The entire cast of To Kill a Mockingbird is wonderful. The teachings of Atticus, the wild schemes of Dill, and Uncle Jack--yes, just Uncle Jack. But the best character of all is our protagonist, Jean Louise "Scout" Finch. And here is a list of Scout's awesomeness:
1. Scout is honest and speaks her mind As a five year old, Scout sees no problem in saying what she's thinking. When her classmate, Walter, comes over for lunch and pours syrup all over his food, she asks him why he's doing that. That he's ruining the food. She is dragged out of the kitchen and reprimanded by Calpurnia (another amazing character who consistently scolds Scout, but you see Cal's love for Scout all throughout the novel). Scout is honest to a fault; even when it gets her into trouble, like on the first day of school.
2. Scout is curious. She wants to learn. Her father, Atticus, never talks down to her or her brother, Jem. When Atticus uses a word Scout doesn’t understand she asks him what it means. She has a desire to understand. This is also shown by her love of books. “I never loved to read. One does not love breathing.” Her passion for books is so deep that it goes beyond love. Reading is necessary to Scout’s very life.
3. Scout is very protective of her family. The main reason she gets into fights is because someone has insulted Scout or a family member of hers. She fights to defend her honor or the honor of her family. However, this is due more to her pride than anything. And Atticus has a talk with her about not solving her problems with her fists.
4. Scout is true to herself. Scout does what she wants without worrying too much about what others think of her. She does not go around pretending to be something she’s not, but she will bend to appease her father. When Atticus forbids Scout to fight, she promises she won’t. And she really tries to keep her promise.
5. Scout is fun. My favorite line (other than quote in #2) comes at the end of the book. Scout and Jem are walking home in the dark and they realize that someone is following them. Thinking it is her classmate who jumped out at her earlier in the night, Scout turns around and hollers, “Cecil Jacobs is a big, wet he-en!” This line sadly did not make it into the amazing film version. Scout, Jem, and their friend Dill spend the summers running around and use their imaginations to have great adventures.
6. Scout has a great name. Her birth name may be Jean Louise, but she is wholly and completely Scout.
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