Symbolism Of Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird

Harper Lee wants to tell us that it takes courage NOT to kill a mockingbird

Courage and the symbol of the mockingbird are two of the most important, or in fact in my opinion the most important themes, which are addressed and displayed in the highly praised, but also controversial novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” written by Harper Lee. I will try to interpret these two motives and show how they are strongly connected to each other.

There are many different types of courage and many people who all show it in their own personal way. If people talk about bravery and courage, they mostly think of the physical kind of courage. But there are also other kinds, which are often forgotten or cast aside by their big brother: moral and emotional courage.

According to Atticus, this is the ability to face adversity and go through with something honourable, even though you realize that it is impossible to win.

There are quite a few characters in the book, which show some kind of courage, but there is one in particular, Atticus. Harper Lee made Atticus the hero of moral and a symbol of courage in her novel. He is the figurehead for all three kinds of courage I mentioned. For one he confronts a rabid dog, which displays physical courage.
Furthermore he defends a black man in court. At the time (and maybe still even now) Maycomb, Alabama, is from our perspective a really racist county, and in this culture it takes a lot of courage to go against the tide and not to judge a black man merely of his skin colour or origin, but instead to put his worries before ones own. Most people in Maycomb, who believe black Tom Robinson is innocent, also believe that there is no chance of winning the case and they lack the courage to risk getting a bad reputation with nothing to gain from it. Atticus is probably the only one whose moral views forbid him to look

He was a very good person; he never misbehaved or did anything to harass others. He often helped Maella Ewell, but always refused to get paid for it. Likewise the real mockingbird does not do anything bad. It never steals from the fields, it does not nest in corncribs; all it does is sing and bring beauty in the lives of those it encounters. And as the mockingbird can not defend itself when it gets shot, a black man like Tom Robinson is completely defenceless in such a racist town and time, when he gets accused of rape by a white woman. It is injustice to both of