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Atticus Finch Trial

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To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a chilling historical fiction novel that centers around the trial of an innocent black man who is accused of raping a white woman. The novel is set in Alabama during the 1930s, and it follows an old lawyer and his family in the small town of Maycomb. Atticus Finch, the lawyer and father, is often called upon by the town for help due to his stature. He is level headed and focuses on the belief that everybody deserves to be treated equally. It is this belief that leads him to being chosen to represent Tom Robinson, the accused black man, in court. Because To Kill a Mockingbird is set in Alabama during the 1930s, the odds that he will be found innocent are exceptionally low, so Atticus must do everything …show more content…
Even though he admits to Scout that he is not going to win the case, Atticus still puts in his best effort to save Tom Robinson. When he admits this, he says to Scout “Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win” (Lee, 76). The major lesson that can be pulled from this quote supports the theme of the novel because Atticus knows he is going to lose, and yet, because it is simply the right thing to do, he tries his hardest to change the ways of Maycomb and save an innocent life. This is significant because, in an effort to be as convincing as possible in his final statement of the trial, he mentions how everyone is created equal in court. In a final attempt to convince the jury to follow his example and forget their prejudices, he says “Our courts have their faults, as does any human institution, but in this country our courts are the great levellers, and in our courts all men are created equal” (Lee, 205). With this quote, Atticus is imploring the jury to change their ways, follow his personal dogma, and not convict Tom Robinson based on the color of his skin. It is this effort that shows just how far Atticus is willing to go to implement his own beliefs into his every action while as a result, creating change and gathering a following of open-minded Maycomb

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