English TKAM Essay
Atticus Finch, tries to teach his children various lessons throughout the story, and while they all are lessons that every child should learn, the finest one is the lesson of tolerance. When he teaches Jem and Scout about tolerance, he is saying that, before you assume anything about someone you should always think of the situation from their point of view. Atticus exhibits this lesson throughout the book, while being a role model for the children to follow by the end of the story. Jem and Scout, both grasp the idea of tolerance, through his lessons and as they mature.
Early on in the book, Scout gets involved with Miss Caroline, her first grade teacher, and learns tolerance through ignorance and punishment. Miss Caroline is Scout's first grade teacher, who is fairly inexperienced, and inadequate to teach at all. She has just graduated from college, and believes that there is only one method of teaching, to educate young children. Scout is exceptionally smart for her grade. She can not only read, but she can write, even in letter form. Most everyone in Scouts class can't read at all, much less write. Soon enough, Miss Caroline discovers Scouts literacy abilities, and, as she is new to teaching, believes that Scout shouldn't be at that level at all, but at the standard level as the rest of the class. Miss Caroline confronts Scout about the situation, and demands that Scout inform Atticus to stop teaching her how to read. Scout doesn't understand, being as she is young, and tells Atticus what happened at school. Atticus sits down with Scout and tries to explain why Miss Caroline might do this. He doesn't allow Scout to get outraged, instead Atticus defends Miss Caroline's way of thinking. He tells Scout to think of the situation from her point of view. Atticus says, "You never really understand a person, until you consider things from his point of view- until you climb into his skin and walk around in it. (39)" Scout considers this, and rethinks her position on the matter. Atticus does an incomparable job, by teaching Scout about this, and will have many more opportunities to elucidate this lesson further.
Similarly, Scout's experience with Walter Cunningham Jr. offers another example of how Atticus, and Calpurnia, tries to teach tolerance. The Cunningham family, who are mostly made up of farmers, was hit by the Great Depression devastatingly hard. They are awfully poor, and people in Maycomb County usually regard them in a pretentious type of manner. Scout exhibits this manner, when Walter Cunningham Jr. attends dinner at her house one day. Earlier that morning, Scout, being a naïve first grader, suspects that Walter got her into trouble at school, and rubs his nose in the dirt for it. While, Scout and Walter struggle around on the ground, Jem arrives and mediates between them. He is apologetic toward Walter, and invites him to have dinner with them at their house, because of Scout's actions.
Walter Cunningham Jr. has a disease by the name of Hookworms. Hookworms consist of worms, smaller than the average ringworm, that tunnel through your feet and into your gut, where they continue to suck blood voraciously on the host's intestinal walls. The worms cause dangerously low amounts of Iron and Protein in the body, which can contribute to another disease called anemia. Walter needs to have more Iron and Protein to provide for him and the worms, to avoid anemia. During his dinner with Jem, Scout and Atticus, he asks Calpurnia for a large amount of molasses, which has a high amount of Iron and Protein in it. So to prevent anemia, Walter drowns his dinner in the molasses. Scout, who does not know why Walter has to do this, demands to know why he poured it all over his meat and vegetables. Walter stops pouring, sinks into his chair, and looks down at the floor. Scout looks at Atticus, and he shakes his head, disapproving what she did. Calpurnia calls Scout into the kitchen, scolds her and explains that she should treat Walter as a guest. Scout replies "He ain't company, Cal, he's just a Cunningham (33)". This shows that she does not really know Walter enough. Scout is disgracing his family, because she already judged Walter, based on his family's status. Calpurnia tells Scout "Hush your mouth! Don't matter who they are, anybody sets foot in this house's yo' comp'ny, and don't you let me catch you remarkin' on their ways like you was so high and mighty! Yo' folks might be better'n the Cunninghams but it don't count for nothing' the way you're digracin' 'em-if you can't act fit to eat at the table you can just set here and eat in the kitchen! (33)" and sent her back to the table with a stinging smack. Atticus and Calpurnia both try to tell Scout to never prejudge people, and respect their ways.
Atticus pursues the goal of educating his children the moral lesson of tolerance a third time throughout the book when Jem and Mrs. Dubose get in an altercation. Mrs. Dubose is a crotchety, elderly woman, with an extremely racist point of view. She lives two doors down from the Finches, and the children absolutely hate her, because of the rude and cruel comments she makes to them as they walk by her house. Usually both Jem and Scout "hold their heads high (133)", as it says in the book, which, in this context, means to keep one's attitude under control. Finally Jem, the one who Atticus expected to manage Scout, lets his emotions get the best of him. Jem's birthday had just passed, and he had some left over money that he was just itching to spend. He decided that both, Scout and himself, would go to town where he would buy her a baton, and himself a miniature steam engine. Of course, to get to town, they have to walk by Mrs. Dubose. As they were walking, Mrs. Dubose calls out things, that surely hurt, but Jem tells Scout to ignore her, and be gentlemen, but then she says something that makes Jem stiffen. "Not only a Finch waiting on tables but one in the courthouse lawing for niggers! Yes indeed, what has this world come to when a Finch goes against his raising? I'll tell you! Your father's no better than the niggers and trash he works for! (135)". That stuck Jem, and he turned scarlet.
