Atticus Finch – Alive or dead? A Socio-legal Question

Abstract

In this article, the fictional lawyer Atticus Finch serves as a reference point for a broader discussion of socio-legal studies and its relevance today. Depicted in Harper Lee’s 1960 novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Finch came to occupy an exalted position in the cultural, political and legal landscapes of the late twentieth century. For generations of students and citizens, Finch served as a model of what it was to be just, civil, honourable and brave. However, in the politically charged and deeply divided context of 2019, this article asks if Atticus Finch is dead. Has the ‘hero lawyer’ and all that he stood for been displaced? And if so, who killed him and what does that mean for the socio-legal quest?