Analysis of Characters and Themes in To Kill a Mockingbird

This essay delves into a character analysis of Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird," focusing on the protagonist Scout Finch and her father, Atticus Finch. The essay examines Scout's maturation as she navigates the complexities of the adult world, particularly the themes of racism and injustice. It highlights Atticus Finch as a symbol of moral goodness and justice, contrasting him with the antagonist, the Ewells, who represent prejudice and societal conflict. The analysis explores Atticus's unwavering commitment to truth and justice in defending Tom Robinson, despite facing significant opposition. The essay concludes by emphasizing the author's agreement with Atticus's moral stance and his dedication to truth, regardless of consequences. The essay also references supporting literature.

Running head: TO KILL A MOCKING BIRD: CHARACTER ANALYSIS
To Kill a Mocking Bird
Name of the Student:
Name of the University:
Author’s Note:

1TO KILL A MOCKING BIRD: CHARACTER ANALYSIS
Introduction:
“To Kill a Mocking Bird” by Harper Lee is a story spoken through the voice of the young
protagonist Scout Finch. She gets an insight of the world and the darker side of racism. She gets
to understand how good and evil co-exists in the society, when her father tries to lawfully defend
an African American man who is allegedly accused of raping a white woman.
Discussion:
The main protagonist of the novel Scout Finch matures throughout the novel. She through
her father sees the struggle to survive being the honest and the good one in the world full of
injustice. With the verdict of the accusation and the news of her father’s resignation shocks her
and she gets to know the gruesome reality of the disillusioned world that she had been living in
(Fitrisary and Thoyibi).
According to Macaluso, Scout’s father Atticus Finch was a lawyer and he is the
representative of moral goodness in the novel. He had been defending the African American man
Tom Robinson who had been accused of raping a white woman, merely because of his black skin
color. Atticus responses to the issue of race with utmost honesty and justice. He guides his
children and makes them aware of the consequences of conflict as a result of the trial. He was a
dedicated father who gave his children the freedom and independence to discover the world and
find solutions to the problems by taking proper just decisions. He allows them to find solutions
to the issues of class and race (Nahajec).
In contrast to this, the antagonist of the story had been the Ewells, responsible for
creating conflict among the other characters in the novel. He was the one who responded to the

2TO KILL A MOCKING BIRD: CHARACTER ANALYSIS
issues of race in the most unjust manner. Being a white man he accused Tom of raping his
daughter when he saw both of them together (Jay). He along with his daughter wanted to exert
supremacy in the name of white power of the black man just because of this skin color, accusing
him falsely. Even if it seems unjust to the readers and the audience, at the end of the novel, Tom
Robinson is accused of rape and loses his trial irrespective of the fact that he was innocent.
If faced with similar situations and dilemmas in my life, I would have agreed with the
choice of Scout Finch’s father Atticus Finch. He had been the one who was with the truth,
defending the alleged allegation. In spite of knowing the consequences and the conflict he chose
to walk on the path of truth representing justice and morality.
Conclusion:
This from the above analysis of the characters, it can be concluded that Atticus Finch had
been the person who preferred not to play safe but stand buy the truth throughout irrespective of
the consequences. This part of the character is something that I agree with and would be
choosing to act similarly if faced by any unforeseen situation.

3TO KILL A MOCKING BIRD: CHARACTER ANALYSIS
Reference List:
Fitrisari, Marselina Nugraheni, and M. S. M Thoyibi. Reader Response To Racism In Harper
Lee’s Novel: To Kill A Mockingbird (1960). Diss. Universitas Muhammadiyah Surakarta,
2016.
Jay, Gregory. "Queer Children and Representative Men: Harper Lee, Racial Liberalism, and the
Dilemma of To Kill a Mockingbird." American Literary History 27.3 (2015): 487-522.
Macaluso, Michael. "Teaching To Kill a Mockingbird Today: Coming to Terms With Race,
Racism, and America's Novel." Journal of Adolescent & Adult Literacy 61.3 (2017): 279-
287.
Nahajec, Lisa. "Negation, expectation and characterisation: Analysing the role of negation in
character construction in To kill a mockingbird (Lee 1960) and Stark (Elton
1989)." Pragmatic literary stylistics. Palgrave Macmillan, London, 2014. 111-131.