In "To Kill a Mockingbird", Atticus is shown as a good character, trying to live in the way he thinks a lawyer and human being should. He is very honest, thoughtful, and helps good causes (even when he knows that they will fail). He tries hard to teach his children to be kind, fair, and giving. His children later find out that he was an expert at shooting, but had not told them because he did not want them to think he was violent. He is described in the book as a tall, middle-aged man with glasses and hair that is going a little gray.