The Respect of Courage
Everyone wants to be the person with enough guts to stand up to wrongs in an attempt to right them. Courage is perceived as a great thing in our society; so much so that the opposite of such, cowardice, is frowned upon. This is prevalent in the 1930’s as well. Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird demonstrates that courage is a trait Scout admires and seeks through Scout’s experiences, thoughts and actions.
Scout experiences bits and pieces of courage almost every day in the little town of Maycomb. For instance, Calpurnia decided to take her and Jem to First Purchase when Atticus wasn’t there one Sunday. In the following quote, she is confronted by Lula, who believes the white children should not be there, and she attempts to comfort Scout. “‘Don’t you fret,’ Calpurnia whispered to me, but the roses on her hat trembled indignantly” (Lee 158). Calpurnia was trying to look strong in the face of an attack despite how afraid she really was. Scout could see through it, but the courage that Calpurnia displayed still comforted her. This experience furthered her belief that she should stand up for what is right, no matter how terrified she may be.
After experiencing so much that has to do with courage, Scout …show more content…
On her first day of school, a boy in her class did not have any lunch and refused to accept a quarter from the teacher because he knew he wouldn’t be able to pay her back. Scout then attempts to explain the situation to her teacher, as described in the quote, “I rose graciously on Walter’s behalf. ‘Ah -- Miss Caroline?’ ‘What is it, Jean Louise?’ ‘Miss Caroline, he’s a Cunningham.’ I sat back down” (Lee 26). Scout thought she was being courageous in standing up for Walter. She believed that defending him and his family’s name would be the right thing to do. Her little act of bravery here displays that the courage to stand up for the “right thing” is important to
Everyone wants to be the person with enough guts to stand up to wrongs in an attempt to right them. Courage is perceived as a great thing in our society; so much so that the opposite of such, cowardice, is frowned upon. This is prevalent in the 1930’s as well. Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird demonstrates that courage is a trait Scout admires and seeks through Scout’s experiences, thoughts and actions.
Scout experiences bits and pieces of courage almost every day in the little town of Maycomb. For instance, Calpurnia decided to take her and Jem to First Purchase when Atticus wasn’t there one Sunday. In the following quote, she is confronted by Lula, who believes the white children should not be there, and she attempts to comfort Scout. “‘Don’t you fret,’ Calpurnia whispered to me, but the roses on her hat trembled indignantly” (Lee 158). Calpurnia was trying to look strong in the face of an attack despite how afraid she really was. Scout could see through it, but the courage that Calpurnia displayed still comforted her. This experience furthered her belief that she should stand up for what is right, no matter how terrified she may be.
After experiencing so much that has to do with courage, Scout …show more content…
On her first day of school, a boy in her class did not have any lunch and refused to accept a quarter from the teacher because he knew he wouldn’t be able to pay her back. Scout then attempts to explain the situation to her teacher, as described in the quote, “I rose graciously on Walter’s behalf. ‘Ah -- Miss Caroline?’ ‘What is it, Jean Louise?’ ‘Miss Caroline, he’s a Cunningham.’ I sat back down” (Lee 26). Scout thought she was being courageous in standing up for Walter. She believed that defending him and his family’s name would be the right thing to do. Her little act of bravery here displays that the courage to stand up for the “right thing” is important to