What is the name of the man who pretends to be a drunkard in To Kill a Mockingbird?

The man who pretends to be a drunkard in To Kill a Mockingbird is Dolphus Raymond.

Raymond is a wealthy white landowner who lives with a Black woman and their mixed-race children. Maycomb’s white society condemns his family life, so many residents assume he must be secretly drunk because they cannot otherwise explain his behavior.

Raymond carries a paper sack and appears to drink from it. He later reveals to Scout and Dill that the sack contains Coca-Cola, not whiskey. He says that pretending to be drunk gives people a socially acceptable explanation for his refusal to live according to Maycomb’s racial expectations.

The episode shows how prejudice shapes the town’s assumptions. Raymond is not literally a habitual drunkard; he uses the appearance of drunkenness as a protective disguise. Readers may also confuse him with Bob Ewell, the novel’s genuinely abusive alcoholic, but Raymond’s supposed drinking is an intentional performance.