It was times like these when I thought my father, who hated guns and had never been to any wars, was the bravest man who ever lived.

The line is narrated by Scout Finch in Harper Lee’s novel *To Kill a Mockingbird*. It comes after Scout witnesses her father, Atticus, act decisively and skillfully in a rare moment involving a gun—an event that contrasts with his usual dislike of firearms and his non-martial, bookish public image. In the segregated Depression-era Alabama setting of the novel, Scout is learning to revise childish ideas about courage and masculinity. The episode helps her understand that Atticus’s quiet moral steadiness—especially in the face of community hostility—constitutes a deeper bravery than physical aggression or military experience.

Scout’s reflection redefines bravery as moral restraint and principled action rather than a taste for violence or a record of combat. Atticus’s aversion to guns underscores that courage is not rooted in domination or bravado; it can appear in a person who avoids force yet can shoulder responsibility when necessary. The statement also signals Scout’s growing maturity: she begins to see heroism in her father’s calm integrity and self-control, qualities that will matter even more as he confronts prejudice and defends Tom Robinson. The line thus links physical capability to ethical purpose, emphasizing that true courage is measured by conscience.