Draft 1:
It is a theme throughout many novels and plays for a main character to sacrifice something because of their values. These values are often a risk to their reputation, the ones they love, and possibly even their own lives. Because a character is able is able to sacrifice the things in life that are most important to them, we know that this person does not just value these things, but finds them even more important than what the audience may initially think.
In the well-known work To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch sacrifices a great deal to defend a black man in court. First off, he sacrifices his two most prized possessions, daughter and son, Scout and Jem. We understand that as an audience, Jem and Scout probably wouldn't have actually been murdered by angry racists, but their lives could have become extremely different from this court case. Even though these two did nothing wrong themselves, they could have been shunned from society, their school, and be left with no companions. It is never expected for a man to choose someone he hardly knows over his own children, but Atticus does this because he knows it is the right thing to do, which is ultimately important to him above all else.
Furthermore, Atticus's own reputation was on the line. Atticus lived in an extremely luxurious house with even a maid included. He was well-respected by all his community- and his children would probably live up to that reputation as well. But to throw that all away for something that could hurt you? For someone you hardly know? For a suspected rapist? For something you know could be a waste of time and effort? That seems highly unimaginable, and it is unknown how many people would actually take these chances. Putting others in harms way is hard, especially when it is your own children. But also putting yourself in harms way? It seems less difficult, but is it really? Knowing your actions are directly going to hurt you must be one of the hardest things to go through.
And Atticus's reputation wasn't the only think he was going to risk for himself. Atticus could have paid with his life. This time period was an era of extreme racism and hate. People were lynching innocent African Americans-daily. African Americans lived in fear because they were so hated. and if you didn't hate them? You better keep your mouth shut. However, Atticus didn't just not hate them. He defended a black man in court, something so shocking and betraying to Jim Crow laws, and also something so ahead of his time. If white racists were so quick to judge black people and kill them, who's to say they wouldn't have done the same to Atticus? He could not only have been stripped of his happy life, but stripped of life altogether. This value to defend this man outweighed so many other values, including the value to live.
In modern society, we find what Atticus did to be something that virtually anyone would do. "Everyone is against racism these days." Yet even if you aren't racist, would you really give up everything to protect a minority? Your wife, husband, daughter, son, reputation, and life? You possibly might, but it goes without saying that what Atticus did was ultimate sacrifice, and his values and morals were so in check he was truly willing to give up everything.
Draft 2:
In the highly praised novel To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch shows his most significant values through his brave actions of defending Tom Robinson. Atticus sacrifices his reputation, children's future respectable lives, and possibly even his own life. Through these sacrifices we see what Atticus truly values: equality; and although these sacrifices may seem like brutal punishment, in a very real sense they make him feel rewarded.
First off, Atticus sacrifices his two most prized possessions, daughter and son, Scout and Jem. We understand that as an audience, Jem and Scout probably wouldn't have actually been murdered by angry racists because of this trial, but their lives could have become drastically different. Even though these two did nothing wrong themselves, they could have been shunned from society, their school, and be left with no companions. It is never expected for a man to choose someone he hardly knows over his own children, but Atticus does this because he knows it is the right thing to do, which is ultimately important to him above all else.
Furthermore, Atticus's own reputation was on the line. Atticus lived in an extremely luxurious house with even a maid included. He was well-respected by all his community- and his children would probably live up to that lifestyle as well. But to throw that all away for something that could hurt you? For someone you hardly know? For a suspected rapist? For something you know could be a waste of time and effort? That seems highly unimaginable, and it is unknown how many people would actually take these chances. Putting others in harms way is hard, especially when it is your own children. But also putting yourself in harms way? It seems less difficult, but is it really? Knowing your actions are directly going to hurt you must be one of the most gut wrenching things to put yourself through.
And Atticus's reputation wasn't the only think he was going to risk for himself. Atticus could have paid with his life. This time period was an era of extreme racism and hate. People were lynching innocent African Americans-daily. African Americans lived in fear because they were so hated. and if you didn't hate them? You better keep your mouth shut. However, Atticus didn't just not hate them. He defended a black man in court, something so shocking and betraying to Jim Crow laws, and also something so ahead of his time. If white racists were so quick to judge black people and kill them, who's to say they wouldn't have done the same to Atticus? He could not only have been stripped of his happy life, but stripped of life altogether. This value to defend this man outweighed so many other values, including the value to live.
Despite all these risks and punishments, Atticus still did what he did. And he didn't just do them; he felt rewarded by these actions. Even though society at his time didn't believe what Atticus did to be triumphant, deep down he knew that what he was doing was the right thing to do. Atticus was able to see beyond skin color unlike anyone in the 1930's, and the fact that he knew right from wrong more than anyone else in Maycomb shows how stepping outside society's standards is not as much of a punishment as it is satisfactory.
In modern society, we find what Atticus did to be something that virtually anyone would do. "Everyone is against racism these days." Yet even if you aren't racist, would you really give up everything to protect a minority? Your wife, husband, daughter, son, reputation, and life? You possibly might, but it goes without saying that what Atticus did was ultimate sacrifice, and his values and morals were so in check he was truly willing to give up everything.
Reflection:
From essay draft 1 to draft 2 I feel like I've made many improvements in my essay writing. The thing that I improved upon the most was my introduction. In my original essay, I had a very difficult time diving right into the essay. I had a lengthy and generalized intro, when I should have just began focusing on the prompt. Also, I didn't incorporate the author's name anywhere in the original essay, so I immediately added that into my second draft to make my new essay more credible.
Furthermore, I feel like I made my thesis much more complex with the use of a semi-colon to add interesting punctuation, and also a paradox when I discussed how Atticus's actions were both a punishment and a reward. This develops my essay much better and makes it much more interesting for the reader. This also helped me to break away from the five paragraph essay because I added an additional paragraph explaining how despite all the cruel punishments for doing the right thing, Atticus still felt rewarded.
I feel that in this essay, it was easier for the audience to comprehend why Atticus did what he did because I explained his sense of satisfaction. To me, that was the thing I wanted most for my essay to convey. I still have much to improve upon and would like to move even farther away from the standard five paragraph essay. I also feel that I could add more to my introduction to make it more interesting, but overall I feel that this is my best work for this stage in the learning process for our new essays. I cannot wait to improve more on the new essay format and push my writing further.
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