To Kill a Mockingbird Analysis

“’I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what”’(112).Words of Atticus, from Harper Lee’s, To Kill a Mockingbird. A story narrated by Scout, Atticus’ daughter, about the events that occurred in a small southern town during the great depression. The racism abounded in this town, like in every other at the time, but something unexpected happened when a girl accused a black man of raping her. Nobody imagined that with the help of the enormous courage of Tom Robinson (the accused) and Atticus Finch (his lawyer),the whole town would learn a great life lesson. Atticus and Tom Robinson deserve the Lion o’ courage award because both of them demonstrated tremendous physical and emotional bravery throughout the book.

Atticus deserves the Lion o’ Courage award because of the physical and emotional strength that he showed in the book. An example of Atticus displaying courage is when he was left alone in the police station, guarding Tom Robinson, and the lynching mob came. When they asked if Tom was in there, he answered, “’You can turn around and go home”’(151). Having no fear for his own safety, he remained calm and tried to avoid the horrible future that awaited Robinson. It took a lot of bravery, physical and emotional, because Mr. Finch knew that he did not have a chance of going against all those people. He also demonstrated his valor when Tim Robinson, Tom’s dog , was suspected to have rabbis and quick actions had to be taken. Knowing that they only had one chance of killing it, the sheriff handed over the gun to Atticus. Scout narrates, “The rifle cracked…..He didn’t know what hit him”(96).Even though he hadn’t touched a gun in years, he had to put his fears aside and prepare to kill it. He knew that if he didn’t, people would be in danger of getting bitten by the mad dog, It took a lot of guts because it was really risky, if he missed and the unwanted occurred, people would blame him for it. But Atticus managed to control his fears, making him a great candidate for the Lion o’ Courage award.

Tom Robinson should be recognized with Lion o’ Courage award because of the bravery he upheld during the course of the book. Robinson demonstrated his courage when he was being prosecuted and Mr. Gilmer was asking him questions. When the lawyer asked him why he had helped Mayella, Tom answered, ‘“I felt sorry for her’”(197).The fact that he said he felt sorry for her made everybody believe that he was suggesting that he was happier and had a better life than her, a white women. He knew his error would not get ignored. Scout notices that “The witness realized his mistake”(197). Tom Robinson didn’t mean to offend anyone, but he realized that he had, and it was too late to fix it. The white community took it the wrong way and thought that he tried to say that black people were better than them. It took a lot of courage to say that he felt sorry for Mayella, in a room full of white people. He knew what all of them were capable of doing, but he didn’t care, because he only wanted to clarify everything.