To Kill A Mockingbird Loss Of Courage Essay

Everyone has something they fear. Before overcoming these struggles a person must build up the courage to do so. Multiple obstacles occur in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird that require such courage. Characters such as Calpurnia, Boo Radley, and Mrs. Dubose are all faced with different obstacles. These personal struggles are defeated by each character applying the courage they possess. Most people are exposed to someone facing addiction at some point during their life; whether its someone you know personally or a public figure. Also, most people are aware of the amount of courage it takes to overcome. Mrs. Dubose, Scout and Jem’s “mean” neighbor, was struggling with a morphine addiction but refused to go down without a fight.

Also throughout the course of this novel, Boo places items in the knot of a particular tree for Scout & Jem. However, the last “item” gifted to Scout and Jem is much more valuable than anything previously received. “He gave us two soap dolls, a broken watch & chain, a pair of good-luck pennies, & our lives,”(242) is referring to the courageous moment Boo saved Scout and Jem’s lives. Lee states, “Thank you for my children, Arthur” (242). This is expressing to the amount of gratitude Atticus bestows upon Boo and how much courage someone would need to possess in order to complete what Boo has. These are just a few of the instances where courage is evident in this novel. Before reading To Kill a Mockingbird I believed courage was the ability and willingness to use strength to get your way. However, Harper Lee’s words have changed my perspective on the idea of courage. Atticus defines courage as “…when you know you 're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what” (Lee 115). Courage isn’t defined by rather you win or lose. It is about thinking long and hard about what 's right, instead of relying on personal prejudice, and then doing what 's right whether you win or