How Does Atticus Show Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

Catching “Maycomb’s usual disease”; the racism and prejudice coursing through their blood involving symptoms of rash and blind hate towards others. Atticus tries to protect his children from catching “Maycomb’s usual disease” of racism and prejudice. Scout is vulnerable to this since her instinctive is to fight when she is angered. She is touched by this disease when Cecil Jacobs, her cousin, calls out his views on Atticus and consequently “split [her] knuckle to the bone” 102 on him. This shows that she was fearful and often, fear leads to anger that cannot be controlled. Similarly, the mob in the jailhouse are overrun by blind fear. Atticus’ face is ridden with “a flash of plain fear” 203 when he realizes what they were there to do. When …show more content…
The Finch family, for example, are touched by the racism in the town. Scout and Jem’s innocence are soiled with the views of prejudice and discrimination it has brought upon them. Finch birds are small and particularly vulnerable to being handled by humans, similarly to Jem and Scout’s innocence and being vulnerable to their circumstances. Tom Robinson, the greatest example of a mockingbird in the novel and his colored community, are all mockingbirds. His innocence is prevalent in the trial, and although “it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (94), Mayella Ewell still dares to do it. Boo Radley is a misunderstood Mockingbird in the novel because of his absence in the town people think he is up to no good. Dill, Scout and Jem go on to make up crazy stories about him without fully understanding his situation, which leads to fear of him. In the end of the novel, they finally see him for who he really is; a powerful symbol of innocence and courage. Scout makes Boo “bend [his] arm like that” (287) to make it seem like he was escorting her down “like any gentleman would” (287). She understands now how wrong they were about him, and how he was only an innocent man accused of crimes he never