Finally, they went to town, bought his and Scout's things, and walked the same way to come back. As they were coming back, Jem stopped at Mrs. Dubose's house. He cut all of her flowers off the bush, snapped Scout's baton in two, threw it on the ground and left. As soon as Atticus found out, he forced Jem go down to her house and apologize. When Jem returned, it was decided that he was to read to Mrs. Dubose every day after school, and on Saturdays. Jem hated every second of his punishment, but he persevered through it. Jem had no idea that he was staying a tiny bit longer every session, and was helping Mrs. Dubose each time. Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict. Each time Jem came over to read to her, she was barely listening to a word he said, but instead she was trying to break free of her addiction. She would release him every day right before she had a fit. Finally, one month and a week later, Jem's reading sentence ended and he was free. A short time after that, Mrs. Dubose died, free of any drugs. Atticus told Jem that he would have made him read to her regardless, if he hadn't gotten himself into trouble.
Both Jem and Scout thought that Mrs. Dubose was a short-tempered, irritable old woman, for no reason. They judged her, before they knew why she was so grumpy all the time. This is a major example of when Atticus tries to teach Jem and Scout to have tolerance for other people, and not to jump to conclusions, because ultimately Mrs. Dubose turned out to be a very bold, and courageous woman.
Later on in the book, Atticus's proceedings with Tom Robinson's case exhibit a prime example of tolerance, and may be the one that stands out the most. Tom Robinson is a 25-year old black man that is accused of raping a young 19-year old, white girl, by the name of Mayella Ewell. The Ewells, as Atticus says, have been a disgraceful family in Maycomb County for three generations. The family is very poor, and they live near the city dump. Mayella's father, Bob Ewell, is an alcoholic, and how ever much money he does make, he spends on booze. In addition, Mr. Ewell has seven other children that he leaves Mayella to care for.
This case is very touchy. Normally, any white lawyer who receives this case would not even try to defend Tom, and would just let him go to jail, but Atticus, being a broadminded and non-racist person, accepts this case with enthusiasm, and attempts to succeed. During Tom Robinson's hearing, Atticus points out major things that could prove Tom's innocence, like the fact that all of Mayella's bruises are on the left side of her face. Tom would most likely hit her on her right side, because a cotton gin accident in Tom's childhood had resulted in his left arm being completely useless. Atticus also points out that it is clear that Mayella is making up the story as she goes, and that it is a high possibility that Bob Ewell, who is left handed, may well have raped her, beat her, and blamed Tom Robinson.
Mayella is a curious character. While Atticus called her up to ask her questions, she did not seem very social in the slightest way. When Atticus addressed her as Miss Mayella, she assumed that he was making fun of her. Also when Atticus asked her about her friends, or love, she had no idea what those two words meant. She is awkward when with other people, and Atticus had come to the conclusion that she was cut off from the rest of the world. Mayella is insufficient to operate in normal society because she has never been exposed to it.
Even with all of the evidence that Atticus has provided the jury with, they still ruled Tom guilty. Tom Robinson never raped Mayella, but he was sent to jail, because he is a Negro. The jury was racist, and was not about to see any "nigger" win over the white man. Atticus took this case because he wanted to exhibit what being tolerant was for his children. He says before the trial, to Scout, that if he hadn't taken Tom's case, and hadn't tried his best to defend Tom, then he wouldn't be able to tell Scout or Jem, what was right and wrong, because he would be contradicting all of the things that he had strived to teach them. This is the most obvious time that Atticus tries to teach his children tolerance for other people. Jem and Scout should both observe that Atticus never judged Tom based on the color of his skin, the way he lives, or the way he acts. Atticus educates his children, by demonstrating tolerance, and being an admirable example for both Jem and Scout to follow.
Atticus displays pure tolerance for other individuals all through out the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, and attempts to teach Scout and Jem to follow his example. He does teach them many other lessons such as, courage, fairness, responsibility, and numerous others. Scout and Jem both mature rapidly throughout the book, and, at different times, seize the ideas of these lessons, to grow properly and honorably as an individual. Atticus pushes tolerance onto Scout and Jem, more than any other lesson, because he believes that it is the most important one. Tolerance is a significant lesson for Scout and Jem to learn, and it is the most essential for their growth and well being.
