Fathering in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (Free Essay Sample)

Kobe Bryant, a famous basketball player, once said, “My parents are still my backbone. Still are. They’re the only group that will support you if you score zero or if you score forty”. Parents remain the ones that will repeatedly support and protect their children, no matter what they do. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Atticus defends and supports his children, Jem and Scout, and consistently teaches them the right thing to do in a situation. He exhibits strong fathering in front of his children throughout various parts of the book. Atticus sets these formidable examples by sticking to his integrity despite the public, teaching his children what true courage and kindness are, and even trying his best to protect his son’s reputation after he allegedly killed Bob Ewell.

To begin, one of the first instances of Atticus’ effective fathering was during Scout’s questioning of the Tom Robinson trial. He attempts to teach Scout that he stuck to his integrity, no matter what circumstances the public matched against him. After returning from Mrs. Dubose's garden, Scout questions why Atticus willingly took on Tom Robinson’s trial, although the public does not support his decision. To this, Atticus replies, “Before I can live with other folks I’ve got to live with myself. The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience” (120). Scout perceives that the public is unsatisfied with Atticus defending a black man in court. She has witnessed multiple occasions of the people around her calling Atticus a “[racial slur] lover”. Due to these occurrences, Scout feels the need to inform Atticus that accepting the case was an incorrect decision. However, Atticus says he needs to ease his inner voice, which is telling him to obey his integrity, before he can implement the public’s ideas into consideration. He needs to undertake this case and defend this man from a false conviction, and the public will not interfere with a decision he believes is right. This is a vital lesson Atticus attempts to explain to Scout: to consistently endure a righteous integrity. Hence, this implies that Atticus is attempting to teach his children the right idea, similar to what any proper parent would do.  He tries explaining to Scout something that would normally be difficult for her to understand, but he explains it anyway just because he knows that Scout will need to know it, so she will be considered trustworthy in the future, therefore showing that Atticus is an excellent father. In summation, Atticus aims to set a strong example of his good parenting in front of Scout by sticking to his integrity, no matter the odds.

Later, Atticus again displays his fathering skills after Jem and Scout finish reading to Mrs. Dubose. He attempts to explain to them why reading to her was critically important, and how it helped them too. After Jem destroyed Mrs. Dubose’s garden, Atticus makes Jem and Scout read to Mrs. Dubose for a month. Although Jem and Scout thought of this as only a very grueling punishment, Atticus explained that there was more to it than just that: “I wanted you to see what real courage is . . . it’s when you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what” (128). Atticus explains to his children that they displayed courage because they stuck through with something they already knew would be difficult. He understood that they may not have respected Mrs. Dubose because of her attitude, but he wishes for them to realize that she should be treated with the same kindness and respect as any other human being. Atticus sees that teaching them this will aid them in being more caring towards anyone, even if they are dissimilar from what they are used to, proving that he wants his children to grow up well in their lives. Therefore, this shows how Atticus is determined to be an exemplary father. To conclude, Atticus strived to teach his children what true kindness and courage are. He explained to them how they stuck through a difficult challenge, even while knowing that it was going to be hard at the start. He also described that anyone should be treated kindly even if they are separate from what would be expected.

Lastly, one of the final times Atticus’ good fathering is seen was during Atticus’ and Heck Tate’s heated argument regarding who killed Bob Ewell. After Bob Ewell was confirmed to be deceased, Atticus and Heck Tate began arguing over who killed him, as there was a knife impaled in him. Heck Tate believed that it was suicide, but Atticus believed that Jem killed him. He tells Heck Tate to not hush things up so quickly and that the “Best way to clear the air is to have it all out in the open . . . I don’t want him growing up with a whisper about him” (314). Atticus knew that it would be an incorrect decision to support Jem, as this would make it extremely difficult for him growing up. Since Atticus is a lawyer, the public could claim that he utilized his position to get his son out of a guilty verdict, which would be a detriment to Jem’s reputation. Atticus acknowledged this fact and wanted to prevent his son from suffering such harsh consequences for something that was not his fault. Futhermore, if he was going to present Jem as the killer, Jem could plead self-defense, and he would get out of any problems that could come up. Hence, Atticus devised a thoughtful and intelligent decision to protect Jem, once again proving Atticus’ skills as a parent. Conclusively, Atticus does his best to defend his son throughout a difficult time, and he evaluates all results before developing a knowledgeable, conclusive decision.

In cessation, Atticus displays his strong parenting skills frequently throughout the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. He retains these qualities consistently, such as teaching his children to maintain a powerful connection between themselves and their morals, remaining indifferent in terms of kindness towards anyone, and also protecting his children throughout difficult situations. No matter the child, Atticus’ parenting capabilities are a necessity to raise a child to their maximum maturity level, and for these children to be able to treat others indifferently.