During chapter 11, Jem and Scout passed Mrs. Dubose house everyday and she would always be rude to them. They could do nothing to please her. One day, Mrs. Dubose started saying stuff about their parents and Atticus and Jem went mad, but Atticus said to keep his head high and be a gentleman. Atticus usually compliments Mrs. Dubose when passing by even when she said bad things toward him. Mrs. Dubose eventually went crazy with words against Scout and Jem everyday by saying terrible stuff about Atticus. Eventually, Jem went mad with his temper and grabbed a baton. He ran on Mrs. Dubose property and started smashing every camellia bush Mrs. Dubose had and then snapped the baton in half.
Atticus the next day yelled at Jem and told him to go to her house instantly and apologize. Mrs. Dubose told Jem to read out loud to her every afternoon after school and Saturdays for a month. Jem continued to read to her out loud every afternoon and Saturdays with Scout and near the end of the month, but Mrs. Dubose said for them to read one more week. Scout realized that each day they came, they had been staying a little bit longer than the previous day. When it was the last day, all she said was “And that’s all”. In the spring, Jem asked Atticus where Mrs. Dubose was since he hasn’t seen her in a month and Atticus responded that she was dead. Atticus told Jem that she was a morphine addict and she had a little time to live. Then Atticus said that she had one more thing to do and that was to “… leave this world beholden to nothing and nobody. jem, when you’re sick as she was, it’s all right to take anything to make it easier, but it wasn’t alright for her. She said she meant to break herself before she died, and that’s what she did”(148). That means that all the fits she had was because of this. Atticus then said she died free as the mountain air and Atticus gave Jem a candy box from Mrs. Dubose before she died. The candy box was surrounded by wads of damp cotton, was white, waxy, perfect camellia, and it was a Snow-on-the-Mountain.
Jem then yelled,”Old hell-devil, old hell-devil!” he screamed, flinging it down. “Why can’t she leave me alone?”(148). Jem then bursted into tears and Atticus said that this was her way to say that everything’s all right. Atticus then said that she was a great lady and he wanted Jem to see what real courage is which is,”It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what”(149). Atticus then said that Mrs. Dubose won, all ninety- eight pounds of her and from her view, she died beholden to nothing and nobody and that she was the bravest person he ever knew. Jem threw the candy box in the fire after and went to bed.
This moment is a highlight because this chapter shows what real courage is and one of the only person in this book who has a lot of courage. The pivotal message of Harper Lee is that even if you are prejudice, you can also be full with courage. This chapter reveals the theme of dignity which on society, the black people was seen to have little dignity and the white was seen to have a lot of dignity back then where there was a lot of racism, but now, it is different because every race have equal dignity now since there is less racism from before. Another theme that was revealed was courage since she fought against the addiction of Morphine and now in society, people back then didn’t have the courage to change the ways about racism. Now, there are laws and amendments that states that everyone has equal rights which took courage from people to make those laws and amendments.
Chris
To Think About A Mockingbird 