Being Democratic The Characters of Atticus Finch

4.2.1. Motivation toward his Children 4.2.1.1 To Teach his Children about Being Kind and Sympathetic Person Atticus is a kind and loving person. He loves his family and also kind to his surroundings. Atticus is kind to everybody including black people. He likes to help other people. He feels enjoyment whenever he helps other. He finds the beauty of life in helping people. Atticus also finds the beauty of life in his action of defending Tom Robinson, a Negro, in his case. He feels that Tom Robinson is just an ordinary man that needs his help. Atticus is having sympathy to Tom Robinson. Atticus kindness and sympathy can be seen from his saying when he answered to Scout questions. “Scout,” said Atticus, “nigger-lover is just one of those terms that don’t mean anything—like snot-nose. It’s hard to explain—ignorant, trashy people use it when they think somebody’s favoring Negroes over and above themselves. It’s slipped into usage with some people like ourselves, when they want a common, ugly term to label somebody.” “you aren’t really a nigger-lover, then, are you?” “I certainly am. I do my best to love everybody. . . I’m hard put, sometimes— baby, it’s never an insult to be called what somebody thinks is a bad name. It just shows you how poor that person is, it doesn’t hurt you. So don’t let Mrs. Dubose get you down. She has enough troubles of her own.” p. 113. From the quotation above, it is clear that Atticus has a deep sympathy to a Negro. He also has no hard feeling when someone calls him a nigger-lover, a nasty term. He considers the term as nothing. In fact he enjoys being a nigger-lover because his action is in a right way. He enjoys saving people from a detention and that is what he is doing as a lawyer, saving people. It is the effect of his trait as a kind and loving father. His love to his children also affect other people so that he also loves and cares black people Atticus is a kind man. He is having high sympathy for humankind. Atticus, in his life, realizes that every human is unique and every human is different from each other. Once he has a client that cannot afford to pay the service, he let the man to pay with whatever he has. Atticus does not rush this man to pay and say that the man does not need to worry about the payment. This man, in turn, pays Atticus in unusual way. He sends Atticus wood stock and also food stock. Walter’s father was one of Atticus clients. After a dreary conversation in our living room one night about his entailment, before Mr. Cunningham left he said, “Mr. Finch, I don’t know when I’ll ever be able to pay you.” “Let that be the last of your worries, Walter,” Atticus said. ...” I ask Atticus if Mr. Cunningham would ever pay us. “Not in money,” Atticus said, “but before the year’s out I’ll have been paid. You watch.” We watched. One morning Jem and I found a load of stove wood in the back yard. Later, a sack of hickory nuts appeared on the back steps. With Christmas came a crate of smilax and holly. That spring when we found a Crocker sack full of turnips greens, Atticus said Mr. Cunningham had more than paid him p. 25 From the quotation we can see that Atticus is very sympathetic and kind to Mr. Cunningham. He lets him pay the way he can pay him. So, Mr. Cunningham pays Atticus with food stocks. Another example of Atticus’ sympathetic action is whenever he tells Scout not to fight anymore. He tells Scout that every human is a friend and therefore, we cannot fight each other. This wise saying can be found in the following quotation. “Come here, Scout,” said Atticus. I crawled into his lap and tucked my head under his chin. He put his arms around me and rocked me gently. “It’s different this time,” he said “This time we aren’t fighting the Yankees, we’re fighting our friends. But remember this, no matter how bitter things get, they’re still our friends and this is still our home.” p. 81 Above explanations are matched with the ninth characteristic of self-actualized person, that is, having sympathy for humankind. Sometimes, it is evidenced by sense of mission in life that often involves solving problems of human condition.