Why does Atticus admire Mrs. Dubose?

Question

Scout and Jem hate Mrs. Dubose. They are afraid of her because she yells things at them and makes derogatory comments about their father when they walk by her house. After Jem cuts Mrs. Dubose's cameilla bushes, she punishes him by making her read to him every afternoon.

Answer 1

Atticus makes Jem go and read to Mrs. Dubose even though she continues to be awful to him. She corrects Jem as he reads and continues to speak poorly about Atticus. However, in the middle of the reading sessions, Mrs. Dubose falls into trances and then her body goes into thrashing fits. Atticus receives a call that Mrs.Dubose has died and then tells the kids that the "fits" they witnessed were due to her morphine addiction, which she withdrew from with the help of the distraction of Jem's reading. Atticus calls Mrs. Dubose courageous because she knew that withdrawing from morphine would mean suffering. This parallels to Atticus' defense in the trial, which is described as being "licked before you begin."