Courage and honor are powerful words and can instigate powerful social change. The novel, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, is a gripping novel, which harks back to the times when racism exists and some people fight for equality and peace. The novel's main characters are defined by their courage and honor; they are faced with many decisions that many people within their community don't think are a big deal. The characters that will be discussed are: Atticus Finch, Scout and Boo Radley. They all demonstrated courage, honor and ignited social change by fighting for what is right. As a result, these characters are important and crucial to the book. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get Original Essay Atticus Finch is a very intriguing character in the novel. He is different from other white people, he is not discriminatory/racist. His courage and loyalty to stand up for what is right is demonstrated many times in the novel, instigating social change. He gives many life lessons to his children, which they do not understand at first, but later do, teaching people that no one is superior to another, no matter what color, race, etc. Atticus shows that he doesn't want his children to grow up discriminating, but he wants them to grow up and show equality/patience, in this quote: “Jem, see if you can put yourself in Bob Ewell's shoes for a minute. In that process I destroyed his last shred of credibility, if he ever had any. That man had to have some sort of comeback, his kind always do. So if spitting in my face and threatening me saved Mayella Ewell from one more beating, that's something I'd gladly take. (Lee, 292). This quote shows us that Atticus tries to explain to his son that you cannot always think of yourself and discriminate against others for what they have done to you. He tells his son that he probably saved Mayella from a beating, she didn't deserve it, so that's all that matters. It doesn't matter that she and her father tried to discriminate against them and hurt them, you shouldn't have the same reactions. We don't see things the way we see them. We learn that Atticus wants to teach his children that courage is not always power and that nothing in life comes easily in this quote: "I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of having the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're defeated before you start, but you start anyway and make it no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do. This quote shows us that Atticus sends his children to read to an addict to teach them a different form of courage. From this quote we learn that not everything has to be as expected/portrayed. We can also learn from this quote, if we look deeper, that when you know something is wrong and you try to correct it, do not succumb to people's speeches, expectations or discrimination. Courage is standing up for what is right; disagrees with anti-white discrimination and inequality, in this quote: "The only place a man should get a square. Deal is in a courtroom, be it any color of the rainbow , but people have a way of taking their grievances directly into the jury box. As you get older, you will see white men cheating on black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don't forget it: every time a white man does something like that to a black man, it doesn't matter who he is, how much is itrich, or what a nice family he comes from, that white man is trash. (Lee, 295). This quote shows us that Atticus, even though he is a white man, definitely does not agree with racism, and it is something he teaches his children every chance he gets. The fact that he is against discrimination and works hard to help Tom Robinson is what instigates social change. The jury is amazed and takes much longer than normal to decide who the winner was. Ultimately, however, discrimination takes over and the black person loses. If there is anything we can learn from Atticus Finch it is that we must not discriminate, we must stand up for what is right and change starts with you. Scout is a little girl who is a tomboy. She wears overalls and there's talk among the women about how her father didn't do a good job of raising her to be a "lady." Scout doesn't understand why she has to be like them and instead wants to come out and help people. She is very courageous in the novel and shows this throughout the novel and her tomboyish nature is what instigates social change. Scout explains her comfort with boys in this quote: “I was more comfortable in my father's world. People like Mr. Heck Tate didn't trap you with innocent questions to tease you; even Jem wasn't very critical unless I said something stupid. Women seemed to live with a vague horror of men, seemed reluctant to approve of them wholeheartedly. But I liked them. There was something about them, no matter how much they swore, drank, gambled and chewed; no matter how unpleasant they were, there was something about them that I instinctively liked... they weren't. (Lee, 313). In this quote, Scout explains how she felt more comfortable in the world of men. We understand that Scout is no ordinary woman. She wants to be a woman who can do the things a man would do, instead of gossiping and staying at home. This is the first sign of a change coming. Because Scout is stubborn and persistent, she will do everything she can to ensure that she can be equal among men, even though she will certainly be discriminated against. In the next quote, we read about how Scout is brave and protects her father, from being discriminated against: “A nigger lover. I'm not really sure what it means, but the way Francis said it – tell you something now, Uncle Jack, I'll be – I swear to God if I sit there and let him say something about Atticus.” (Lee,114). Here we learn that Scout is still a child and cannot fully understand the word "nigger lover", but even as a child he knew it was an evil word. We can tell she still has a lot to learn, but whatever Atticus is teaching her, she tries to put it into practice. As Scout's ending, I included a quote that talks about how Scout hates the way her aunt is determined to make her a 'decent' woman: “I never understood her concern about heredity. Somewhere, I had been under the impression that Good People were people who did the best they could with whatever common sense they had, but Aunt Alexandra was of the opinion, expressed indirectly, that the longer a family remained hunkered down of land, the more beautiful she was." (Lee, 173). This quote teaches us that Scout believes that Aunt Alexandra's point of view is one-sided and partly discriminatory towards women. Scout just wants to live a life where she has the freedom to choose what she wants to make, and that's the social change she instigates. By expressing her intentions to anyone who asks, she opens up the world to all the girls her age (in the future), who think they can't be what they want and evil who never leaves her home has been around Maycomb for a while However, all is not as it seems..