Importance Of Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee

Param Patel

Mrs. Stevenson

ELA D Block

5 May 2023

The Importance of Courage in To Kill a Mockingbird Former emperor of France, Napoleon once said “Courage isn't having the strength to go on, it is going on when you don't have strength." In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, which takes place in the 1930s in Maycomb, Alabama, multiple characters demonstrate this trait. Characters like Mrs. Dubose, who fought her addiction to morphine to die free from her addiction. Then there is Atticus who took Tom Robinson’s case, knowing he was going to lose, but he still tried his best.Finally, there is Tom Robinson, a dead man walking, because he is going up against a white person in court. Tom Robinson faces the prejudice of the 1930s that

Dubose displays courage when she fights her addiction to die free of her addiction to morphine. She is an elderly woman who was addicted to morphine. She died with one wish, which was to get over her addiction. According to Atticus, “‘She was the bravest person I knew’” (128). Atticus stated Mrs. Dubose was the bravest person he knew because she died fighting till the end. Her addiction caused her an enormous amount of pain, but she perceivers to get over her addiction of morphine. Another time her bravery is shown was when Atticus was talking to Jem about what true bravery is and why he made Jem read to Mrs. Dobose, he said “I wanted you to see what real courage is,”(128). In this statement, Atticus is stating that Mrs. Dubose demonstrates true bravery. Specifically she does not give up and fights her addiction to the end of her life. In conclusion, Mrs. Dubose is a brave woman that fought her addiction and died free because of

He demonstrates courage when he fights for his freedom and speaks the truth against Bob and Mayella Ewell. In his testimony, hestates the reason he helped Mayella for free is because he, “felt right sorry for her ''(225) This is important because in the 1930s which is when the book takes place, black men were not meant to feel sorry for a white woman. In this era, black people were considered below all white people. The fact that So Tom Robinson statesing that he felt sorry for her means that he was brave enough to state his thoughts and that he has compassion. Another time Tom Robinson was brave was when he Tom Robinson did what he thought is the right thing and tried to escape from the prison. This demonstrates one of the critical things Atticus says about courage. Atticus states that, “courage is when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what”(128). Tom Robinson, knowing that he is already a dead man, tries to escape and go back to his family. As can be seen, he did what he believed to be right and he fought to be free. This exceeds the idea of courage that Harper Lee