1. Textual issues or concerns linked to the character
1.1. Racism
1.1.1. Tom Robinson Case and Mr Gilmer's demeaning and rude tone towards him in the case. This scene displays Dill's feelings of distraught by seeing the poor treatment Tom is receiving purely because of the colour of his skin.
1.1.1.1. "Are you being impudent to me, boy?'.-Mr Gilmer.
1.1.1.2. Things haven't caught up with that one's instinct yet. Let him get a little older and he won't get sick and cry […] about the simple hell people give other people—without even thinking. Cry about the hell white people give colored folks, without even stopping to think that they're people, too." (20.20-22)
1.2. Sense of belonging
1.2.1. Dill Harris every summer comes to Maycomb County, however when he doesn't feel wanted by his family, he runs away, back to Scout and Jem in Maycomb. This displays his sense of belonging and strive to be surrounded by people who he can relate to and that he feels, need him.
1.2.1.1. "The thing is, what I'm tryin' to say is---they do get on a lot better without me, I can't help them any."
2. How others see him
2.1. Confident
2.1.1. Dill's confidence towards Scout and their 'future together' as well as his confidence or more, lack of fear towards the Radley House.
2.1.1.1. 'he asked me earlier in the summer to marry him...said I was the only girl he'd ever love'
2.2. Brave
2.2.1. Dill shows bravery when he runs away from his family, alone to come back to Maycomb County
2.2.1.1. 'He had walked ten or eleven of the fourteen miles to Maycomb'...
2.3. Charismatic
2.3.1. Dill displays charisma when talking about his life and creating games and telling stories to Scout and Jem
2.3.1.1. "Dill Harris could tell the biggest ones I ever heard. Among other things, he had been up in a mail plane seventeen times, he had been to Nova Scotia, he had seen an elephant, and his granddaddy was Brigadier General Joe Wheeler and left him his sword."
3. Beliefs and Values
3.1. Being considerate
3.1.1. Dill cares about hurting others and more capable of looking at a different perspective than Jem or Scout
3.1.1.1. "How do you know a match don't hurt him'
3.2. Justice/Respect
3.2.1. Dill values respect and doesn't believe Tom Robinson was being treated fairly in the court. He saw the prejudice in the court and decided that it isn't right which shows his belief in justice
3.2.1.1. "It ain't right, somehow it ain't right to do 'em that way" -Dill Pg
3.3. Loyalty
3.3.1. Dill believed Scout and Jem should support him and values his loyalty with them. This was when Jem decided to go against what Dill wanted and tell Atticus he had come to Maycomb
3.3.1.1. "Then he rose and broke the remaining code of our childhood" -Scout
4. Motivated by
4.1. Frienship
4.1.1. "In this matter we were lucky to have Dill. He played the character parts formally thrust upon me - the ape in Tarzan, Mr Crabtree in The Rover Boys, Mr Damon in Tom Swift."
4.1.1.1. Frienship
4.1.1.2. His willingness to play the undesired roles is motivated by his want for friendship. He is willing to play the bad roles as he values his friendship with Scout and Gem.
4.2. Curiosity
4.2.1. "Dill gave us the idea of making Boo Radley come out. The Radley Place fascinated Dill. In spite of our warnings and explanations it drew him as the moon draws water"
4.2.1.1. Dill's curiosity is reflected in his interest in the mysterious Radley family in particular Boo. His curiosity motivates him to come up with plans to tempt Boo to leave his house.
4.3. Sensitivity
4.3.1. "It was just him I couldn't stand," Dill said. […] "That old Mr. Gilmer doin' him thataway, talking so hateful to him—[…] It was the way he said it made me sick, plain sick. […] The way that man called him 'boy' all the time an' sneered at him, an' looked around at the jury every time he answered-[…] It ain't right, somehow it ain't right to do 'em that way. Hasn't anybody got any business talkin' like that—it just makes me sick."
5. Looks like
5.1. Short
5.1.1. “Sitting down, he wasn’t much higher than the collards.”
5.1.1.1. A collard plant his typically between 2 and 4 feet tall which means Dill would have been quite small.
5.1.1.2. Quote describes Dill's hair through the use of adjectives and a simile.
5.2. White Hair
5.2.1. "His hair was snow white and stuck to his head like duck fluff"
5.3. "As he told us the old tale his blue eyes would lighten and darken"
5.4. Blue Eyes
6. Acts Like
6.1. Adventurous
6.1.1. "He had taken thirteen dollars from his mother’s purse, caught the nine o’clock from Meridian and got off at Maycomb Junction. He had walked ten or eleven of the fourteen miles to Maycomb, off the highway in the scrub bushes lest the authorities be seeking him, and had ridden the remainder of the way clinging to the backboard of a cotton wagon."
6.1.1.1. This quote demonstrates Dill's adventurous nature as he ran away from home to visit his friends in Maycomb.
6.2. Imaginative
6.2.1. In this matter we were lucky to have Dill. He played the character parts formerly thrust upon me— the ape in Tarzan, Mr. Crabtree in The Rover Boys, Mr. Damon in Tom Swift. Thus we came to know Dill as a pocket Merlin"
6.2.1.1. This quote displays Dill's imagination as by comparing him to Scout and Gem. They view him as a "pocket merlin" as his creativity allows him to take on any role.
6.3. Childish/ Mischievous
6.4. You mean when somebody’s dyin‘ you can smell it?” “No, I mean I can smell somebody an‘ tell if they’re gonna die. An old lady taught me how.” Dill leaned over and sniffed me. “Jean—Louise—Finch, you are going to die in three days.”
6.4.1. Many of the things Dill says, including this quote, are foolish and childish much like the rumours that circulate throughout Maycomb.