Atticus Finch Nonviolent Social Change Essay

1. What can we learn about nonviolent social change from this book? Atticus Finch is an advocate of nonviolent social change. There are several examples demonstrating his advocacy for nonviolence and social change throughout this novel. For instance, in taking on Tom Robinson’s case he faced a lot of criticism from members of the Maycomb community. Mrs. DuBose was known to yell at Jem and Scout, and make degrading remarks Atticus concerning his legal defense of Tom Robinson (pp. 102). Despite Mrs. DuBose’s constant rebukes, Atticus saw her as a standard of bravery. Since Mrs. DuBose was very sick and in constant pain, she became a morphine addict, using it as a painkiller. Knowing that she would die soon, Mrs. DuBose wanted to die “beholden to nothing and nobody”, and did this by using the Jem’s reading as a distraction to concentrate on lowering her addiction (p. 111). Atticus explained to his children that although he and Mrs. DuBose may have had differing views, she was a good example of real courage, “[i]t’s when you you know you’re licked before you …show more content…
Atticus is a role model for nonviolence, and Scout is his counterpart. Her character served the role of holding a mirror up to society, in demonstrating her naivety and innocence she describes injustice seen through the eyes of a child. For instance, she asks Jem, “how can you hate Hitler so bad an’ then turn around and be ugly about the folks right at home –” (p. 247). Or the night the mob goes to the county jail for Tom Robinson. In this moment, Scout humanizes her father, and exposes Mr. Cunningham by pointing out past familiarities between Mr. Cunningham and her father, and in using the most of her manners to reach the mobs benevolence (p. 154). Just like that, all qualms were resolved. In viewing injustice through the ideas of a child, this specific piece of literature utilizes that point of view to highlight how simply conflict can be