Ethical Dilemmas in Harper Lees To Kill A Mockingbird Essay -- Kill M

Ethical Dilemmas in Harper Lees To Kill A MockingbirdBlack and white, right and incorrect do decisions that simple and clear even exist? Does a decision ever mean gaining everything without giving anything up? Many characters in To Kill A Mockingbird are strained to make difficult, heart wrenching decisions that have no clear right answer. Harper Lee presents many of these great decisions in To Kill A Mockingbird as ethical dilemmas, or situations that require a choice between two difficult alternatives. Both of these alternatives have vitriolic aspects and question morals and ethics. A person is put in an awkward position, with their mind saying contradicting things. These dilemmas are presented in many different ways. The decisions in the counterbalance of the book are simple and can be solved quite easily, yet they are symbolic of later decisions. Other dilemmas place adult-like decisions in the slug of a child. One dilemma concerned a man burdened with the stric t traditions of the South. Then there are the two biggest dilemmas, Atticus decision to take the mooring and Heck Tates choice between truth and the emotional well being of a man. Lees ingenious storyline is established by these crucial and mentally arduous choices go about by the characters. The first half of To Kill A Mockingbird contains many classic dilemmas that serve as models for more important problems later to come. For example, Atticus is forced into a choice between disobeying Scouts teacher and doing what he feels is right for Scout. Atticus wants Scout to retain her respect for the teacher and to continue following her instructions. Yet, he knows that the clock time he shares with his daughter is very important and is something that will h... ...o take. Unlike plot, the ethical dilemmas do not follow in importance from beginning to end. The most important decision occurred in the middle of the book, however the final ethical dilemma was very important in bringing the reader a feeling of conclusion. The beau ideal to which the ethical dilemmas were presented and resolved was impressive and key to the stunning impact of To Kill A Mockingbird. Sources Consulted Erisman, Fred. The Ethical Dilemmas of Harper Lee. Alabama Review April 26, 1983 122-36. Johnson, Claudia. The Secret Courts of Mens patrol wagon Code and Law in Harper Lees To Kill a Mockingbird. Studies in American Fiction (1991)129-139. Jones, Carolyn. Black and White and Atticus Finch. The Southern Quarterly spend 1999 56-63. Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. New York City, NY J.B.Lippincott Company, 1990.