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 all that. After the news of Mrs. Dubose's death arrives, Atticus tells Jem, "I"d have made you go read to her. I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you"re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win but sometimes you do" (116). This finally opens up Jem's eyes and shows him that instead of a glorious figure with a gun representing courage, bravery really exists in people who know they have lost, but will fight on anyway. Thus, Jem finally understands about Mrs. Dubose's bravery and loses his childish delusions about courage. Tom Robinson's trial also serves to teach Jem about courage because again he sees a situation where the fighter knows he has lost but tries anyway. Atticus, an attorney by profession, defends a Negro innocent despite the disapproval from his neighbors and associates.