physically challenging. Courage is a quality in which the mind is able to confront any difficulty, whether that be fear, danger or even pain. Scout and her older brother Jem are both influenced by
Mrs. Dubose is a bitter, old lady that is extremely rude to Scout and Jem, yelling dirty thing at them everytime they pass by her house. Jem hatred for that woman was so short, that one day he grabbed Scout’s baton and lost his temper, Scout explains that “He did not begin to calm down until he had cut the tops off every camellia bush Mrs. Dubose owned…” (137). As a punishment for his sudden outrage, Mrs. Dubose asks that he read for her everyday and they learn things about her along the way. They described that “...From time to time she would open her mouth wide...cords of saliva would collect at her lips...Her mouth seemed to have private existence of its own” (143). Later on in the chapter, Atticus reveals that she was a morphine addict
Courage is when you know you’re beaten. The character Atticus, for instance, who was a seasoned lawyer acted courageous defending Tom Robinson. Tom Robinson was a black man who was accused of raping a white girl. Atticus was appointed to defend him. Jem was happy because he thought his father had won the case but Reverend Sykes loathed telling Jem “Now don’t you be so confident, Mr. Jem, I ain’t ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man…”(Lee 208). Atticus was sure he wasn’t going to win the case, nevertheless he gave it a try. That didn’t stop Atticus from trying to defend his client Tom Robinson. Another part in the novel when Atticus was courageous was when he shot at the man street dog. Heck Tate the Maycomb Sheriff was not as courageous as Atticus so he handed Atticus the air rifles and with one shot Atticus took down the street dog. Miss Maudie says “I saw that, One Shot Finch” (Lee 97). Atticus was referred to as one-shot finch because of his shooting skills. The other incidence in the novel when Atticus portrays courage was when he was not scared when Bob Ewell threatened him. Bob Ewell was the man who accused Atticus’ defendant Tom Robinson of raping his daughter Mayella. Atticus thought Bob Ewell threatened him as some sort of revenge, but unfortunately Atticus was wrong because when Bob Ewell said ...
Mrs. Dubose, a morphine addict, was cruel to Jem and Scout. She often criticized the way Atticus raised them, telling them how much better their mother would have done. She would yell at them, saying cruel things about their family. Jem openly destroys her flowerbeds ; forgetting everything Atticus taught him about maturity and not letting what people ...
To be courageous you cannot be deterred by possible outcomes that may involve danger or pain. To be courageous you have to be more than brave you have to be undaunted and have a heart of a lion. Through Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird courage and determination are embedded through the character’s actions. Atticus Finch, a lawyer in Maycomb County, explains to his son Jem, “I wanted him to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and see if through no matter what.(Lee 149)” Through this quote Harper Lee is trying to convey that, real courage is more than appearance it is a significant action
“Efforts and courage are not enough without purpose and direction,” declared John F. Kennedy, President and World War ll hero. This means if you go out and do something brave but it doesn’t have a purpose it is pointless. A lot of courage is shown in The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, To Kill A Mockingbird, Schindler’s List, and The Merchant Of Venice.
To begin with, Jem and Scout determine that courage means doing what is right, even if it involves life threatening risks. In chapter eleven, Jem Finch, has ruined the patches of Mrs. Dubose’s lovely camellias. As soon as Atticus has heard of Jem’s little act of rebellion, he gives Mrs. Dubose the opportunity of deciding Jem’s punishment. Specifically, she establishes that Jem shall read to her every day after school. After Jem has finished his retribution, Atticus informs him of Mrs. Dubose’s death. As a result, Atticus speaks of Mrs. Dubose’s bravery. Jem starts to ask his father why he thinks this of Mrs. Dubose. Atticus replies, “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do” (Lee 112). Accordingly, Atticus is trying to show that heroism comes from the people who do what their gut says is right, because that is courage. Mrs. Dubose wanted to die a pure woman instead of someone who had an addiction, which she successfully succeeded in. Another example of courage comes from when Atticus ta...
From all of these, she learns to look at the individuality of the others. For Scouts, courage is most often something with physical activity and involves personal danger. It is very difficult for Scouts to see that greater courage is often required in other places of life. Scout learns that the greatest courage can be found in a situation where a person knows that he is going to lose and still continues to fight. To prove this, Miss Lee first had Scout observe her father perform a physical act of courage when he shoots the charging mad dog.
By fighting with her head, it can save Scout from a lot of trouble. One of the most valuable life lessons in To Kill a Mockingbird is about courage. Courage is not always physical, it can be mental too. After Mrs. Dubose passes away, Atticus tells Jem she was the bravest person he knew. Atticus says," According to Mrs. Dubose views, she died beholden to nothing and nobody” (page 149).
Courage is not something that we are born with, it is a skill that takes time to learn and only a few are lucky enough to have it. To Kill a Mockingbird is not only about life in a world full of hate, it is about standing up for anyone’s beliefs being brave enough to do it. In this story, Harper Lee says “Courage is not a man with a gun in his hand. It's knowing you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do” (Lee 112). In To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee illustrates courage through Atticus Finch, Mrs. Dubose, and Arthur Radley.
The highest level of courage is staying true to yourself. Being honest to yourself and standing up for what you believe in takes great courage. Unfortunately, being courageous comes at a high cost and you may not always be rewarded for it. In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, many characters show courage at the topmost level. Their acts may seem foolish and immoral to others, but they do what they believe in. The book shows that true courage is fighting in what you believe no matter what the consequences. We see this type of courage in Jem, Scout, Atticus and even Boo Radley throughout the course of the book.
...morphine and makes it her goal to die without weakness. She does the right thing, even if it ends up taking her life. To Scout and Jem, Mrs. Dubose was horrible however her death made them realize that she was trying to get off morphine for her own good. She showed them that courage isn’t always apparent; you don’t always have to do something that stands out. You can be courageous, just by making small changes and fighting battles with yourself.
Courage is having the strength to do something that is frightening to most people. It can be something large scale like the responders on 9/11 risking their lives for hundreds of people. Courage can also be something of smaller scale but just as significant like standing up for a black man in a town of racial prejudice. In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, many of the characters she has initiated show courageous qualities. One of those characters is Atticus Finch, father of Jem and Scout who demonstrates courage many times throughout the novel. Standing up for his beliefs, restraining from the negligent tauntings of his neighbors and defending a man whose innocence will not be proved, all show Atticus is the most courageous character
"Courage is when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what" According to Atticus Finch, an honest lawyer in Harper Lee's novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" courage is not a man with a gun in his hand. "Real courage" is when you fight for what is right regardless of whether you win or lose. Atticus fits into this definition of what "real courage" is and demonstrates it several times throughout the novel.
Scout believes at the beginning of the book that courage is all to do with physical feats like fist fighting. Scout and Jem though Atticus was courageous when he shot the mad dog, but Atticus just shrugged it off telling his children that that is not ? real courage?. The children soon see that moral courage is more valuable after Miss Dubose said "Your father's no better than the niggers and trash he works for!" Chapter 11, Page 113 after they walked past her house.