To Kill A Mockingbird, By Harper Lee

Dubose’s unseen patience in fighting morphine addiction and her astonishing strength in extending time between doses of morphine, Lee uses Mrs. Dubose’s true intentions to show things are not always as they seem as the theme of the novel. “‘Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict,’ said Atticus. ‘She took it as a pain-killer for years’” (Lee 147). Atticus explains to his children that Mrs. Dubose used to yell at them because she was fighting morphine addiction and needed some way to get her anger out.

Mrs. Dubose, also known as “like hell” and a senile women is an example of someone who doesn’t always deserve dignity. She’s a morphine addict who is also cranky, strict, rude, and racist. When Atticus sees here everyday, he walks by and complaints here. Even though she mocks Atticus for defending Tom, he ignores it and does the same routine the next day. Atticus bellows, “ ‘Good evening, Mrs. Dubose!

Dubose and how terribly she acts, but they also learn first hand her awful behavior, having been victims of Mrs. Dubose’s insults. Rumors about a “...CSA pistol concealed among her numerous shawls and wraps” (114) caused Jem much fear of Mrs. Dubose, but that did not prevent him from destroying Mrs. Dubose’s flowers when she criticized Atticus about defending an African-American. And as punishment, Atticus required Jem to go and read to Mrs. Dubose. During their reading trips to her house, Jem and Scout find out that Mrs. Dubose is a sick old lady with nothing to do. After Mrs. Dubose dies, Atticus explains that she had an addiction to morphine, and that Jem reading to her had helped her break that addiction.

Atticus used Mrs. Dubose as an example so Jem could understand what real courage looked like. After Jem realizes his mistake, he began to feel guilty for cutting all the flower heads off. At that point in the novel, the kids realize Mrs. Dubose isn’t just a mean old lady, but that she has more dimensions to her personality. As the evidence shows, Mrs. Dubose is another character in this book that is perceived differently than how she actually

Many people go through many harsh, different obstacles in life that morph them into the kind of people they are today. In the novel,  To Kill a Mockingbird, the author, Harper Lee uses literary elements to showcase how a child grows into who they are and the contributing factors that may fall into their path and their learning experiences. Lee uses the scene where Jem destroys the flowers of Mrs. Dubose to portray a coming of age moment. He does this because she is racist and constantly nags at them about their father. His punishment is to read to her everyday for a month.

As the novel progresses more and more problems arise. Don’t kill what is innocent and harmless. Throughout the text of To kill a Mockingbird the character of Jem Displays levels of empathy which challenge his definition of courage and his views regarding the difficulty of parenting. After realizing that Mrs. Dubose successfully parted ways with a morphine dependency, Jem burst into tears and began to scream “Old-hell devil,

Even though Jem and Scout most likely are aware of this usual treatment and are probably affected by it, they do not hesitate to target others in similar ways, such as with Mrs. Dubose. Jem and Scout are shown to have formed a negative opinion of Mrs. Dubose when they describe her as "very old" and "the meanest old lady woman who ever lived". Due to her age, through the Finch children's eyes, Mrs. Dubose is an ancient, mean, bitter, and abusive old woman. It is obvious that if the

“Emotions can’t be allowed to interfere with what is right.” This quote, provided by Amazon’s recent, critically-acclaimed dystopian television series accurately summarizes the key takeaway when it comes to morality in To Kill a Mockingbird. How does this quote from a television show which takes place in an alternate 1960s America relate to the theme of morality in Harper Lee’s Great Depression-era novel? To answer this, we must first examine how the said theme in the novel is created. How does Harper Lee convey her message of not letting emotion sway us from right?

and you see it through no matter what.” (Harper Lee 128) This shows Mrs. Dubose’s courage because she was willing to sacrifice social skills to regain her health. Atticus later expresses further his thoughts about her when he states, “She was the bravest person I ever knew.”

Dubose. Jem is sent to her house to read to her as a punishment, Scout goes with him to keep him company. “So don't let Mrs. Dubose get you down. She has enough troubles of her own”(Lee 124). This reflects the theme of teaching Scout to put herself in different perspectives.

She was vicious… [And] countless evenings Atticus would find Jem furious at something Mrs. Dubose had said when we went by” (Lee 132-133). It is later revealed that Mrs. Dubose’s behavior is a direct result of a much bigger conflict. After her death Atticus explains that she was a recovering morphine addict and that her displeasing behavior was due to the withdrawals she was facing. Praising Mrs. Dubose Atticus explains to his children that, “[courage] is when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway

Courage is not strength or skill, it’s simply standing up for what you believe in and what is right. This is the theme that was enrolled after Jem destroys Mrs.Dubose’s camellias and after she died in chapter 11. This passage also reveals Jem’s coming of age moment. After using conflict, symbolism, and point of view, Harper Lee was able to connect the theme with Jems coming of age moment.

In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout and Jem grow up and learn, over a couple years, that the world is not as forgiving as it once seemed. Men are condemned based on the color of their skin and children are attacked in means of revenge. Bob Ewell accuses Tom Robinson of raping his daughter, when Mayella Ewell was actually beaten by her father. Lies build up and stereotypes grow.

Mrs. Dubose’s death came abruptly to the children, but not to people who knew she was addicted to morphine. Atticus explains her struggle and courage throughout her life by saying, “I wanted you to see something about her. 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

The best teacher is always experience. Throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Jem, one of the main characters, undergoes many significant personality changes. Jem’s character changes through several experiences, the most prevalent of those being when Jem turns twelve, when he destroys Mrs.Dubose’s flower bed, and when he learns of the town’s racial bias. Jem’s personality underwent significant changes when he turned twelve years old. His new behavior was noticed by Scout, who described him as,”...