Atticus Finch Symbolism

Wise…father-figure...hard-working - all encapsulate Atticus in the eyes of his children. Atticus plays a major role in the maturity of his children due to his impactful advice. In summary, the novel is about Scout and Jem maturing from multiple major events that help them learn adult life lessons. Harper Lee builds a character’s background before allowing readers to form opinions. Notably, at the time Harper Lee chose to write the novel, colored people, specifically black people, were always unjustly judged due to the enormous number of racists in the Southern United States. By using symbols and motifs, she is able to describe the tolerance in the Finch family as they try to learn about someone before they judge them. A symbol represents an

When interpreted with keeping the symbols in mind, it suggests that killing or discriminating innocent people is sinful because they have not done anything immoral to deserve their death or criticism. Atticus’s advice relates back to the theme of being aware of someone’s situation before crafting a judgment because the children need to take a pause and identify what type of bird they are aiming at before they shoot. Essentially, they learn about the bird before making their decision to shoot. Consequently, the children later embody Atticus’s advice to disregard preconceived notions when forming impressions of people. After Miss Maudie’s house catches fire, Scout discovers that the "blanket around [her]” was placed by Boo Radley, the person who “ain’t ever hurt [them]” according to Jem (Lee 96). The excerpt shows Boo Radley as an example of a mockingbird because he is harmless and yet judged unfairly. Similarly, at the beginning of the book, Boo Radley is unjustly portrayed as a violent savage due to rumors. However, the children eventually learn about Boo’s caring personality through the gifts, the mended pants, and the blanket. The “blanket around [Scout]” and mended pants represent the strange ways Boo Radley shows his care

After a rough day at school, Scout explains her “day’s misfortunes” with Miss Caroline to convince Atticus to not send her to school anymore, but Atticus knows Scout will not “understand a person” unless she “climb[s] into [their] skin and walk[s] around in it” (Lee 39). The phrase “climb into their skin and walk around in it” is an exact replication of the theme Lee wants to convey. Scout must get into someone’s “skin and walk around,” so that she can get the right background information to create an educated opinion. The excerpt relates to Boo Radley because no one has ever thought to “climb into his skin” due to the countless rumors that pile on him. The recurring events involving Boo show that his rumored personality has concealed his true personality considerably. For example, Jem thought Boo was a psychopath for not wanting to enjoy the outdoors at one point. However, if Jem took the time to “climb into his skin,” he would have realized Boo cannot take a step out of his house due to the formulated hate built in the residents of Maycomb County. Correspondingly, the children start to learn to take this advice and apply it to their lives. After finding the “valuable” Indian Heads, Jem “looked for a long time at the Radley Place…thinking again” (Lee 47). Jem and Scout start to question the legitimacy of the Boo