Aunty and Atticus’ conflicting views on the way he raises his children, and his opinions on race, has caused a plethora of tension between the two that continues to increase as Tom Robinson’s trial grows closer. The tension between the two is most apparent on their opinions pertaining to race, specifically in regards to Calpurnia. Soon after coming to stay with Atticus aunt Alexandra says, “You’ve got to face it, sooner or later it might as well be tonight. We don’t need her now,” (Lee 182). Although to Atticus Calpurnia is an equal, and is as much a parent to his children as he is, to aunt Alexandra she will never be more than hired help, and the services she provides are no longer needed, unlike the rest of the family who believe she is more than their employee. Although Atticus is able to compromise with his sister, and accept their conflicting views, the continued stress of the trial, and the disapproving opinions of the town have made it harder for him to ignore. This is picked up by Scout at breakfast after Atticus comments on the prejudice and racism that consumes some of the people of Maycomb in front of Calpurnia. Although Atticus often agrees with his sister in order to avoid a fight, he has begun to respond in a more opinionated way. Scout says, “I was beginning to notice a subtle change in my father these days, that came out when he talked with Aunt Alexandra. It was a quiet digging in, never outright irritation,” (Lee 209). This illustrates the change in Aunty and Atticus’ relationship by showing that Atticus will no longer allow himself to be subject to constant persecution for his decisions, nor will he continue to doubt his abilities. This is important to the novel because it reflects Atticus’ reason for defending Tom, by seeing him as a human being instead of a lesser class the way most people do, and highlights the controversy that this trial is causing.
Do you think that Aunt Alexandra and Atticus will continue to have such separate views, and if so, will the result of the trial influence their opinions?
I think that there will never be a day where Aunt Alexandra and Atticus completely agree on a subject. They might end up changing each other, for the better or for the worse, but I don't think they will ever be able to fully agree; they are just too different from each other. I also think that Aunt Alexandra is so upset about Calpurnia still working for the Finches because her intention is to be a mother figure for the family. She feels that the Finches view Calpurnia as a mother more than her, and she is not happy with that because she feels she deserves it more. When Scout says, "Calpurnia was serving Aunt Alexandra more coffee, and she shook her head at what I thought was a pleading winning look. 'You're still too little,' she said. 'I'll tell you when you ain't.'", I think she is showing that Aunt Alexandra has been trying to act more like a mother so Scout will favor her over Calpurnia. No matter how hard Aunt Alexandra tries, though, the Finches will always favor Calpurnia because she is more kind, and they don't care about skin color like Aunt Alexandra does.
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