To Kill A Mockingbird Quotes To Show Courage

To children like Jem and Scout Finch, being courageous is completing a daredevil like task to impress others; however, as they grow up they learn what true courage is as they face situations where their courage is tested. They also witness an obstacle Atticus Finch overcomes that enhances their definition of courage. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee distinguishes foolishness from real acts of courage through the experiences of Jem, Scout, and Atticus Finch.

As Nelson Mandela wisely said “ I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it. The brave man is not he who does not feel afraid, but he who conquers that fear.” The story centers around the Finch family and the lessons that both Jem and Scout Finch learn as their father defends a black man accused of rape. Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, we see the idea of true courage reflected in Jem Finch’s journey. With her words, Harper Lee paints a picture of what true courage as it is, and Jem Finch takes this lesson to heart as he sees examples of true courage in his life.

Courage has gone through many changes. It has been altered throughout races, cultures, religions, sex, and time. However, the core values of courage has always remained parallel. It is difficult to explain in words the meaning of courage, like describing a color, but everyone knows what courage is, how it feels, and how to perform it. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus explained to us a type of courage that was shown in Ms. Dubose. These attributes were also apparent in a man named Liu Xiaobo. Both Ms. Dubose, and Mr. Liu, rose above social views to fight for their beliefs, did not give up in times of trouble, and had the audacity to face demons that were far more powerful than themselves.

    I agree with Atticus’s definition of courage but I also think that courage can be many things. In my opinion, courage can be doing anything that is frightening. You never really know whether you're going to succeed in something until you try.

Throughout To Kill A MockingBird, by Harper Lee there are many acts of courage. This is shown in Atticus Finch, Jem Finch, and Boo Radley. Atticus shows the most courage in the book but all three of these characters show true courage in some way, shape, or form. Boo Radley showed a lot of courage, but he was not in the storyline as much as Atticus. Throughout To Kill A Mockingbird, courage is defined as standing up for people and doing what’s right.

In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Scout, Calpurnia, and Atticus stand out when courage comes to mind. These characters show courage in many unique ways with different situations. In the early 1930s, in the deep south, racial discrimination was a huge conflict, for example, the Jim Crows Laws were in play, and it legalized segregation between blacks and whites. Courage isn’t always shown in situations, but simply throughout growing up.

Courage is not strength or skill, it’s simply standing up for what you believe in and what is right. This is the theme that was enrolled after Jem destroys Mrs.Dubose’s camellias and after she died in chapter 11. This passage also reveals Jem’s coming of age moment. After using conflict, symbolism, and point of view, Harper Lee was able to connect the theme with Jems coming of age moment.

Atticus’ courage is shown in multiple ways through his court actions and his stand against racial discrimination. For instance, as a lawyer, Atticus defends the innocent, despite controversial thoughts of others, this is proven true in the Tom Robinson court case. During this discriminative period, most African Americans brought to court for an accused crime were deemed guilty, despite the clear evidence that proved their innocence. When Jem thought Atticus’ defense of Tom will bring Tom to justice, Reverend Sykes said: “I ain’t ever seen any jury decide in favor of a colored man over a white man”(Lee 279). This proves Atticus’ courage because he chose to fight for a colored man to prove that he is not guilty of an alleged crime, despite knowing the usual outcome of the case and the disapproval he will receive from others.

“Courage is not the absence of fear but the acquired ability to move beyond fear” (-Unknown). Courage is a person who steps up to do something they don’t want to regardless of what other people think of them. In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird the novel highlights themes such as, racial injustice, improper judgement, thinking in other perspectives and lots of courageous acts through the use of her many characters. Atticus is a character of courage in a way he steps up to defend an black man,Tom Robinson, in a tough case. But there is another character who goes by the name of Mr. Dolphus Raymond who showed more courage because he, a white man, married a black woman at the time of racial injustice when not all whites respected blacks. Atticus tells Jem, “...to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand.” (Lee 112) In this novel Harper Lee chose to define courage as a person who has the strength to do something that they are either afraid of or know others may not accept it courage is mistaken for a heroic figure. Mr. Dolphus Raymond is courageous because of his beliefs, actions, and words.

In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee vividly illustrates the real meaning of courage, both physical and emotional, through various situations and characters. The author explains the real meaning of courage through Mrs. Dubose, who in the novel wasn’t really seen as a main character, but as we dissect the novel in its entirety we uncover

"Courage is when you know you 're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what" According to Atticus Finch, an honest lawyer in Harper Lee 's novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" courage is not a man with a gun in his hand. "Real courage" is when you fight for what is right regardless of whether you win or lose. Atticus fits into this definition of what "real courage" is and demonstrates it several times throughout the novel.

Throughout the story, Jem (taken from the word gem meaning a cherished and prized person) is used by Harper Lee as a representation of courage. In the beginning, Jem’s first act of courage occurs when Jem accepts Dill’s provocation to go and touch the Radley house. In the story, Scout says, “In all his life, Jem has never declined a dare” (Lee 16). This quote shows how Jem would never demur any sort of challenge, even if it involved stupid or childish acts like going to a forbidden place. Scout also shows how Jem even accepted a dare from her to jump off the roof of the house as a kid. An Enotes comment says that “Jem was scared but he overcame that fear and ran up and touched the house.” Even though these two acts were childish, they were brave and bold for someone his age and maturity none the less.

"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. Most of them, if not all, showed true courage by standing up for what they believe in and keeping their heads up high. Harper Lee uses many scenes and key characters to develop the theme of real courage for instance, Jem, Atticus, and Miss Maudie go through a journey to discover, understand and to show that real courage is mental courage in the face of physical and emotional torment.

The definition of courage is the ability to do something that frightens one, or strength in the face of pain or grief. People all over the world perform countless acts of courage every single day. Many characters in Harper Lee’s book, To Kill a Mockingbird portray these courageous traits also. Many of them performed acts that took great courage to do. Atticus’s definition of courage is going through with something you believe in even when you know it might go wrong. In the book, there are many courageous acts that happen but Atticus Finch shows the most courage all around.

"You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, 'I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along."- Eleanor Roosevelt. You are not born with courage, it 's something that’s created over time. Being courageous is never a lucid decision, it determines the quality of a person 's mind as it 's faced with difficulty, danger, pain, and a test of bravery. The book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee develops the theme concerning courage to show the difficulty and the necessity of acting boldly. The characters Atticus, Scout, Arthur Radley and Mrs.Dubose display an act of courage as they are faced with feasible but difficult situations.