ipl-logo

Theme Of Heroism In To Kill A Mockingbird

2504 Words11 Pages

Tom’s unruly nature sends him (and those he drags along with him) through a series of increasingly dire situations that provide him with opportunities to define himself as a person throughout. As Tom travels deeper and deeper into darkness (both literally and metaphorically), he comes to gain understanding in a world where others constantly seek to fill his head with their flawed conceptions. Eventually, Tom comes to embody the traits of what twain defines as a hero. Through Tom’s adventures, readers come to understand that heroism manifests when people diverge from group human behavior and focus on what they as individuals have to offer. Through overcoming society’s conception of what it means to be human, Tom is able to achieve a greatness and heroism that is independent of what others expect of him.
Tom throughout the novel is faced with many people who seek to teach him how to conduct himself. There is his Aunt Polly, the minister, and the school master Mr. Dobbins employing a variety of methods to teach Tom how one should behave. However, these characters are not the ones who truly teach Tom by the end of this novel, and it is ironically through the very aspects of his personality that they want to temper that Tom accesses his sense of heroism. It is through his curiosity and sense of adventure that he stumbles upon the scene of Dr. Robinson’s murder, it is because of his willingness to lose favor with authority that he accepts Mr. Dobbin’s punishment in Becky’s stead,

Show More
Related

  • Theme Of Cruelty In To Kill A Mockingbird

    401 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, cruelty comes up again and again as a central theme and driving force in the plot. The novel takes place during the Great Depression, a time period where segregation is the norm, and cruelty is commonplace. The main character, Scout, grows up seeing all of this, and questions it. She watched racism take place around her, and grew up throughout the course of the novel, and found that even though the events that transpired were unpleasant, they made her a better person. “To Kill a Mockingbird” was set in the Great Depression.

    Read More

  • Forms Of Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird

    122 Words  | 1 Pages

    In your mind what does courage look like, and how is it embodied by people? Different characters embody many forms of courage in the book To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Courageous characters Jean Louise Finch is the main character of the book, and she lives near a house they call the Radley house, and she believes that a mysterious man nicknamed Boo Radley is being held there. In addition to this plot, Jean Louise’s father, Atticus, is a lawyer, and is enlisted to defend a black man named Tom who was accused of raping a white teenager named Mayella Ewell. Throughout the book, Atticus, Tom Robinson, and Jean Louise are all characters who are shown to bear forms of

    Read More

  • Theme Of Individualism In To Kill A Mockingbird

    439 Words  | 2 Pages

    In To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, there are many examples of the themes of individuality and belonging. Atticus Finch is definitely a perfect model of personal integrity and individuality, as he fights for the innocence of Tom Robinson, falsely accused of rape, as well as his own beliefs. A good example of this would be when Jem makes the observation of his father, Atticus, as he realizes, "It was times like these when I thought my father, who hated guns and had never been to any wars, was the bravest man who ever lived," (Chapter 11). Jem believes his dad is a hero in his own right because of his moral commitment to the law and to justice. Atticus goes against the grain of the majority that would rather see Tom proven guilty for a crime he did not even commit.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Compassion In To Kill A Mockingbird

    126 Words  | 1 Pages

    In Chapter 15 of To Kill a Mockingbird,when scout tries to have a conversation with Mr. Cunningham, Scout’s compassion relieves the tension of two situations. When they are about to lynch Tom Robinson, Explanation. the theme of compassion developed in other sections of the excerpted novel in chapter 30 when Boo Radley was going to be convicted of killing someone, and Scout took his hand to show that he saved her and that he was innocent of crime. During this chapter Atticus tells Boo, “Thank you for my children,” this shows that scout’s compassion for Boo after the incident showed other people, like her father, that Boo did not deserve to be convicted of a crime. This is how Scout’s compassion is shown in chapter

    Read More

  • Theme Of Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird

    949 Words  | 4 Pages

    “I want you to understand that courage isn’t a man with a gun in his hand,” (Lee 112). This is a quote spoken from a courageous man who put himself in other people’s positions and did not believe he was superior to African Americans like many in that time period. Atticus Finch is a lawyer, and also the father of Jem and Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. The finches live in a small town called Maycomb during 1933, also known as the Great Depression era. Throughout the book, the town faces many racial discrimination issues, especially when an African American man named Tom Robinson is falsely accused of rape of a white female.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Moral Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird

    740 Words  | 3 Pages

    One lesson in the book that I feel Jem learns as a part of growing up is moral courage. Atticus once told Jem that “courage is [not] a man with a gun in his hand. It 's when you know you 're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.” Jem had always seen bravery as important and often tried to show the courage in him but only learnt about what moral courage really was through a series events that took place in the book.

