To Kill a Mockingbird
What do others say about Atticus?
what do others say about atticus
![](https://d22o6al7s0pvzr.cloudfront.net/images/bookrags/qa/avatars/.defaults/unknown.png)
what do others say about atticus
Afew examples of how Atticus is seen and viewed by others are apparent in the excerpts below.
Scout and Jem's perspective changes over the course of the novel, particularly after Atticus shoots Tim Johnson.
Before:
Atticus was feeble: he was nearly fifty. When Jem and I asked him why he was so old, he said he got started late, which we felt reflected upon his abilities and manliness. He was much older than the parents of our school contemporaries, and there was nothing Jem or I could say about him when our classmates said, “My father—”
After:
“Don’t say anything about it, Scout,” he said. “What? I certainly am. Ain’t everybody’s daddy the deadest shot in Maycomb County.” (Scout)
“Naw, Scout, it’s something you wouldn’t understand. Atticus is real old, but I wouldn’t care if he couldn’t do anything—I wouldn’t care if he couldn’t do a blessed thing.” Jem picked up a rock and threw it jubilantly at the carhouse. Running after it, he called back: “Atticus is a gentleman, just like me!” (Jem)
Other characters show their respect for Atticus by their actions.... not their words.
I looked around. They were standing. All around us and in the balcony on the opposite wall, the Negroes were getting to their feet. Reverend Sykes’s voice was as distant as Judge Taylor’s: “Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father’s passin‘.”
Finally, Miss. Maudie..... I think sums Atticus up perfectly.
“I simply want to tell you that there are some men in this world who were born to do our unpleasant jobs for us. Your father’s one of them.”
To Kill a Mockingbird