Throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee, a lawyer and father of two takes a stand against the racism in his society to defend an African American in a court case involving the rape of the nineteen year old caucasian female, Mayella Ewell. Additionally, he struggles with the hardships that he and his children face as they are judged from every corner of Maycomb County. Though his young ones, still too far into their youth to understand these accusations about their father, mature as the situation becomes real to them. Some might ask, how does a father complete his job, as well as protect his children, Jem and Scout, from the actualization of what their society considered acceptable? Even though he resides in a rather …show more content…
Because of this, Atticus had to be brave in order to face the commotion that was brought upon him and his family for taking his assigned case of defending Tom Robinson. Though he was confident that the verdict would not be in Tom’s favor, his application of true commitment to the case is what his fellow neighbors disapproved of. In the courthouse, Scout overheard a man in a group of friends say, “Yeah, but Atticus aims to defend him. That’s what I don’t like about it” (218). Needless to say, I believe that statement reveals how the residents of his community truly felt about the way Atticus approached his assignment. It seems to me that he is in a situation where his way of life, treating everyone the way he would treat his own family, does not register well with his community because they are too quick to judge and feel as if they must fit in with society’s thoughts and outlooks. Furthermore, Atticus repeatedly supported evidence to the jury that essentially proved Tom’s innocence. His evidence included Tom’s crippled left arm that he allegedly used to beat Mayella with, along with evidence of her father’s alcoholism that causes him to get aggressive. In other words, he provided all the evidence needed to prove Tom’s innocence, where Mr. Gilmer provided more of his theories with no evidence to support it. Although, Atticus’s expectations were proved honest, and the jury found Tom guilty. He is not blind to how his society feels for the opposing race; he once explained “There's something in our world that makes men lose their heads—they couldn't be fair if they tried. In our courts, when it's a white man's word against a black man's, the white man always wins. They're ugly, but those are the facts of life” (295). Jem, traumatized by the outcome, began thinking of ways to change the system. Atticus, sure that nothing but an influence of acceptance