What Qualities As A Father Do You Think Atticus Finch Had?
What Qualities As A Father Do You Think Atticus Finch Had?
I am going to be looking at the behaviour of a certain character from the book "To kill a mockingbird." I shall be looking in particularly at Atticus Finch, who in the book is an 'idealised' character. We say that he is 'idealised,' because he never seems to do anything wrong, and the only failure he seems to make throughout the whole novel, is to underestimate Bob Ewell.
Atticus does not believe that Mr Ewell would go to the such lengths of harming his children in order to get back at him. He thinks that after an incident in which Mr Ewell spits in his face, that everything has been forgotten, but it hasn't. Mr finch tries to lead his children by example, and the example that he sets to the is almost 'too good to be true.'
Atticus has intergrity, and it is this quality that makes him an ideal role model for Jem and Scout. He has good manners, and tries to pass these on to his children. Now I will try to explain the qualities that Atticus Finch had as a father to his children, Jem and Scout.
Atticus is trying to lead his children by example. He wants them to grow up as almost 'perfect.' As I have previously explained, Atticus sees himself as a role model to his children. He always respects their privacy, and it says "he treated us with courteous detatchment.2 Atticus uses this to make the point that this is the way to treat others, and he expresses his feelings on this even more, later in the book, in the case of Boo Radley.
Mr Finch is also very kind to everyone, even though it is sometimes very difficult for him to do so. "I do my best to love everybody...I'm hard put sometimes." As Judge Taylor says, "Mr Finch is always courteous to everyone."
Atticus listens to his own conscience. "Before I can live with folks, I've got to live with myself." What he is saying here is that before you listen to others, listen to yourself. An example of this is when Scout comes home from school, confused, asking her father what a "nigger lover" is, because she has heard people calling it to her father in the playground, because he defends Tom Robinson, a black man, and makes out that Mr Ewells daughter, a white girl, is not telling the truth. Atticus tells her that she should believe what her mind tells her about him, before listening to what others try to make her believe. If she believes that he is a 'nigger lover,' then she should believe this, however, if she believes otherwise, then that's what her final beliefs should be. Atticus' beliefs make him realise that he must defend Tom Robinson as he would defend a white man, because as he tells Scout, "I couldn't... tell you or Jem not to do something again." If he didn't.
Atticus wants his children to be able to trust him, and he trusts his children. "Before Jem looks at anyone else, he looks at me, and I've tried to live so I can look squarely back at him." He wants to keep this kind of relationship, and he demonstrates this at the end of the story, when he says "If I conceived at something...I could not meet Jems eye, and the day I cannot do that, I'll know I've lost him." What he is saying here is that the day when he cannot look and talk to Jem ...
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Atticus wants his children to be able to trust him, and he trusts his children. "Before Jem looks at anyone else, he looks at me, and I've tried to live so I can look squarely back at him." He wants to keep this kind of relationship, and he demonstrates this at the end of the story, when he says "If I conceived at something...I could not meet Jems eye, and the day I cannot do that, I'll know I've lost him." What he is saying here is that the day when he cannot look and talk to Jem in a truthful manner, will be the day when the trusting relationship between them is broken.
Atticus has only one attitude towards people, and this is noticed my Miss Maudie- "Atticus Finch is the same in his house as he is on the street." He always treats people with the same respect and courteous manner.
Mr Finch will always listen to both sides of a story, and it is this quality that also makes him good at his job, a lawyer. He is very fair when making judgements, and when Jem and Scout argue, he will not just take the word from one side - he listens to them both. As Scout tells Uncle Jack - "When Jem and I fuss, Atticus doesn't ever just listen to Jems side of it, he hears mine too." He will compromise, and try to make a deal which will suit both him and the other person. When Scout doesn't want to return to school, he makes the deal with her that if she does return, then he will continue to read to her. The deal is made, and Scout returns to school. The situation is resolved, as it most often is when Atticus is involved.
Atticus, although he doesn't make it very obvious, knows his children very well, and he also knows the correct way to deal with most things they do wrong. He is worried a little about Scout's use of bad language, but he is calm about it, and says "Bad language is a stage which all children go through, and it dies with time, when they learn that they are not attracting attention with it." Atticus is however more concerned with Scout's 'hot-headedness' which he sees as a problem in the long term. Mr Finch shows here that he can see things in proper prospective.
In order for him to teach his children properly, he must explain a lot of things, which he has no hesitation is doing, because he knows they will finally learn and understand - He says to Uncle Jack "When a child asks you something, answer him for goodness sake...evasion simply muddles em" Scout also tells of his patience to do this when she says "We were at all times free to interrupt Atticus for a translation when it was beyond our understanding." He is patient both in his home, and out of his home, which is an important part of his job, and as a father to Jem and Scout.
