Dolphus Raymond is a landowner who has mixed-race children. This is not only a socially backward lifestyle for the time period, but people might not do business with such a man if they knew he was doing it on purpose. People might also shun him or his children in other ways; so, Raymond's way of battling this is to act as if he were drunk all of the time. The reasoning behind this is if people in Maycomb believe that he is a chronic drunk, then they will believe that his lifestyle is not necessarily by choice, but because of his predicament. Thus, he acts the part of a drunk whenever he is in town. Raymond explains his reasoning to Scout and Dill as follows:
"I try to give 'em a reason, you see. It helps folks if they can latch onto a reason. When I come to town, which is seldom, if i weave a little and drink out of this sack, folks can say Dolphus Raymond's in the clutches of whiskey--that's why he lives the way he does . . . Secretly, Miss Finch, I'm not much of a drinker, but you see they could never, never understand that I live like I do because that's the way I want to live" (200).
Raymond just wants to live his life in peace, without drama, and without drawing too much attention from Maycomb's society. Therefore, Dolphus Raymond overcomes prejudice by acting like a drunk and so he doesn't have to deal with it by answering to anyone.
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