ipl-logo

The Theme Of Hidden Identities In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee

816 Words4 Pages

A theme incorporated into the book is hidden identities that characters have that readers might not know about. When a “mad dog” comes into the neighborhood, people aren’t sure what to do about it. Atticus reveals a different side of himself, when Heck Tate, the sheriff, hands him a gun. Mrs. Maudie later says to the kids, “Forgot to tell you that besides playing the Jew’s Harp, Atticus Finch was the deadest shot in Maycomb County in his time,” (Lee 98). The author developed Atticus to be a very sophisticated and proper character, readers definitely didn’t expect him to be able to shoot a gun. Not only does Atticus have a hidden identity, but also does Mrs. Dubose. After the children learn of her unexpected death, they are confused as to how …show more content…

Mrs. Dubose’s death came abruptly to the children, but not to people who knew she was addicted to morphine. Atticus explains her struggle and courage throughout her life by saying, “I wanted you to see something about her. I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what,” (Lee 112). Despite the fact that Mrs. Dubose knew she would be fighting with it her whole life, she used courage to defeat her addiction. Courage shows up in multiple characters, not just Mrs. Dubose. When Calpurnia brings Scout and Jem to church, she is confronted by a lady, Lula, who doesn’t want the children there. Scout narrates saying, “When Lula came up the pathway towards us Calpurnia said, ‘Stop right there, nigger,” (Lee 119). Lula is known to be a bully and Calpurnia uses her courage to stand up herself, and others which takes a lot more …show more content…

Mrs. Dubose’s death came abruptly to the children, but not to people who knew she was addicted to morphine. Atticus explains her struggle and courage throughout her life by saying, “I wanted you to see something about her. I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what,” (Lee 112). Despite the fact that Mrs. Dubose knew she would be fighting with it her whole life, she used courage to defeat her addiction. Courage shows up in multiple characters, not just Mrs. Dubose. When Calpurnia brings Scout and Jem to church, she is confronted by a lady, Lula, who doesn’t want the children there. Scout narrates saying, “When Lula came up the pathway towards us Calpurnia said, ‘Stop right there, nigger,” (Lee 119). Lula is known to be a bully and Calpurnia uses her courage to stand up herself, and others which takes a lot more

Show More
Related
195 Words | 1 Pages

I am reading the book, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. In the chapters ten through fifteen, Atticus shot a mad dog, Mrs. Dubose, a Maycomb resident made Jem angry at her so he killed her bushes with Scout’s new baton and was punished by having to read to her every day for a month. Mrs. Dubose had episodes during the reading and it is found out that she was a morphine addict, and she died not long after Jem had fulfilled his punishment. Atticus had to work in the capital for two weeks, so Calpurnia took the children to her church. When returning, Aunt Alexandra was on the porch and had decided to give the kids a feminine influence.

Read More
294 Words | 2 Pages

Bravery can be demonstrated in many ways. The most common way we see it today is in movies or books by a hero facing a villain who is much more powerful than themselves. However, bravery can be much more. It can be killing a spider despite having an extreme fear of the insect or speaking your mind knowing there will be backlash. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Mrs. Dubose demonstrates an entirely different kind of bravery, and one which may be the bravest of all, she stands up to pain in the face of death in order to be a better person.

Read More
487 Words | 2 Pages

She teaches these kids that it’s not always the right thing to do what everybody else is doing. Calpurnia looks after these children and takes them in as her own when she is told to. Atticus shows the most examples of courage in this story. He teaches his people many lessons, especially his children.

Read More
266 Words | 2 Pages

Francis Drake was sometime around 1540-1544. He had to start working on a ship at a young age. Started as an apprentice on a ship then a navigator. Entered into the slave trade with John Hawkins until his ship was attacked by the Spanish. Francis Drake was a hero to the British and a pirate to the Spanish.

Read More
913 Words | 4 Pages

Dubose is the third most obvious character who is strongly misunderstood in the novel. To the kids, she is perceived as a rude old lady who is very racist and does not approve of Atticus’ work for Tom Robinson. They don’t know about her addiction or about any of her health issues and are too quick to judge. Atticus says to Jem, “I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin

Read More
428 Words | 2 Pages

Dubose dies. The children learn that she was a morphine addict, and was trying to become unaddicted. She was not just a mean old lady. Atticus said that she had real courage, that courage is “when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what.” By standing in her shoes, the children learn that she was truly brave.

