Perceptions In To Kill A Mockingbird

Courage is by definition the ability to do something that frightens one; however, nothing is that cut and dried. In actuality, it is what one does in times of trouble and uncertainty that determines how courageous they truly are. To Kill a Mockingbird takes place in Maycomb, Alabama. Being a southern state in the 1930s, there are many racial biases held by its residents. Although race is a prominent cause of negative perceptions, Maycomb citizens are also judged by their position in the social hierarchy and the way in which they adhere to Maycomb’s ways. Through Arthur Radley, Mrs. Dubose, and Atticus, Harper Lee illuminates the idea that people can respectively display their own versions of courage in spite of the negative perceptions that

Boo Radley is the recluse of the neighborhood and being the mystifying figure that he is, there isn’t much information on him. Appearance wise, all that is specified is a wild speculation proposed by Jem, which is later restated by Scout. She rehashes that Boo was a six-and-a-half foot tall monster that “dined on raw squirrels… [with] a long jagged scar that ran across his face; [and] [his] teeth… were yellow and rotten; his eyes popped, and he drooled most of the time” (Lee 16). In his youth, he kept the troublesome Cunningham boys as his company. After they all inevitably got into trouble with law enforcement they found themselves facing various consequences. Being charged with disorderly conduct, “...The [Cunningham] boys [had to attend an] industrial school and received the best secondary education to be had in the state.” Boo on the other hand, “was not seen again for fifteen years” (Lee 13). Boo Radley had atrocious regulations

Dubose is judged heavily by the Finch children for her unpleasant personality as they are unaware of her ongoing battle to break her morphine addiction and die free, and the courage that comes with that. Mrs. Dubose is an elderly woman who lives on the same street as the Finches. She spends the majority of her time in bed, with only an African American servant as company. Scout explains Jem and her mutual distaste for her when she elaborates, “[We] hated her… [we] could do nothing to please her…She was vicious… [And] countless evenings Atticus would find Jem furious at something Mrs. Dubose had said when we went by” (Lee 132-133). It is later revealed that Mrs. Dubose’s behavior is a direct result of a much bigger conflict. After her death Atticus explains that she was a recovering morphine addict and that her displeasing behavior was due to the withdrawals she was facing. Praising Mrs. Dubose Atticus explains to his children that, “[courage] is when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what” (Lee 149). Mrs. Dubose made a wildly courageous attempt at sobriety and dying free. Similar to Boo and Atticus, she understood that there was almost no way that she could be successful. Although she eventually won the fight, it didn’t prevent the sense of resentment held towards her by the Finch kids because they were unaware of the battle entirely. Despite this, she bravely continued to chase her dream of dying free. And