Which characters show courage?

Question

In To Kill a Mockingbird..which charaters show courage throughout the book...and why (where do you see this?)

Also..why would Tom Robinson be considered couragous?

Answer 1

There are many themes in the book To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee. However, one of the most predominate is courage. This theme is shown by almost all of the characters in the novel.

Atticus has strong views on courage. He shows this when he taught Jem and Scout to be brave; for instance, when he told Scout to stop fighting the people that mock her Scout had to be brave enough to ignore the harsh remarks and put herself above them. One person that Atticus admired for having real courage is Mrs. Dubose. When Jem ruined her camellias because she verbally hurt him, he made Jem go and read to her. He did this not only because it was a punishment but because he wanted Jem to learn from her. When Atticus said, "I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand" This showed how much Atticus respected Mrs. Dubose for trying to overcome her addiction. He also called her "the bravest person I ever knew". Atticus wanted Jem and Scout to know that he was not courageous for being able to shoot a crazy dog dead with one shot; but he is courageous for defending Tom Robinson even though he knew he had lost before he started. He teaches them that being courageous is standing up for what you think is right no matter what others believe.

Courage is also shown within the community. When there is a fire at Miss Maudie's house, the book says that, "The men of Maycomb, in all degrees of dress and undress, took furniture from Miss Maudie's house to a yard across the street". The most important part of this statement is, "in all degrees of dress and undress". This shows that the people that came to help, came straight away. If the men would have dressed first, then they would have thought about whether to help or not, but they came straight from their beds to help.

Boo's most courageous act was when he saved Jem and Scout's lives when Bob Ewell attacked them. When Boo saw that "his children needed him," his courage overrode the town's prejudice and he risked his own life to save Jem and Scout's lives. He was rewarded in his acts by Heck Tate. Everyone in that house knew that it was Boo who actually killed Bob Ewell, but it was Heck Tate that said Boo was innocent. He did this because he knew what Mr. Ewell did was wrong. This was his way of thanking Boo for saving Atticus’ children. Many people showed courage in this book, but ultimately it is Atticus that teaches us that, “Courage is knowing you’re licked from the start, but starting anyway.”

It takes courage for Atticus Finch to go against people's beliefs in order to do what he believes was morally right. The racist views of the town are against Atticus defending Tom Robinson, a black man accused of raping a white woman, and Atticus is often discriminated against for not agreeing with them. His children, Scout and Jem, also feel the hatred of others against them because of what their father's beliefs are. "But Mrs. Dubose held us: "'Not only a Finch waiting tables, but one in the courthouse lawing for *******' ... 'Your father's no better than the ******* and trash he works for.'" Although Atticus is criticized for what he decides is right, he bravely ignores the disapprobation.

Mrs. Dubose is courageous because she recognizes she has a flaw and that she has to help fix it to make it go away. She is addicted to Morphine and makes a goal to die free from her weakness. She goes through a withdrawal period that is difficult to survive. "Her head moved slowly from side to side. From time to time she would open her mouth wide, and I could see her tongue undulate faintly. Cords of saliva would collect on her lips; she would draw them in, than open her mouth again. Her mouth seemed to have a private existence of its own." She finishes her goal before she dies, although she dies almost right after she becomes free. It takes a great amount of self-confidence to be able to recognize that one has a flaw and even more to do something about it.

Boo Radley is a reclusive person, due to being shunned the society and it takes courage for him to come out of his house, even to save Scout's life. Even after he saves her life, he is scared, although he does not run away once he knows she is safe. "When I pointed to him his palms slipped slightly, leaving greasy sweat streaks on the wall, and he hooked his thumbs in his belt. A strange spasm shook him, as if he heard fingernails scrape a slate, but as I gazed at him in wonder the tension slowly drained from his face. His lips parted into a timid smile, and our neighbor's image blurred with my sudden tears. 'Hey, Boo,' I said." He is courageous when he is needed, although he does not like being around other people in society.
Harper Lee shows bravery in all three of these characters to help portray the theme of courage in the book. Lee is addressing historic racial issues so that we do not forget what our past is, making sure we do not make the same mistakes we made before.

