In To Kill a Mockingbird, Mrs. Dubose is an elderly woman who lives alone in a house near the Finches. The final weeks of her life are recounted in chapter 11. Upon her death, she leaves Jem a camellia—a particular variety that is named "Snow on the Mountain" for its pure whiteness.

The Finch children fear Mrs. Dubose because she yells at them and dislike her because she makes racist comments and insults their father. One day, Jem loses his temper when he hears her ranting and uses Scout’s new baton to strike the heads of the camellias growing in Mrs. Dubose's yard. As punishment, Atticus decides that Jem should help Mrs. Dubose by reading to her. Scout accompanies him during these reading sessions.

Soon after the sessions end, Mrs. Dubose passes away. She leaves Jem a single white camellia. This reveals that she understood that Jem had learned to regret destroying the flowers. From Atticus, the children learn that some of her bad behavior was associated with the extreme physical pain caused by cancer. This was exacerbated by the fact that she stopped taking morphine. Atticus tells the children that her ability to wean herself off the drug and endure the pain made her the bravest person he knew. The respect for her courage that Jem gains is another, different type of gift.