To Kill a Mockingbird
To Kill a Mockingbird Essay Jacob Salazar 5/17/11 3rd Pd. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird there are a lot of interesting people with different characters. There are those who are brave and those who are cowards. For example Atticus is the bravest character and his son Jem is also brave. On the other hand there are the disgraceful people like Bob Ewell who is the coward. There are several events that take place in the book that show the characteristics of each of these three characters.
Atticus is the bravest person in the story. An event that shows the bravery of Atticus is when the rabid dog is walking through the neighborhood and he has to shoot it. Scout even says “it was times like these that my father, who hated guns, was the bravest man who ever lived. ”(Pg. 134) In the case of Tom Robinson, Atticus made Bob Ewell look worse than what people already thought of him by making it apparent that Mr. Ewell beat and raped his daughter Mayella Ewell. Mr.
Ewell spat in Atticus’s face and threatened him, but Atticus says “if spitting in my face saves Mayella a beating, that it’s something he’d gladly take (Pg. 292). This shows Atticus rather take the threats than have Bob Ewell beating Mayella. Even just accepting to take on the case and defend a black man shows bravery. For being a young boy, Jem also showed he was like Atticus and was also brave. When Atticus was outside the jail surround by a mob, Jem followed and wanted to try and protect Atticus.
Atticus told him to go home but “Jem was not thinking of budging” (Pg. 203). The night Bob Ewell tried to attack the children, Jem tried to save Scout by “hurrying and pulling her with him” (Pg. 351). These two events show that even though he is younger and smaller than the adult men who pose as threats he is not scared of them. Then there is the coward, the man Bob Ewell. This man is a lazy, crazy, and out for revenge drunk. During the case and they were in court it was made apparent that it was more likely that Mr.
Ewell was the one who beat Mayella because Judge Taylor said “You’re left handed Mr. Ewell” (Pg. 237). Then when Tom Robinson is giving his testimony about what really happened he stated that Mayella said “what her papa do to her don’t count” (Pg. 260). This shows he is a coward because it pretty disturbing for a man and a father to beat and rape his own daughter. Again towards the end of the book he shows his cowardice by trying to attack the kids, although he is the one who ends up dying.
Just because Atticus made him look like a fool he wanted revenge by trying to threaten Atticus and trying to hurt the kids. Not only in the book but in reality there is bravery and cowardice. All though Atticus is just a character from the book people should try to be like him in the way they act and in the way they set examples for their children. Jem shows us that even though he is young that a kid can still be brave and stick up for his family. These two characters show great examples of bravery. Work Cited Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. New York: Grand Central, 2010. Print.