Chapter 1

Courage 1: The truest challenge to anyone's courage is the Radley place. Dill made a bet with Jem that challenged Jem's courage. Rather than look like a coward, Jem took the bet to touch the Radley house although he was really scared to do it. He couldn't allow Dill and Scout to think him a coward because his courage was a source of pride.

Chapter 2

Courage 2: When Scout popped out of the tire, there was no time for courage. She realized she was in the Radley yard and Jem was screaming at her to get out of there. Although she was afraid, the most disconcerting aspect of the event was that someone inside the Radley house was laughing. When Jem accused her of turning into a girl because she ran so fast that she forgot the tire, she didn't tell him what she'd heard' although that would have more than made up for her forgetful and hasty escape from the Radley yard. She didn't even explain to Jem and Dill that that was the reason she didn't want to play the morbid Boo Radley game any more. She just let them go on thinking she was a chicken.

Chapter 6

Courage 3: Curiosity finally got the better of Dill and Jem, and it created in them the courage to sneak up to the Radley house to peer in the windows until they got caught and had to run away.

Courage 4: Curiosity wasn't the only thing that bred courage. Because Jem didn't want to disappoint Atticus, he was forced to go back to the Radley place to retrieve his pants so that he wouldn't have to explain where he'd lost them. Although he knew it was dangerous and he was scared to go, Jem went to the Radley place because the courage to go there was easier to summon than the courage to face Atticus and tell him that Jem had flat-out disobeyed him.

Chapter 10

Courage 5: Atticus showed his children that he was a courageous man when he stepped into the street to face down a rabid dog. Although he didn't consider the act particularly courageous and was completely uninterested in proving anything to his children, Jem and Scout were proud of, and impressed by, his courage in such a precarious situation. But shooting something wasn't really Atticus' idea of courage. He viewed courage on a more intellectual level, as a moral thing, not as something that can be proved with a weapon.

Chapter 11

Courage 6: Scout wasn't really sure what got into Jem to make him so bold as to destroy Mrs. Dubose's camellias when it was a well-known rumor that she was armed with a Confederate pistol at all times. Although Jem was familiar with the rumor, his rage pushed him beyond caring that he might be hurt or get into trouble because Mrs. Dubose had bad-mouthed Atticus, and Jem just couldn't take it. His fury made him bold enough to wreak havoc in her yard with little regard for the consequences.

Courage 7: Atticus uses Mrs. Dubose as an example of true courage to show Jem that courage isn't a man with a gun, but someone who fights for what's right whether he or she wins or not.

Chapter 15

Courage 8: Atticus went to the jailhouse to protect Tom Robinson from the mob he knew was coming for him. Although he was alone against several men, Atticus held his ground until his children showed up. Only then did Atticus seem truly afraid because they were in danger. He'd expected to get roughed up a little in the struggle to protect Tom Robinson, but he never imagined that his children would be in the way. That's when his courage failed him, but Scout's complete innocence saved them all.

Chapter 23

Courage 9: Atticus was unaffected by Bob Ewell's threat because he didn't believe the man would make good on it. He refused to fight or arm himself against Ewell although Jem and Scout requested it. He believed that once Ewell had threatened him in public, he'd satisfied his vengeance. Unfortunately Atticus was wrong.

Chapter 30

Courage 10: Heck Tate finally stepped out of the shadows and did the right thing. He hadn't been able to do it in the Tom Robinson case, but this time he refused to lay down and let an injustice occur. Although he had to lie to protect Boo Radley, he knew that keeping his role in Bob Ewell's death a secret was the right thing to do, and he did it.'

And there's more at link 3

Answer 2

Tkam Characters

Answer 3

This Site Might Help You.

RE:
Which characters show courage?
In To Kill a Mockingbird..which charaters show courage throughout the book...and why (where do you see this?)

Also..why would Tom Robinson be considered couragous?

Answer 4

Characters To Kill A Mockingbird

Answer 5

Tom is a black man in 1930's deep south standing up for his right not to be thought of as a rapist. That would have been extremely brave for any black person to have done back then and in that place.

Answer 6

Persiphone why are u being so rude

Answer 7

I agree - do your homework. This is a simple book that is assigned to virtually every student in America. If you can manage to read 6 volumes of Harry Potter and remember every single name and every situation in all 6 books, you most definitely can handle To Kill a Mockingbird." Get off the computer and start reading. Pax - C.

Answer 8

Do your homework