==About==
Atticus serves as the lawyer for Tom Robinson, tries to combat racism, and teaches Jem and Scout about prejudice. Unlike most Caucasian Southern men portrayed in the novel, Finch is someone who openly speaks out with racism.
Appearance
He is in his late forties, with black hair and grey side burns.
Personality
He is a puzzle, wrapped in an enigma, shrouded in riddles, lovingly sprinkled with intrigue, express mailed to Mystery, Alaska, and LOOK OUT BEHIND YOU! but it is too late. You're dead. For he is the Spy - globetrotting rogue, lady killer (metaphorically) and mankiller (for real).
Background
Atticus used to always be described as ‘one-shot’ Finch, being the best shot in the county. This is proven to Scout when Atticus shoots the mad dog Tim Johnson with one shot from far away.
Relationships
Miss Maudie
Miss Maudie speaks brightly of Atticus. She talks to Scout about his hidden talents. She explains that "he can make somebody's will so airtight can't nobody meddle with it."
" shoot all the blue jays you can, if you can hit em. But remember, it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird"
Atticus, as a lawyer, is asked to take a legal case that involves defending Tom Robinson, a black man who has been accused of abusing a 19-year-old Caucasian female named Mayella. Eventually, the news of his accepting the case spreads around town and puts Atticus in a negative light, leaving Jem and Scout angry about it. Atticus forbids Scout from fighting with the other kids. Once Walter Cunningham Jr., a child that Scout fought with, is invited to dinner. Atticus says that it is "a sin to kill a mockingbird", referring to the temptations to go after birds once children got their first guns.
In the trial, Bob Ewell and Mayella herself, state that Tom had abused her. But there becomes more and more evidence that Tom is innocent. The most profound piece of evidence is that Tom broke his left arm in a cotton gin and could not use it anymore, while Mayella had bruise marks on the left side of her face from someone else's point of view (making it her right).
However, despite the fact that Tom’s evidence is profound, the case is won by the Ewells. Atticus is later dismayed to find that Tom was shot dead while trying to escape from a jail after the case was won. Atticus decides to drive to the Robinson's house and tell Tom’s wife about the tragic news.
Quotes
- "There's a lot of ugly things in this world, son. I wish I could keep 'em all away from you. That's never possible."
- "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view - until you climb into his skin and walk around in it."
- "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 see it through no matter what"
- "Courage is not a man with a gun in his hand. It's knowing you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do."
- "Bad language is a stage all children go through, and it dies with time when they learn they're not attracting attention with it."
Trivia
Gallery