Along the path to maturation, Jem first encounters the lesson of humility. Previously, he and his sister had felt the need to brag about almost anything they could. However, a certain incident involving a dog wi

th problems changes all that for Jem. When a rabid dog begins wandering the streets of Maycomb, Atticus pulls out his long unused skills with a gun and kills the dog with one well-placed bullet. Normally Jem and Scout would boast about this, but Jem’s first signs of maturation show through when he understands that Atticus does not hold his shooting skills in high regard. This teaches Jem the value of humbleness and allows him to understand that not always must one boast about his talents. Also, Jem says to his somewhat less mature sister, “I reckon if he’d wanted us to know, he’da told us. If he was proud of it, he’da told us” (103). This clearly proves that Jem understands the importance of humbleness to both his father and in general. He convinces Scout that Atticus would prefer to not have them bragging about his talent. Having learned the importance and significance of humbleness, Jem progresses one step further on the way to maturation. However, other lessons soon follow and Jem’s maturity gains another level.

Jem’s conception of bravery and courage changes drastically as the story progresses. Previously, the children assumed that those who could fight and shoot well possessed the greatest courage. Jem’s perspective changes when one lonely, crabby old woman gives him a lesson in real courage. A morphine addict, Mrs. Dubose, provokes Jem into destroying her garden, and as punishment, he has to read to her everyday for a certain amount of time. Mrs. Dubose, the old woman, realizes that she would die soon and decides that she would do it clean of morphine. So everyday, she forces Jem to sit and read to her to take her mind of the pain as she gradually withdraws. Jem decides that he despises the crabby woman. However, an extremely important statement from Atticus changes

Some topics in this essay:
Scout Atticus, Atticus Jem, Atticus Dill, Aunt Alexandra’s, Finch Jem, Jem Scout, Kill Mockingbird, Tom Robinson’s, Finally Jem’s, Harper Lee, crabby woman, real courage, assume responsibility, responsibility actions, main characters, maturation children, atticus jem, humbleness father, learns humbleness, choice makes,