How Is Morality Shown In To Kill A Mockingbird

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“Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win.” These are the words of Atticus Finch, a lawyer in Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird. The novel follows the fictional case of Tom Robinson, seen through the eyes of Jean-Louise “Scout” Finch, Atticus’ daughter. Atticus has been tasked by the judge to defend Tom Robinson, a black man accused of raping a young white woman. Because of the discrimination of the time, Tom Robinson was ultimately found guilty and shot. In To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee presents the idea that morality is demonstrated by following one’s own moral code, even when society disagrees with them. This idea is demonstrated by multiple characters throughout the novel. Near the beginning of the story, Atticus Finch, Tom Robinson’s lawyer, defends his decision to genuinely help Tom be acquitted. He states: “Link, that boy might go to the chair, but he’s not going until the thruth’s told.” Atticus is unsure of what the outcome of the trial may be, but, regardless, he wants the truth to be heard. This goes directly against society’s prejudice attitude toward the case, but it follows Atticus’…show more content…
"You know the truth, and the truth is this: some Negroes lie, some Negroes are immoral, some Negro men are not to be trusted around women—black or white. But this is a truth that applies to the human race and to no particular race of men. There is not a person in this courtroom who has never told a lie, who has never done an immoral thing, and there is no man living who has never looked upon a woman without desire." Atticus explains that the terrible things that were assumed about black people could be assumed about any person; that morality is simultaneously universal, and individual. Despite his eloquent words, the jury’s opinion did not
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