Atticus Finch, tries to teach his children various lessons throughout the story, and while they all are lessons that every child should learn, the finest one is the lesson of tolerance. When he teaches Jem and Scout about tolerance, he is saying that, before you assume anything about someone you should always think of the situation from their point of view. Atticus exhibits this lesson throughout the book, while being a role model for the children to follow by the end of the story. Jem and Scout, both grasp the idea of tolerance, through his lessons and as they mature.
Early on in the book, Scout gets involved with Miss Caroline, her first grade teacher, and learns tolerance through ignorance and punishment. Miss Caroline is Scout's first grade teacher, who is fairly inexperienced, and inadequate to teach at all. She has just graduated from college, and believes that there is only one method of teaching, to educate young children. Scout is exceptionally smart for her grade. She can not only read, but she can write, even in letter form. Most everyone in Scouts class can't read at all, much less write. Soon enough, Miss Caroline discovers Scouts literacy abilities, and, as she is new to teaching, believes that Scout shouldn't be at that level at all, but at the standard level as the rest of the class. Miss Caroline confronts Scout about the situation, and demands that Scout inform Atticus to stop teaching her how to read. Scout doesn't understand, being as she is young, and tells Atticus what happened at school. Atticus sits down with Scout and tries to explain why Miss Caroline might do this. He doesn't allow Scout to get outraged, instead Atticus defends Miss Caroline's way of thinking. He tells Scout to think of the situation from her point of view. Atticus says, "You never really understand a person, until you consider things from his point of view- until you climb into his skin and walk around in it. (39)" Scout considers this, and rethinks her position on the matter. Atticus does an incomparable job, by teaching Scout about this, and will have many more opportunities to elucidate this lesson further.
Similarly, Scout's experience with Walter Cunningham Jr. offers another example of how Atticus, and Calpurnia, tries to teach tolerance. The Cunningham family, who are mostly made up of farmers, was hit by the Great Depression devastatingly hard. They are awfully poor, and people in Maycomb County usually regard them in a pretentious type of manner. Scout exhibits this manner, when Walter Cunningham Jr. attends dinner at her house one day. Earlier that morning, Scout, being a naïve first grader, suspects that Walter got her into trouble at school, and rubs his nose in the dirt for it. While, Scout and Walter struggle around on the ground, Jem arrives and mediates between them. He is apologetic toward Walter, and invites him to have dinner with them at their house, because of Scout's actions.
Walter Cunningham Jr. has a disease by the name of Hookworms. Hookworms consist of worms, smaller than the average ringworm, that tunnel through your feet and into your gut, where they continue to suck blood voraciously on the host's intestinal walls. The worms cause dangerously low amounts of Iron and Protein in the body, which can contribute to another disease called anemia. Walter needs to have more Iron and Protein to provide for him and the worms, to avoid anemia. During his dinner with Jem, Scout and Atticus, he asks Calpurnia for a large amount of molasses, which has a high amount of Iron and Protein in it. So to prevent anemia, Walter drowns his dinner in the molasses. Scout, who does not know why Walter has to do this, demands to know why he poured it all over his meat and vegetables. Walter stops pouring, sinks into his chair, and looks down at the floor. Scout looks at Atticus, and he shakes his head, disapproving what she did. Calpurnia calls Scout into the kitchen, scolds her and explains that she should treat Walter as a guest. Scout replies "He ain't company, Cal, he's just a Cunningham (33)". This shows that she does not really know Walter enough. Scout is disgracing his family, because she already judged Walter, based on his family's status. Calpurnia tells Scout "Hush your mouth! Don't matter who they are, anybody sets foot in this house's yo' comp'ny, and don't you let me catch you remarkin' on their ways like you was so high and mighty! Yo' folks might be better'n the Cunninghams but it don't count for nothing' the way you're digracin' 'em-if you can't act fit to eat at the table you can just set here and eat in the kitchen! (33)" and sent her back to the table with a stinging smack. Atticus and Calpurnia both try to tell Scout to never prejudge people, and respect their ways.
Atticus pursues the goal of educating his children the moral lesson of tolerance a third time throughout the book when Jem and Mrs. Dubose get in an altercation. Mrs. Dubose is a crotchety, elderly woman, with an extremely racist point of view. She lives two doors down from the Finches, and the children absolutely hate her, because of the rude and cruel comments she makes to them as they walk by her house. Usually both Jem and Scout "hold their heads high (133)", as it says in the book, which, in this context, means to keep one's attitude under control. Finally Jem, the one who Atticus expected to manage Scout, lets his emotions get the best of him. Jem's birthday had just passed, and he had some left over money that he was just itching to spend. He decided that both, Scout and himself, would go to town where he would buy her a baton, and himself a miniature steam engine. Of course, to get to town, they have to walk by Mrs. Dubose. As they were walking, Mrs. Dubose calls out things, that surely hurt, but Jem tells Scout to ignore her, and be gentlemen, but then she says something that makes Jem stiffen. "Not only a Finch waiting on tables but one in the courthouse lawing for niggers! Yes indeed, what has this world come to when a Finch goes against his raising? I'll tell you! Your father's no better than the niggers and trash he works for! (135)". That stuck Jem, and he turned scarlet.
