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Based on the events in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, is it worth taking a stand for oneself? For others?

According to Atticus, taking a stand for what is right is always worth doing. Not standing up for what is right only perpetuates problems. Standing up for oneself and for others is a major theme in To Kill a Mockingbird, and there are many examples of characters doing just that. One character who stands up for herself is Mrs. Dubose. She's a mouthy old lady who doesn't filter her opinion around Jem and Scout, but Atticus tells the children that she is one of the bravest people he ever knew because of what she stood up to—her morphine addiction. Atticus believes Mrs. Dubose stood up for what was right for herself and showed courage at the same time. He describes what she did as follows:



"It's when you know 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" (112).



This quote also seems to pertain to Atticus when he takes the Tom Robinson case. Atticus knows he will lose the case, but he takes it anyway because Tom can't defend himself. Atticus tells his daughter Scout how important it is for him to stand up for Tom Robinson when he states,



"This case, Tom Robinson's case, is something that goes to the essence of a man's conscience... I couldn't go to church and worship God if I didn't try to help that man" (104).



For Atticus, defending Tom isn't just the right thing to do, but it serves an even higher purpose. Scout reminds her father that the whole town thinks he is wrong for standing up for Tom, but Atticus counters by saying that he has to live with himself first before he has to live with others; majority rule won't override his conscience.


One final example of someone sticking up for another is when Link Deas gives Helen Robinson a job after Tom dies. This helps Helen feed her three children. When Bob Ewell harrasses Helen as she goes to and from work, Mr. Deas threatens Ewell that he will have Ewell thrown in jail if he continues harrassing Helen. Ewell stops immediately. Without neighborly support like that, Helen may have been attacked by Bob Ewell at some point in time, which would also cause more problems for the community. As a result, the community also benefits from when Mr. Deas stands up for another person. 


Standing up to prejudice and discrimination is always the right choice, even if it leaves the prejudice-fighting person standing alone. The benefits are worth the sacrifice because that person shows others a good example about what is right. 

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