In Harper Lee’s classic American novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout and Jem Finch grow up in a small, southern town called Maycomb. Many people in this town are quick to anger and prejudiced towards others, even if they don’t realize it themselves. Others in Maycomb, though, are good people who show bravery and determination in making the lives of others better. It is from these people that the Finch kids learn valuable lessons that they would carry with them their entire lives.
One of the first lessons presented by Atticus, and one of the first lessons received by the Finch kids, is the idea that you can’t really know someone until you step into their skin. “ ‘First of all,’ he said, ‘if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you'll get along …show more content…
Atticus serves as a source of many lessons throughout the life of his kids, but this is one that applies to many situations that occur to them. A main example of this lesson is Scout and Dill’s encounter with Dolphus Raymond, who the whole town thinks can only tolerate associating with the african american community because of his constant drunk state. Scout first talks to Raymond after Dill breaks down due to Mr. Gilmer’s verbal assault on Tom Robinson. Dolphus offers Dill some of the drink he always carries, the kids realize it’s not alcohol like previously thought, and urge him to explain himself. He responds saying that he doesn’t want to deal with the hatred that comes with the town knowing that he enjoys his way of living, a reason the children had never. “Secretly, Miss Finch, I'm not much of …show more content…
“ ‘Atticus, he was real nice... ‘ [...] ‘Most people are, Scout, when you finally see them” (281). A large amount of the people the Finch kids interact with are very negative towards either them or the people around them, which gives them a need to have thick skin and not respond to hate with more hate. An early example of this is the kids’ interactions with Mrs. Dubose, who they originally saw as an old, cranky lady who torments them for no good reason. “Your father’s no better than the niggers and trash he works for!” (102). At first, they just try to ignore or avoid Mrs. Dubose whenever she decided to verbally abuse them, but after Jem destroys her camellias, they are forced to interact with her for an extended period of time. Jem and Scout don't really take much from their conversations while reading to Mrs. Dubose other than developing a tolerance to the way she treated them. The Finch kids, and especially Jem, take the most from this lesson after the death of Mrs. Dubose, and when Atticus tells them about her morphine addiction that she was trying so desperately to combat. Jem sees that Mrs. Dubose didn’t really hate them, but was really just frustrated with her efforts to get unhooked from morphine. He realized that Mrs. Dubose probably even appreciated the company, as the distraction helped her with her addiction. Jem saw the
One of the first lessons presented by Atticus, and one of the first lessons received by the Finch kids, is the idea that you can’t really know someone until you step into their skin. “ ‘First of all,’ he said, ‘if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you'll get along …show more content…
Atticus serves as a source of many lessons throughout the life of his kids, but this is one that applies to many situations that occur to them. A main example of this lesson is Scout and Dill’s encounter with Dolphus Raymond, who the whole town thinks can only tolerate associating with the african american community because of his constant drunk state. Scout first talks to Raymond after Dill breaks down due to Mr. Gilmer’s verbal assault on Tom Robinson. Dolphus offers Dill some of the drink he always carries, the kids realize it’s not alcohol like previously thought, and urge him to explain himself. He responds saying that he doesn’t want to deal with the hatred that comes with the town knowing that he enjoys his way of living, a reason the children had never. “Secretly, Miss Finch, I'm not much of …show more content…
“ ‘Atticus, he was real nice... ‘ [...] ‘Most people are, Scout, when you finally see them” (281). A large amount of the people the Finch kids interact with are very negative towards either them or the people around them, which gives them a need to have thick skin and not respond to hate with more hate. An early example of this is the kids’ interactions with Mrs. Dubose, who they originally saw as an old, cranky lady who torments them for no good reason. “Your father’s no better than the niggers and trash he works for!” (102). At first, they just try to ignore or avoid Mrs. Dubose whenever she decided to verbally abuse them, but after Jem destroys her camellias, they are forced to interact with her for an extended period of time. Jem and Scout don't really take much from their conversations while reading to Mrs. Dubose other than developing a tolerance to the way she treated them. The Finch kids, and especially Jem, take the most from this lesson after the death of Mrs. Dubose, and when Atticus tells them about her morphine addiction that she was trying so desperately to combat. Jem sees that Mrs. Dubose didn’t really hate them, but was really just frustrated with her efforts to get unhooked from morphine. He realized that Mrs. Dubose probably even appreciated the company, as the distraction helped her with her addiction. Jem saw the