Now that I have enjoyed the fruits of two careers—politics and novel writing—I realize some things about Atticus:

He’d never cut it in elected office.

His defense of Tom Robinson would make him “soft on crime.”

His distaste for guns would make him a target of the gun lobby.

His use of a gun to kill a rabid dog would make him inhumane to the animal rights PACs.

His belief in considering other opinions would make him “Flip-Flop Finch.”

And his association with the shadowy Boo Radley would trigger questions about his own character. I can imagine the grainy footage of Boo, the foreboding piano music, the narrator’s voice exhorting us to “Call Atticus Finch. Because we deserve the truth!”