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).
Strangely enough, Atticus was also able to see the good in Mayella Ewell, and it tore him apart having to destroy her testimony on the stand. In chapter eighteen Scout says, “Atticus hit her hard in a way that was not clear to me, but it gave him no pleasure to do so. He sat with his head down..”(Lee 252). When Atticus had to defend Tom he also had to show the jury that Mayella was speaking lies which made him upset to do so. He knew Mayella was a victim in the situation too and did not want to hurt her more than Bob Ewell already did.
This pushback is shown by multiple instances in which Jem and Scout are made fun of for their father is a “n****r lover”. Secondly, Atticus knows he is going to lose the case for he knows that the moral character of Maycomb is not high enough to be able to see true innocence on account of evidence. This realization did not deter him, for he believed that “the one place a man should get a square deal is in a courtroom” (295). Thus he delivered on behalf of his morals and completed the case. This again shows moral courage, for Atticus knew that he if he forfeited his defense of Tom Robinson the ridicule would stop.
Secondly, Atticus knows that Maycomb is a racist town and that he will not win the trail but he still defends him to create change in the community. As Scout does not understand the racial segregation in Maycomb, she asks “Atticus, are we going to win it?’ ‘No, honey’ ‘then why-’ ‘simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win” (Lee 89). Even though they have a small chance of winning the trial, Atticus will take that chance because he wants to make a change which is removing racial boundaries. This proves Atticus has unshakable morals and is against racial segregation because Atticus does not want coloured people to be such poorly treated and is defending a coloured man to show this no matter what people say. Finally, Atticus knows that if he does not defend Tom Robinson no one else will and Maycomb will remain racially segregated.
He then tries to transfer the audience’s pity to Tom Robinson, who is the real victim in the courtroom. He calls out the ‘witnesses’ for assuming that the jury would believe them just because of Robinson’s skin color. By doing this he appeals to the jury’s emotions by claiming that they are smarter than only judging on skin color. He addresses the racist prejudices that the jury might have had and tells them they are better than that, making them feel guilty for the racism they may have felt. Atticus tells the jury he is sure that they will make the right decision, saying, “Now I am confident that you gentlemen will review without passion the evidence that you have heard, come to a decision, and restore this man to his family.” He is putting additional pressure on them to make a choice based on facts and not on prejudiced ideas about race.
Atticus taught me many things about being courageous. For example, he knew he probably wasn’t going to win the Tom Robinson case yet he still gave it his all which showed his loyalty towards Tom. His children learned something from a great man like what color you are doesn’t define who you truly are inside. Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird.
To begin with, Atticus demonstrates moral courage through his determination to defend Tom Robinson's case, despite of what his friends and neighbors have to say. He does what he thinks is right even if other people think it's wrong. In the book it says, “I’d hoped to get through life without a case of this.”(pg 70). This quote states that Atticus is doing something out of his comfort zone, which means that he is showing courage by taking this case. In addition, in the book it says, “I'm simply defending a Negro his name's Tom Robinson.” (pg 69).
He shows compassion by taking on an impossible case and by acting friendly towards people that show hate to him. After the trial ended and Tom was found guilty, the black community of Maycomb brought food to Atticus ' doorstep and Calpurnia said: "they ‘preciate what you did." (Lee 213) Atticus tried his hardest to save Tom Robinson but the prejudices of the jury overpowered his argument. He showed compassion by putting the best case together that he could, even though the white community were shaming him for helping a person of color. Not only did Atticus show compassion towards friends, he also showed compassion to his enemy and their family.
Atticus also says “i am confident that you gentlemen will review without compassion the evidence you have heard, come to a decision, and restore this defendant to his family. In the name of God, do your duty.” This is the strongest point that Atticus makes that alludes to the jury's sense of ethics, because when Atticus says God, it makes any of the jury who believes in a God which at that time most did it draws to their attention that Tom Robinson is a man with a family, that he is a human being and that is what God wants them to do. Atticus also uses logos many times. He says “the state has not produced one iota of medical evidence.” This makes the jury think about how valid
This shows that Atticus got to them and made them look at Tom just as equally as themselfs. Atticus may have lost the case but he made a small step. All of Maycomb will not change in a day, but Atticus got the ball rolling to make that change. Atticus shows ambition throughout the book when he stands up for Tom Robinson and battles his case out to the very end. He is ambitious because he never gives up even when he knows the outcome.