Society often judges others based on looks, stereotypes, and assumptions instead of the unique traits that can be found when the layers of one’s personality are peeled back. In To Kill a Mockingbird, a classic novel by Harper Lee, many residents of Maycomb County are found to be much different than originally thought by the community. The town is undergoing changes, and citizens of Maycomb are beginning to question equality and racial injustice. Scout and Jem, two troublesome siblings growing up in the 1930s, tell ghost legends about Boo Radley, vindictive tales about Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose, and stories of the drunk and evil Mr. Dolphus Raymond. However, when Scout and Jem get a chance to understand the true nature and identity of their
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Dubose as an evil, cranky, old lady until they are able to spend time with her and learn her secrets. The children thought Mrs. Dubose was incredibly rude, and they did not want to walk past her house because they “would be raked by her wrathful gaze, subjected to ruthless interrogation regarding our behavior, and given a melancholy prediction on what we would amount to when we grew up, which was always nothing” (Lee 132). Mrs. Dubose judged the children, made rude remarks, and seemed completely heartless. She often insulted Scout for unlady like behavior, and she insulted Atticus, Scout and Jem’s father, for defending and supporting African Americans. It was not until Atticus forced Scout and Jem to read to Mrs. Dubose every day that the children learned Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict who was trying to get clean before she died. Atticus tells the children that courage is “‘when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway [..] Mrs. Dubose won, all ninety-eight pounds of her. According to her views, she died beholden to nothing and nobody. She was the bravest person I ever knew” (Lee 149). Although to most people Mrs. Dubose appeared to be an impolite and irritable lady, the children learn that Mrs. Dubose is a dying woman, who is fighting a battle with addiction. In her final days, Mrs. Dubose felt pain and suffered through withdrawls, despite how easy it would have been for her to use morphine and ease the pain. Mrs. Dubose represents determination and courage and Harper Lee uses the old woman’s strength to show that behind one’s facade, there are a million secrets that shapes his or her
Dubose as an evil, cranky, old lady until they are able to spend time with her and learn her secrets. The children thought Mrs. Dubose was incredibly rude, and they did not want to walk past her house because they “would be raked by her wrathful gaze, subjected to ruthless interrogation regarding our behavior, and given a melancholy prediction on what we would amount to when we grew up, which was always nothing” (Lee 132). Mrs. Dubose judged the children, made rude remarks, and seemed completely heartless. She often insulted Scout for unlady like behavior, and she insulted Atticus, Scout and Jem’s father, for defending and supporting African Americans. It was not until Atticus forced Scout and Jem to read to Mrs. Dubose every day that the children learned Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict who was trying to get clean before she died. Atticus tells the children that courage is “‘when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway [..] Mrs. Dubose won, all ninety-eight pounds of her. According to her views, she died beholden to nothing and nobody. She was the bravest person I ever knew” (Lee 149). Although to most people Mrs. Dubose appeared to be an impolite and irritable lady, the children learn that Mrs. Dubose is a dying woman, who is fighting a battle with addiction. In her final days, Mrs. Dubose felt pain and suffered through withdrawls, despite how easy it would have been for her to use morphine and ease the pain. Mrs. Dubose represents determination and courage and Harper Lee uses the old woman’s strength to show that behind one’s facade, there are a million secrets that shapes his or her