To Kill A Mockingbird Analysis of Part 5 (Chapters 27 - 31)
by Harper Lee

Although Jem and Scout could have died, the incident with Bob Ewell serves as a vindication for the Finch family and their values. Bob Ewell, who the town stands behind during Tom's trial, turns out to be a man so cowardly that he not only stalks Helen Robinson, he tries to kill two innocent children. And the man who comes to their rescue is none other than Boo Radley, a man whose self-imposed exile has made him the prime topic of gossip in Maycomb. It was Atticus and his children who understood these men no matter what the situation. Although the town knew Bob Ewell to be trash, they would defend him over an innocent black man. It was Atticus who saw the truth and stood by that.

As for Boo Radley, it was Scout, in chapter 31, who points out that anyone who saw her walking Boo Radley back to his home would see a real gentleman. Not the man Stephanie Crawford claimed looked into her windows, but a man who came out of seclusion to save two children. We also now know that it had been Boo who was leaving the presents in the tree for Jem and Scout. He has been watching them for many years. Boo Radley is a sensitive and kind man who apparently has had quite an affinity for the children all these years.