To Kill a Mocking Bird: Tracing Courage

Martin Luther King Jr. gave up his safety, and inevitably his life for the greater good of the black community in the United States. What connected King to many other heroes in history was a quality they possessed, that was necessary to make a positive change. This quality is courage. The necessity of courage is also made evident through the characters in Harper Lee's, "To Kill a Mockingbird". Without this quality, a move in the right direction could never be made. People would act to benefit themselves over society. Thus, a chaotic world would arise. Courage is necessary for positive change, because to have courage is to be willing to act in the best interest of others, rather than the interest of oneself. Obtaining such a trait as courage is what gave King and many others like him their respected place in history.

In parenthood, one must obtain courage for the protection of all children. Atticus Finch is a father who certainly realizes this. Although one would think that getting away with child abuse would be enough for Mr. Ewell, his shattered dignity left him seeking revenge against Atticus. This revenge came in the form of an impertinent and violent encounter as "Mr. Bob Ewell stopped Atticus at the post office corner, spat in his face, and told him he'd get it if it took the rest of his life" (Lee 217). Ms. Stephanie Crawford later explains to Jem and Scout that although Mr. Ewell cursed at him, attempted to provoke a fight with him, and threatened to kill him, Atticus simply wiped off his face and walked away. The reason for such a mild response is seen when Atticus later explains to Jem, "If spitting in my face and threatening me saved Mayella one extra beating, that's something I'll gladly take" (218). Considering Atticus can not predict Mr. Ewell's actions, one can not say that Atticus was courageous to take what he did from Mr. Ewell. What makes Atticus courageous is how he states that going through what he did was "something [that he would] gladly take". One could infer from Atticus's words that if he had the chance to go through the interaction with Mr. Ewell again, he would do so for the protection of the Ewell children. Atticus demonstrates courageous parenting, by being more of a father to the Ewell children than their own father, Mr. Ewell.

In a more serious matter, a loss of safety can be the result of a man's courageous action/s. Atticus Finch fighting for the freedom of Tom Robinson is much like Martin Luther King Jr. fighting for the rights of the American black community. These two people are fighting at different time periods and at different levels of significance. What they share is that they both put their security in jeopardy for the benefit of others. Atticus Finch was chosen by Judge Taylor to take the case of Tom Robinson vs. Mayella Ewell. Atticus was chosen because Judge Taylor knew that Atticus of any lawyer would do everything in his power to defend the wrongly accused black man. Jack Finch (the brother of Atticus) was visiting Atticus and his children. Jack and Atticus get into deep conversation of Tom Robinson's case when Atticus says to his brother, "You know, I'd hoped to get through life without a case of this kind" (Lee 88). Here Atticus is describing his subtle aversion for the case.

The reason he wished he did not have to contribute to the case, is he knew that supporting a black man, would result in controversy, and jeopardize certain aspects of his life. Atticus feared for his safety because of people like Mr. Ewell, who would later threaten Atticus and nearly take the life of his children. What makes Atticus courageous is even though his safety would be put in jeopardy, he decided to fight for Tom Robinson. Defending Tom required Atticus to have more concern for an innocent man's freedom, than his own safety. Atticus defended Tom, not only to fight for what was just, but also to make the people of Maycomb realize the injustice that was going on Doing so would bring Maycomb one step closer to adopting the concept of blind justice. A courtroom revolving around this concept could potentially save the lives of the innocent people who would otherwise be found guilty due to the color of their skin. Atticus was willing to risk his safety to benefit the town in such a way.

At the same time, a friendship is a relationship that can push a man to such courageous lengths as risking his life for another's. Late one night, Jem and scout were walking a pitch black path as they returned from their school's annual Halloween celebration. Although Atticus thought Mr. Ewell would come after him, the white-trash racist nearly got his revenge on Atticus by stalking and attacking Jem and Scout that night. After mysteriously surviving the encounter which left Jem unconscious, Scout explained to Heck Tate his recollection as he said, "Mr. Ewell was tryin to squeeze me to death, I reckon... then somebody yanked Mr. Ewell down" (Lee 270). It is soon after this that Scout realizes the person who saved him, was Boo Radley. The friendship between Boo and the Finch kids is one that harnessed little communication.

Later in the story when Boo was still a mysterious and faceless friend to the Finch kids, he came off as very gentle and loving person. Though these qualities stayed, his life saving actions also brought out a part of himself that Jem and Scout had not yet witnessed. This part of Boo was his courage. Boo acted in the best interest of the Finch kids by saving them from what would have been the end of their young lives. What makes this act courageous is how Boo risked his own life to do so. The fact that neither of the children had even came face to face with Boo before that night, shows how just strong a connection Boo felt with the kids. Considering Boo had been deprived of interaction with society for over 15 years, it comes as no surprise that he felt such strong feelings for his newly acquired friends. Boo's courage saved the life of two innocent children, and gave Mr. Ewell a proper punishment for framing Tom in the process.

In another scenario, a courageous act can both save the life of one, and the incarceration of many. In this example, a mob made up of a white, racist, Maycomb County men comes face to face with Atticus, outside the Maycomb jail. The mob is there to do away with the falsely accused Tom Robinson and Atticus is there to stop them. After the unexpected arrival of Jem, Scout and Dill, Scout makes conversation with a familiar face within the mob, Mr. Cunningham. Scout's words make him realize what he and the rest of the men are about to do. In response to this realization, Mr. Cunningham instructs, "Let's clear out, let's get going, boys" (Lee 154). It is difficult not to fall into peer pressure, yet it is even more difficult for a man to speak in opposition of his peers. The latter of the two is what Mr. Cunningham did. A man's reputation is put at stake when his beliefs contradict those of his peers. This is why Mr. Cunningham's decision was not an easy one to follow through with. What makes Mr. Cunningham's actions courageous is the fact that he knew what he was risking when contradicting the mob mentality of his peers, yet still did so to save the life of Tom Robinson (for the time being) . Although Mr. Cunningham sacrificed his reputation for the life of Tom, he also saved himself and his fellow mobsters the far worse reputation they would have received if they had followed through with the murder of Tom. A simple courageous sentence is all it took for Mr. Cunningham to be considered a savoir of another man's life.

Courage is found within the most highly respected people in history, yet this does not mean the average man can not posses this quality as well. It also can be obtained with a sacrifice as large as death, to one as minute as giving up some spare change. The importance of courage should never be forgotten. If it was not for the courage of people in the past, inhuman ideas such as white supremacy might have still been in use today.