Direct Characterization In To Kill A Mockingbird

Decent Essays
Through words and actions, a character can come to life for the reader. The Author uses direct and indirect characterizations to create her characters. Harper Lee’s characterization of Atticus Finch relays the idea that social justice is all about being understanding, honest and being civilized.

At a point in the story, Scout is telling Atticus about her difficult day with Miss Caroline, Atticus responds with “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view”(39). This shows Atticus as smart and understanding, he knows what to say and when to say it. Atticus believes that everyone deserves a second chance because nobody knows what they’re going through. He wants to raise his kids so that they

Related Documents

  • Decent Essays

    Scout and Jem are asked/encouraged to think about Boo Radley as a man, not a monster. Calpurnia makes certain that Scout does not treat Walter Cunningham like he is lesser than the Finches. Atticus advises the children that they are needed/demanded to trear black people and even people like Mrs. Dubose with…

    • 53 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Decent Essays

    And for all of his treatment of Jem and Scout, he recognizes that they are still children and will act like children. He has Scout and her brother call him Atticus instead of Father to make it seem like they are peers. Atticus believes in what is right, even if it is not what is popular. He is faced with a very stressful case in which he has to defend an African-American man accused of raping a white girl. He knows this man is innocent and defends him because of it, not because he's black.…

    • 243 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Harper Lee exemplifies the characters using specific archetypes such as Terrorist, Matriarch/ Patriarch, and Sadist. Throughout the story she uses each archetype to plan and organized the novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” and successfully recites the wonderful master piece. Each archetype has their own reason and own description to excite the readers. From the Terrorist being Atticus, to the Sadist being Bob Ewell the novels throws punches using the characters themselves. Although, Aunt Alexandra isn’t considered to be a main character her archetype is the Matriarch/ Patriarch.…

    • 478 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Author Harper Lee’s ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ and Director Gary Ross’ ‘Pleasantville’ both explore the ideas of racism and prejudice in order to appeal and make meaning for the reader/audience. Lee’s ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ set in 1930’s Maycomb, Alabama, and Ross’ ‘Pleasantville’ set in the fictional 1950’s town use characterisation, setting and symbolism to highlight the depth of racism and prejudice that is embedded and its consequences. Characterisation is used in Lee’s ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ and Ross’ ‘Pleasantville’ for the audience to develop a deeper understanding of ‘Good Vs Evil’. Scout Finch, the narrator and a main protagonist in Lee’s novel is seen as the innocent child and a mockingbird herself with the quote “…I was slowly drying…

    • 1010 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Atticus Finch’s Character Essay How can you be extremely criticized but at the same time respected though out your town? Well in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, set in the 1930s by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch is criticized and hated in the town of Maycomb for defending a black man. On the other hand, Atticus is respected and admired in Maycomb because he’s respectful to others, fair to everyone, and incredibly brave.…

    • 480 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Atticus was a whole different person before “‘. . . Atticus Finch was the deadest shot in Maycomb County in his time’” (Lee 112). When Miss Maudie tells Scout and Jem that Atticus used to be the best shot, neither of them could believe it. Their father, probably the most level headed and humble person they ever met had hidden part of his past “Nevertheless, he refuses to use his background as an excuse to hold himself above others and instead is a model of tolerance and understanding” (“To Kill a Mockingbird”).…

    • 2721 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In “To Kill a Mockingbird” Harper Lee repetitively uses the term “if” as an association of Scout Finch’s depiction of her father Atticus. This repetition parallels and connects to the poem “If” by Rudyard Kipling. The stanzas of the poem can all be linked to different occasions in the novel and come together to create an impacting characterization of Atticus in the eyes of Scout. This characterization develops Atticus as a person who is, to everyone, filled with integrity and wisdom Atticus’ integrity is seen on page 100 when he says, “If I didn’t [defend Tom Robinson] I couldn’t hold my head up in town, I couldn’t represent this country in legislature, I couldn’t even tell you or Jem not to do something again” (Lee).…

    • 522 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird: A Blow To Racism Beginning in the mid-1950s, the civil rights movement began to gain traction. There was an uproar aimed at addressing the racism and segregation that was prevalent and widespread in the United States. During this time, some activists—authors and public speakers—gained notoriety for their work with civil rights.…

    • 919 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    To Kill A Mockingbird written by Harper Lee is written to address the horrendous issues of the 1930’s, The Great Depression, the Jim Crow Laws, and segregation. It explores a variety of themes, all of which affect the reader greatly. Its portrayal of white supremacy, injustice, and prejudice is evident in many occurrences during the novel. The way the characters react to these times of hardship, however, defines their real strength stated by Martin Luther King Jr with the quote “the ultimate measure is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy”. These significant themes, white supremacy, injustice, and prejudice, are reflected through the characters Scout Finch, Atticus…

    • 1088 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    To Kill a Mockingbird explores the moral nature of human beings in a time before the civil rights movement. The story begins from the perspective of childhood innocence, where it is assumed that people are good since they have never seen evil, but it later shifts to a more mature perspective, in which they have confronted evil and now must incorporate it into their understanding of the world. Lee’s overall message was to portray that humans, rather than being merely creatures of good or creatures of evil, have both good and bad qualities. This is largely reflected in the character, Atticus Finch, who is unique in the novel because he has experienced and understood evil without losing his faith in the human capacity for goodness. He teaches this practice to his two children, Jem and Scout, where Scout’s development as a character in the novel is defined by her gradual progress toward understanding Atticus’s lessons.…

    • 830 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “First of all, if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view...until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” (39). What Atticus is doing is trying to convince Scout that Miss Caroline is doing what she believes is right and if she could see that, then she would get along with Miss Caroline better. Atticus says this early on in the book to Scout after she tells him all of the hardships she encountered on her first day of school and this theme stays true all the way through the entire book of To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses Dolphus Raymond, Boo Radley,…

    • 1022 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Altogether, Harper Lee and her novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, uses Scout and Atticus to cause readers to examine their own lives, deciding whether they have the same troubling attitudes and traditions as that of Maycomb County. Lee convinces readers to beware of having hate towards another person. She also shows through Scout how one could examine themselves and look at the way they treat their fellow people, asking, “What does not add up,” about the way they act. Lastly, she displays Atticus as an example of how to preserve a strong foundation, not easily bent or…

    • 701 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, explores the role of heroes in unjust societies. The community of Maycomb, Alabama, the novel’s setting, is unjust, with inherent prejudice against many in the society. However, the character of Atticus Finch shows great heroism and fights the injustice that is prevalent throughout Maycomb, chiefly by electing to defend Tom Robinson, a black man falsely accused of raping a white woman. Atticus Finch deserves distinction as the greatest moral hero of all time. He demonstrates heroism by his willingness to oppose tradition and institutionalized racism.…

    • 1318 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The novel To Kill a Mockingbird reflects life values and lessons to a great extent through the character Atticus Finch. It is said of Atticus that ‘whether Maycomb knows it or not, we’re paying him the highest tribute we can pay a man. We trust him to do it right.’ And it is with Atticus’ moral integrity he teaches his children through the themes of good and evil, prejudice, and courage.…

    • 1046 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Atticus always tries to provide his kids with the correct answer and alway give them a wise answer for anything they need. Atticus does what right even when he knows the wrong is going to happen in the end. That 's why he takes Tom case and fights for his equal rights all the way to the end of his life. He thinks that each and every person should be seen equally that why when someone calls you a nigger lover, in his mind that person it just misguided. It does not hurt him he really just feels sorry for these kinds of people because that can 't realize the simple act of being equal and kind.…

    • 1941 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Improved Essays