Atticus treats children as adults, and believes they have the same rights as adults. Mr Finch doesn't talk down to children either. When Scout and Jem bring Walter Cunningham home for lunch, "he and Atticus talked together like two men," even though Walter is a member of the Cunningham family, and most people are uncomfortable talking to them. Mr Finch even shows concern for the Ewell children, which many people would not expect him to do in the circumstances. When Bob Ewell spits in his face, he doesn't react. Later he says "He had to take it out on someone, and I'd rather it be me, than that house full of children over there." His humanitarian nature is shown here - he is willing to 'sacrifice' himself to save other people who are not as strong as him, and do not understand the situation fully.
Another way Atticus helps his children in growing up, is by trying to get them to understand points, and see things from a different point of view - "You never really understand a person until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." He wants his children to get along with people, and so other people will respect them for whom they are. "If you can learn a simple trick Scout, you'll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks."
Atticus teaches his children to develop reasoning in two different ways. With Jem, the eldest, he learns his through discussion. "Atticus leaned back in his rocking chair. For some reason he looked pleased with Jem. "I was wondering when that'd occur to you."" He lets Jem learn for himself, rather than trying to tell him everything. In Scout's case, he lets herm overhear his conversations, although Scout doesn't know that he in fact wants her to hear him. As Scout says - "It wasn't until many years later I realised he wanted me to hear every word he said." This happens just before the trail, and Atticus is explaining how, even though it is quite plain to see otherwise, that the Ewells would win, solely because Tom Robinson was a black man.
Atticus tries to make his children see the true definition of a person with courage. He children would see him as a man with courage because of his ability with guns, but this is not how he wants to be seen, and not what he want Jem and Scout to believe courage is. He wants them to see that courage is not exemplified by a man with a gun, but by a frail old lady such as Mrs Dubose. "It's when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway, and you see it through...she was the bravest person I ever knew." Here Atticus is explaining to his children how even though Mrs Dubose knows she is going to die, she is determined to lose her addiction to morphine, even though she doesn't really need to. She could just give up, and say "I'm going to die anyway...what's the point?" but she doesn't. Mrs Dubose has something to prove to herself, and has extreme determination and courage to make sure she reaches her aim. It is because of her extreme bravery and courage that Mr Finch insists Jem reads to her. It is what she has requested, and Atticus feels that this will help her through, and lead on her way to reaching her target. Atticus doesn't believe himself to have bravery and courage simply because he can shoot a gun well, and this is why he hides it form Jem and Scout, even though this means they can't 'brag' about it. Mrs Maudie says "He's civilized in his heart."
Even though Atticus' job involves him with the courts, he doesn't agree to the way they are run. He doesn't believe that a white man should have any more rights than a black man, which many people would see as strange, as Atticus is a white man. "In our courts, when it's a white mans word against a black mans, the white man always wins. They're ugly, but those are the facts of life." Mr Finch doesn't believe in this, however he knows 'how things work.' He makes his views very clear when he says "You'll see white men cheat black men...whenever a white man does that...the white man is trash."
Although Atticus can be stern, he still loves his children. When he learns of what Jem has done to Mrs Duboses' camellias, "his voice was like the winter wind." By remaining calm, he maintains the respect and love from his children. Atticus tries to teach Jem how to behave in the face of adversity. "Hold your head high, and be a gentleman." He wants them to grow up to be respectable, as he is.
When he is insulted and called a "nigger lover" he reacts in the right way, and by doing this, he demonstrates to Scout how to react in such situations. "It's never an insult to be called what someone thinks is a bad name. It just shows you how poor that person is, it doesn't hurt you."
He wants to please his children. When he and Scout play chequers, he always lets Scout win. She does not realise until later in the story when she finds out how good Atticus actually is, that he was letting her win - "it's about time you found out it's because he lets you "win!)"
Throughout the whole story, his great love for his children is always apparent. An example of this is when Jem is injured. Even though Jem is not awake, and does not know what is happening, Atticus stays at his bedside. Scout says that "he would be there all night, and he would be there when Jem woke up in the morning." Because Scout has said this, we can clearly see that the children are aware of his love for them, which is a great quality Atticus possesses. This is in fact probably the most important quality Atticus Finch has as a father. He allows the children to know that that they are loved, and by doing this, they will grow up to love their children. He wants Jem and Scout to have the best lives possible, and he does all he can to help them achieve this.
John Keymer
