Examples Of Empathy In To Kill A Mockingbird

Walt Whitman wrote, “I do not ask the wounded person how he feels, I myself become the wounded person.” This quote is the definition of empathy. Empathy is an emotion that so many rarely express. And since so many people hardly demonstrate this, it causes conflict, misunderstanding, and often the shedding of innocents’ blood. Author Harper Lees, To Kill A Mockingbird touches on this by bringing to life the characters’ in her novel. Atticus is the perfect example of this sentiment because instead of passing judgment and casting his fellow townsmen aside, he has compassion and understanding.

To begin with, on page 20, Atticus is giving legal advice to Walter Cunningham. At the end of their discussion Walter says, “Mr. Finch, I don’t know when I’ll ever be able to pay you,” and Atticus replies with, “Let that be least of your worries Walter.” Instead of charging him for his legal advice, he allows Walter to pay him in what he has available. The Great Depression has the entire country in a financial predicament; some are suffering more than others. Atticus would want he and his family to be given the same courtesy if they were in need of assistance. Only

Dubose as punishment for destroying her flower bed. When she dies Atticus says to his son, “Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict.” Because she was in the process of detoxification and had prior physical pain, he professes that ‘either he or Scout were going to be sent to tend to her eventually.’ The purpose was to make her transition to death bearable. Most people are not aware of the pain that comes with detoxification. Its magnitude is immeasurable and any amount of relief is a godsend. Therefore, Jems’ reading was not meant to ease the pain, it was to provide, at the very least, a temporary distraction from it. With this comes understanding and with it comes compassion. Mahatma Gandhi said “I call him religious who understands the suffering of