“Every lawyer gets at least one case in his life that affects him personally. This is mine, I guess." To Kill A Mockingbird, an award-winning book by Harper Lee is about Atticus Finch, a lawyer from Maycomb, Alabama, who tries to defend Tom Robinson. Tom, accused of rape by a white woman named Mayella Ewell in the 20th century, is having great difficulty winning the case. Atticus Finch shows great courage and confidence when he decides to help Tom Robinson with his case. Say no to plagiarism should they be banned"? Get an original essay Atticus defends Tom because he values ​​equality and justice. He believes that everyone is equal and so just because Tom Robinson is black, doesn't mean he shouldn't defend him. Before the trial, Atticus states: " Simply because we were beaten a hundred years before we started there's no reason not to try to win." Atticus points out that simply because ingrained racism will likely cause them to lose the trial, doesn't mean they can't still do the right thing to fight for justice. Another reason why Atticus defended Tom because he wanted Jem, his son, to look up to him and maintain respect for his father. Atticus states, “Before he looks at anyone else, Jem looks at me. I've tried to live so that I can look him straight in the eye... If I connived at something like that, frankly, I couldn't meet his gaze, and the day I can't I will have lost him. If Atticus had not defended Tom, Jem would no longer have respect for his father and would not be able to look at him in the same way. Even though Atticus was brave in helping Tom, people couldn't take a black person's word over a white person's. It was extremely difficult for the court to believe that Tom Robinson's story was true. Atticus' neighbor states, “...I don't see why you touched him... You have everything to lose from this Atticus. I mean everything. He is stating that Atticus has no chance of winning the case because Tom is black. Even though his neighbors didn't support him in helping Tom, he knew it was the right thing to do. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Atticus showed great courage in doing the right thing by defending Tom because he believed everyone should be treated equally and wanted to maintain his son's respect. Since Atticus values ​​equality and justice, he still had the courage to defend a black man in court even though he knew it wouldn't go the way they wanted. By reading the book, the reader sees how people should always be treated equally, regardless of the outcome and how difficult it is for a black man to win a court case in the 20th century...