    Read More

  • The Theme Of Adversity In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee

    503 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Scout embodies Atticus’ advice regarding both her internal and external conflicts stemming from the court case, which leads to her discovering the theme that adversity is not worth one’s relationships with those they are close to. During the plot, Jem and Scout are continuously ridiculed by their family and classmates due to the fact that their father is defending Tom Robinson, a black man, in a trial. The two act irrationally in response, whether it is Scout fighting her cousin, Francis, or Jem cutting down fellow Maycomb resident, Miss Dubose’s camellia bushes. When Atticus discovers these things, he tells his children that in this case, “(they) aren’t fighting the Yankees”, but instead their loved ones; however, it should not get in between those ties, as in the end “they’re still (their) friends and this is still (their) home” (Lee 76).

    Read More

  • The Hero's Journey In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee

    1256 Words  | 6 Pages

    The Great Depression was a war within itself and ordinary people were the heros. In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, the Finch family go through a bunch of situations that not many families go through. Atticus Finch, is the only parent Scout and Jem Finch both have. Their mother died and the closest thing they have to a mother is Calpurnia the maid. Throughout the novel, Scout and Jem both go through challenges, meeting new people, and trying to see Arthur (Boo) Radley.

    Read More

  • To Kill A Mockingbird Thematic Statement

    224 Words  | 1 Pages

    The theme of this novel is "Not everything is the way you predict it is". I believe this thematic statement suits the story because throughout the book there are lots of surprises, and most situations don't go the way people predict they will. For example, Aunt Alexandra was first seen as mean, according to her attitude towards Scout. At the end of the book Aunt Alexandra hands Scout her overalls, as mentioned in the story, "the garments she most despised." Because she always wanted Scout to be a lady and wear dresses.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Cowardice In To Kill A Mockingbird

    566 Words  | 3 Pages

    Everyone in their life has had a moment where they have shown courage and cowardice at least once. Courage and cowardice show what a person is like and how they act. It also shows what a person is willing to do. In To Kill a Mockingbird, courage and cowardice is shown throughout the book in different scenes and characters.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Kindness In To Kill A Mockingbird

    864 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, some people do not recognize that someone wants to help them. The people mentioned had been given or received kindness from someone but they do not know that they are trying to help. The types of kindness that will be shown is kindness within the Finch family, kindness shown through neighbours, and kindness of acquaintances. It is shown that kindness is taken for granted.

    Read More

  • What Is The Theme Of Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird

    551 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Chapter 6 of the novel TKAM, shows us that there are two types of courage- physical courage and moral courage. Physical courage was shown as Jem and Dill decided to “peep in the window with the loose shutter to see if they could get a look at Boo Radley.” And moral courage was shown to us when Jem decided to return to the scene of the crime in order to retrieve his pants. Physical Courage In order to satisfy their curiosity, at night, Dill And Jem planned to get a glimpse of how Boo Radley looks like.

    Read More

  • The Theme Of Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird

    965 Words  | 4 Pages

    "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, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what. " This insightful statement was told by Atticus Finch to his son, Jem Finch. Many people in Maycomb had to deal with racism, hatred, and discrimination because of their skin color or because of the court case.

    Read More

  • To Kill A Mockingbird Theme Essay

    715 Words  | 3 Pages

    To Kill a Mockingbird is a book mainly about the coexistence of good and evil. The book stresses and emphasizes on the exploration of moral nature in humans. There are many themes in this novel including courage, innocence, racism, femininity, etc. However the most prevalent theme in the book is innocence. Not just innocence in itself but the danger and harm evil poses to the innocent.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Law And Justice In To Kill A Mockingbird

    740 Words  | 3 Pages

    The theme of law and justice is one of the most significant themes in To Kill A Mockingbird, as the setting of the novel is heavily segregated, which highlights the importance of order and equality. It starkly contrasts with the theme of racial segregation and social ranks, therefore bringing about the concepts of good and evil in Maycomb society. Although law and order is present throughout the novel, it is presented as the weaker force when compared to segregation and chaos. This is shown when Scout describes Tom, “If he had been whole, he would have been a fine specimen of a man”, the word “whole” meaning disabled literally. However, there is this symbolic meaning of “whole” describing Tom’s skin colour, making him not whole as a person.

    Read More

More about Theme Of Heroism In To Kill A Mockingbird

Open Document