Read More
227 Words | 1 Pages

(Mrs. Dubose in To Kill a Mockingbird is another character that is not who everyone thinks she is). Scout and Jem do not like Mrs. Dubose she yells and screams at them when they walk by her house: “Jem and I hated her. If she was on the porch when we passed, we would be ranked by her wrathful gaze” (132). Mrs. Dubose always had an angry tone and harsh remarks to say to the kids came into her view. A couple months after Jem’s punishment of reading to Mrs. Dubose ended, Atticus tells Jem that Mrs. Dubose has died.

Read More
834 Words | 4 Pages

After Mrs. Dubose's passing, Atticus explains to the kids that “‘Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict, she took it as a pain-killer for years… … She said she meant to break herself of it before she died, and that’s what she did.’” (147-148). Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose is a brave and courageous soul for wanting to break her morphine addiction just before she had passed. She knew that going through the withdrawals would put her in large amounts of pain and agony, but she wished to pass fully sober without the effects of

Read More
919 Words | 4 Pages

Dubose’s unseen patience in fighting morphine addiction and her astonishing strength in extending time between doses of morphine, Lee uses Mrs. Dubose’s true intentions to show things are not always as they seem as the theme of the novel. “‘Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict,’ said Atticus. ‘She took it as a pain-killer for years’” (Lee 147). Atticus explains to his children that Mrs. Dubose used to yell at them because she was fighting morphine addiction and needed some way to get her anger out.

Read More
232 Words | 1 Pages

Mrs. Dubose is a character in Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, that exhibits traits and behaviors similar to those expressed in the poem “Be Brave!” by Bree Hodges. She specifically shares similarities with a small excerpt of the poem in which it says, “courage to know when a battle is lost” (Hodges). This pertains to Mrs. Dubose regarding a crippling morphine addiction that she battles up until her death.

Read More
720 Words | 3 Pages

Atticus uses a metaphor to describe Mrs. Dubose, a lady who died trying to detox herself from morphine to Jem. He said “I wanted you to see something about her- I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand” (Lee 115). Atticus attempts to refine Jem’s definition that courage is not just found in physical fighting, but rather in the idea that knowing the risk of an action, and pushing forward anyway.

Read More
405 Words | 2 Pages

After Scout leaves the Radley's yard Jem goes back to get the tire. Scout said,"Jem looked at me furiously, could not decline, ran down the sidewalk, treaded water at the gate, then dashed in and retrieved the tire. "(Finch, pg. 50) ,and this quote shows how much Jem proves his courage to Scout and Dill. Atticus wants Jem to see what real courage is in Mrs.Dubose. Atticus says,"I wanted you to see something about her--I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand.

Read More
693 Words | 3 Pages

The theme of courage and strength is evident in Harper Lee's novel To Kill A Mockingbird (1960), through Mrs. Dubose's battle against her morphine addiction, Atticus' willpower to challenge Maycomb's racism, and Mr. Underwood's decision to put his racist opinions aside and do what he knows is right. Mrs. Dubose's fight against her morphine addiction is an example of true courage and strength. She is a sick old woman, awaiting death.

Read More
1428 Words | 6 Pages

As a result, Calpurnia would have empathy for Walter. She was infuriated at Scout because she didn’t want the same inadvertent discrimination happening to Walter, as she had experienced it first-hand. Calpurnia emphasizes the fact that social status does not determine a person’s worth and teaches Scout to treat everyone with respect and dignity, regardless of social status. Calpurnia deems treating anyone disrespectfully or making rude comments in their home unacceptable, as it is against her values and those of the Black community. Moreover, Calpurnia relates to Scout as she is a mother figure to her.

Read More
1376 Words | 6 Pages

Dubose was in the presence of mental courage. She stopped taking her pain killers because she did not want to die addicted. Later in the book, Scout asks Atticus why he is defending Tom Robinson and Atticus says, “Scout, simply by the nature of the work, every lawyer gets at least one case in his lifetime that affects him personally. This one’s mine, I guess” (101). What one can learn from this quotation is that the theme of mental courage is present in Atticus as he takes on Tom Robinson’s case, by risking the opinions of others about him and if he will win or not.

Read More

More about The Theme Of Hidden Identities In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee

Related Topics

Open Document