According to the Oxford DIctionary, the definition of integrity is “the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles”. Obviously having integrity is a good thing, but is it easy to keep with so many bad things and people in the world? The evil within the world would challenge anyone’s morals, making it hard to stay true to them. To Kill a Mockingbird is a classic novel written in the 1930’s, and one of the bigger issues is the prejudice of Maycomb depending on a person’s race, gender, and class. Atticus Finch, the main character’s father, is one of the few in Maycomb with integrity and doesn’t hide it from others. It prompts many difficulties and questions concerning integrity. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses the character of Atticus to teach us how integrity is hard to keep, but worth it in the end. He faces many obstacles concerning his morals, but he pushes through it and does the right thing, winning in his own way. It seems like almost no one in the small town of Maycomb has a shred of integrity. This is …show more content…
A couple of townsfolk were talking about Atticus taking the trial in front of Jem and Scout. One told the others that Atticus had been appointed to defend Tom Robinson, but another doesn’t care that Atticus didn’t have a choice, with his mindset being that “Atticus aims to defend him. That’s what I don’t like about it” (Lee 163). Therefore, Atticus’s integrity was challenged. It’d been much easier if he just refused to defend Tom Robinson, or not give it his all. But since Atticus does everything in his power to help Tom, the people who don’t want a fair trial turns their anger towards him. They could ruin so many things: his business, his life, even his children’s lives, as seen in Bob Ewell’s threatening “he’d get him if it took the rest of his life” (Lee 217). Because Atticus followed his integrity, every aspect of his life is put at