Finally, they went to town, bought his and Scout's things, and walked the same way to come back. As they were coming back, Jem stopped at Mrs. Dubose's house. He cut all of her flowers off the bush, snapped Scout's baton in two, threw it on the ground and left. As soon as Atticus found out, he forced Jem go down to her house and apologize. When Jem returned, it was decided that he was to read to Mrs. Dubose every day after school, and on Saturdays. Jem hated every second of his punishment, but he persevered through it. Jem had no idea that he was staying a tiny bit longer every session, and was helping Mrs. Dubose each time. Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict. Each time Jem came over to read to her, she was barely listening to a word he said, but instead she was trying to break free of her addiction. She would release him every day right before she had a fit. Finally, one month and a week later, Jem's reading sentence ended and he was free. A short time after that, Mrs. Dubose died, free of any drugs. Atticus told Jem that he would have made him read to her regardless, if he hadn't gotten himself into trouble.
Both Jem and Scout thought that Mrs. Dubose was a short-tempered, irritable old woman, for no reason. They judged her, before they knew why she was so grumpy all the time. This is a major example of when Atticus tries to teach Jem and Scout to have tolerance for other people, and not to jump to conclusions, because ultimately Mrs. Dubose turned out to be a very bold, and courageous woman.
Later on in the book, Atticus's proceedings with Tom Robinson's case exhibit a prime example of tolerance, and may be the one that stands out the most. Tom Robinson is a 25-year old black man that is accused of raping a young 19-year old, white girl, by the name of Mayella Ewell. The Ewells, as Atticus says, have been a disgraceful family in Maycomb County for three generations. The family is very poor, and they live near the city dump. Mayella's father, Bob Ewell, is an alcoholic, and how ever much money he does make, he spends on booze. In addition, Mr. Ewell has seven other children that he leaves Mayella to care for.
This case is very touchy. Normally, any white lawyer who receives this case would not even try to defend Tom, and would just let him go to jail, but Atticus, being a broadminded and non-racist person, accepts this case with enthusiasm, and attempts to succeed. During Tom Robinson's hearing, Atticus points out major things that could prove Tom's innocence, like the fact that all of Mayella's bruises are on the left side of her face. Tom would most likely hit her on her right side, because a cotton gin accident in Tom's childhood had resulted in his left arm being completely useless. Atticus also points out that it is clear that Mayella is making up the story as she goes, and that it is a high possibility that Bob Ewell, who is left handed, may well have raped her, beat her, and blamed Tom Robinson.
Mayella is a curious character. While Atticus called her up to ask her questions, she did not seem very social in the slightest way. When Atticus addressed her as Miss Mayella, she assumed that he was making fun of her. Also when Atticus asked her about her friends, or love, she had no idea what those two words meant. She is awkward when with other people, and Atticus had come to the conclusion that she was cut off from the rest of the world. Mayella is insufficient to operate in normal society because she has never been exposed to it.
Even with all of the evidence that Atticus has provided the jury with, they still ruled Tom guilty. Tom Robinson never raped Mayella, but he was sent to jail, because he is a Negro. The jury was racist, and was not about to see any "nigger" win over the white man. Atticus took this case because he wanted to exhibit what being tolerant was for his children. He says before the trial, to Scout, that if he hadn't taken Tom's case, and hadn't tried his best to defend Tom, then he wouldn't be able to tell Scout or Jem, what was right and wrong, because he would be contradicting all of the things that he had strived to teach them. This is the most obvious time that Atticus tries to teach his children tolerance for other people. Jem and Scout should both observe that Atticus never judged Tom based on the color of his skin, the way he lives, or the way he acts. Atticus educates his children, by demonstrating tolerance, and being an admirable example for both Jem and Scout to follow.
Atticus displays pure tolerance for other individuals all through out the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, and attempts to teach Scout and Jem to follow his example. He does teach them many other lessons such as, courage, fairness, responsibility, and numerous others. Scout and Jem both mature rapidly throughout the book, and, at different times, seize the ideas of these lessons, to grow properly and honorably as an individual. Atticus pushes tolerance onto Scout and Jem, more than any other lesson, because he believes that it is the most important one. Tolerance is a significant lesson for Scout and Jem to learn, and it is the most essential for their growth and well being.
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