Courage in to Kill a Mockingbird

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Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird demonstrates that courage is fighting what you believe in no matter the consequence. Fighting for your thoughts and morals all the way to the end, without regard for what people or society as a whole think. The mentality of many is that courage is not having fear or being afraid. A person who has never been hit by a car is not afraid only because that person has no reason to be afraid. This example is not courage, but ignorance. Courage is getting into a situation were the outcome is not in your favor, but you jumping in anyways with the hope that you might be able to have a favorable outcome. Atticus shows praiseworthy courage and behavior, in many instances, throughout the story. Not by fighting or killing, but by standing up for what he believed in a civilized and determined way. His strongest motivation, however, were his kids. He wanted to be a good example to his kids and instill in them a strong sense of moral values. One time he was asked by Scout why he had taken a case he knew he wasn't going to win and he responded by saying, "For a number of reasons. The main one is, if I didn't I couldn't hold up my head in town, I couldn't represent this county in the legislature, I couldn't even tell you or Jem not to do something again." In other words, he would not have been able to preach to his kids about justice and standing up for what one believes when he himself had not stood for what he believed in. But, most of all he does it to uphold his self-worth. He wants to know that there's no reason for him to hang his head in shame and shy away when he's walking down the streets. He wants to live without regrets, and to him that's the only way you can say you are really living. Boo has been shut away from society all of his life with the exception of when he was very young he would sometimes be seen with his mother. He

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