With an inspiring essay about her father’s dedication to both family and work, Abigail Macias won the Teen Category for the Shawnee County Big Read’s Atticus Finch Essay Contest.  Atticus Finch, a literary character, exemplifies the wisdom of the "perfect father" to both his children and his community. He has become an iconic figure come to life from the pages of To Kill a Mockingbird. The essay contest asked participants to reflect on a person who at one time in their life filled the shoes of an Atticus and to articulate the comparison in a 300 word essay convincingly and creatively. Evaluations were be based on the strength of the thesis, the skills of presentation, creativity and overall impact of the piece. Each entry was reviewed anonymously by a Washburn University English Education class taught by Dr. Danny Wade. In recognition of her essay, Abigail Macias won two tickets to The Hollywood Theater, the Topeka Zoological Park, and the Mulvane Art Museum’s Mountain/Plains Art Fair.

Winning Teen Essay by Abigail Macias:

While reading a book, I notice characters that remind me of people in real life.  One of those characters is Atticus Finch, Scout’s dad, in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird.  Atticus reminds me a lot of my dad, Saulo Macias, because they are both hardworking men who are gruff, intelligent, protective, and brave.

Two of the ways Atticus and my dad are alike is they are both hardworking and gruff.  My dad is a construction worker and Atticus is a lawyer.  Two very different occupations, but both require a lot of hard work and effort.  When lawyers are working on a case they have to gather information and get the details.  In construction, workers put a lot of effort into their project, finding measurements and constructing buildings.  At home Atticus works hard to get his kids in a good position by making Scout go to school and telling Jem to leave Boo Radley alone.  My father also tries his best to keep all of my sisters and me educated and polite.  Also, Atticus is gruff and so is my dad.  Neither one really show emotions.  Atticus doesn’t share his feelings with his kids.  My dad doesn’t share either, and he has a very neutral facial expression.

Other similarities both men share are their protectiveness and intelligence.  Atticus protects his kids very well.  He told Scout not to get into anymore fights at school and tells Jem to watch Scout.  My dad protects all of us kids and mom.  He tells my mom to be careful driving and calls to check up on us when he’s away.  My dad is smart in the way that he works things out and thinks before he acts.  Atticus is smart because he finds all the evidence in the Tom Robinson case.

Atticus is also brave.  He helps Tom even though he is black.  He killed the dog with rabies so the town would be safe.  My dad isn’t afraid of his job.  Construction jobs can be dangerous, but he’s been working for it since before I was born.  Atticus reminds me of my own dad because they are both brave. 

Atticus reminds me of my father, Saulo Macias in many ways.  My dad is a hardworking man who is gruff, intelligent, brave, and protective.  Those words could also be used to describe Atticus Finch.

Excerpts of other noteworthy submissions appear below.

Alexander Haines:
While Atticus Finch has overcome many different problems in his town, I think Gandhi had many of the same traits.  They both were faced with problems and challenges that were related to the fight of independence.  Gandhi fought the British through civil disobedience.  Atticus fought racism, so an African American could be free of a crime he was accused of.  While the evidence said he was innocent, his color said he was guilty.

Ricky Drennon:
John F Kennedy was brave in many ways like Atticus.  He stood up for African Americans civil rights and tried to make them equal just like when Atticus defended Tom Robinson even though there were people that hated him or even wanted to kill him.

Delores Smith:
King and Finch were very brave men.  Finch was brave because even though he was white, he wasn’t afraid to defend an innocent black man.  Finch showed bravery because he knew most whites wouldn’t approve of him defending a “negro” but he did what he thought was right.  King was brave because he went against all the racism knowing he could get hurt or put in jail.  He still fought for his rights.  Both King and Finch were brave because they went against others opinions and views but still fought for what they thought was right.

Cierra Sommers:
Atticus would be more then hurt if something happened to Scout, Jem, or Tom.  Like when Bob Ewell tried to hurt Scout and Jem.  Or when the men came to the courthouse that one night.  Mr. Principal would be devastated if something bad happened to his students or the school. 
Atticus doesn’t believe in violence.  Like the time Bob Ewell spits in Atticus’ face, he just walked away.  He also tries to teach Scout that fighting is not the only answer.  Mr. Principal teaches his students that violence is never the answer.

Anne Haehl:
Such an ordinary
tragedy;
an old man
forgetting his life.

Perhaps
his involvement in love and learning
was so deep
he could only leave
memory
first.