This causes Atticus to gain respect throughout the town of Maycomb, by both black and white residents, before and after Tom Robinson’s trial takes place. To begin with, the white people in Maycomb respect Atticus because of his dedication and commitment. Correspondingly, Jem is reading the paper one morning when Scout comes up behind him to see if there is anything interesting. “We were surprised one morning to see a cartoon in the Montgomery Advertiser above the caption, ‘Maycomb’s Finch.’ It showed Atticus barefooted and in short pants, chained to a desk: he was diligently writing on a slate while some frivolous-looking girls yelled, ‘Yoo-hoo!’ at him. ‘That’s a compliment,’ explained Jem.
It was obviously an unfair trial. The evidence seemed undebatable in Tom’s favor yet the vote did not reflect it. At this Jem’s, “face was streaked with angry tears as we made our way through the cheerful crowd. ‘It ain’t right,’ he muttered, all the way to the corner of the square where we found Atticus waiting(Pg.
This quote shows that Scout is not, in fact, deeply hurt by her father’s choices and is actually proud of him. While she does love a good fight, Scout cares more deeply about her father and pleasing him than whatever taunting she may face. Additionally, Atticus is teaching his children morals and values by taking this case, as shown above, the benefits of which greatly outweigh any negatives from taking the
The most significant mistake Atticus has made as a parent would probably be taking up the Tom Robinson case. Tom Robinson was a black man who had been accused of raping a white girl, Maya Ewell. Despite knowing he had no chance of winning the case, Atticus felt compelled to defend Tom because he believed that it is morally right. In fact, many would probably agree that he was right to uphold justice and speak for Tom. However, he also knew that his entire family, especially Scout and Jem, would be subjected to much criticism, insults, slander and so on.
When Atticus takes on Tom Robinson’s case he knows that Maycomb will be nasty to him and his kids. He says,“I just hope for Jem and Scout to come to me for their answers instead of listening to the town” (Lee 117). Atticus wants his kids to come talk to him if they have any questions about the trial. He teaches them to be independent so they do not buy in to the towns prejudice against Tom. Atticus trusts that his children will not lose their heard when someone says bad things about him representing Tom.
Scout does not usually get in trouble with her father. Even after an incident at the school where she fought with another kid, Atticus easily forgave her. An illustration of this would be when he said,”Try fighting with your head for a change….. it’s a good one, even if it does resist learning” (Lee p. 101). While Atticus is easy going, he does like to put in a couple of lessons in like,”The main one is, if I didn’t I couldn’t hold up my head in town, I couldn't represent this country in legislature, I couldn’t even tell you or Jem not to do something again” (Lee p. 100). In this, Atticus was explaining to Scout why she should not fight people just because they said that he was a “nigger lover.” In conclusion, Atticus is a little easier going on his kids, but he always tries to makes a lesson out of
Atticus being familiar to the kind of people in Maycomb, he had a good feeling that he was going to lose the trial. “Despite the danger of a mob of men coming to lynch Tom, Atticus sits outside the jailhouse with nothing but a lamp” (Text 2). Atticus put himself in serious danger by standing up to these angry men wanting to hurt Tom. Later Scout and Jem arrive and this puts them in danger as well. “He also is willing to stand up against the odds-he knows he’s ‘licked’ before he even begins” (Text 2).
Her father, Atticus, is appointed as the lawyer for the trial of a man named Tom Robinson. Tom is called to court by Mayella Ewell, a young white girl, who accuses Tom of raping her. Because Atticus accepts the case, he faces many dilemmas. Even faced with these predicaments from the Ewell family and other families in town, Atticus and his family are still ranked high on the Maycomb caste system because he has been to law school, which not many people could afford to do at this time. Thus, Atticus is respected throughout the town of Maycomb, by both black and white residents, before and after Tom Robinson’s trial takes place.
To begin with, Atticus is very loyal and stays loyal throughout the book. The most loyal thing Atticus had done in the book was he defended Tom Robinson from the lynch mob when they came to kill Tom just before the rape trial. Atticus was encumbering the mob from reaching the inside of the jail. Atticus was sitting outside as though he was expecting visitors. “‘ He in there Mr. Finch?’” (Lee 151).
From Mrs. Dubose’s words, the readers are also able to see how even Atticus was insulted just because he defended for a black. In addition, these two classes clearly show how the racist views in Maycomb county is intertwined with the division of the social