‘The Maycomb County courthouse was faintly reminiscent of Arlington in one respect: the concrete pillars supporting its south roof were too heavy for their burden’. This quote is a description Scout gives of the courthouse in Maycomb before the hearing that she and Jem attended to see Atticus. The part of the quote that I want to focus on is the concrete pillars holding the south roof and that they are too heavy for their burden. Like all buildings, a roof would be pointless without a structure to support it, in this case it is Scout and Jem (concrete pillars) supporting Atticus (roof/burden). Atticus is a father to Scout and Jem, as a character Harper Lee made him represent morality and reason and as Atticus he wants to pass that on to his children. Atticus is the burden and the reason we see Scout and Jem as ‘too heavy’ is because Atticus has a major reputation and and as Scout describes the situation she believe that what her father does will have a major impact on them. This is the reason why Atticus maintains a high moral and treads carefully when attending court because what he does can have an effect on his children. This is why the concrete pillars are too heavy for their burden, the children will have a longer and more effective view than their father.