Who is Calpurnia? What is her place in the Finch household?

Calopurnia and Miss Maudie both represent female role
models for Scout in divergent ways. Calpurnia is black, which makes her different from
the Finches because of the way in which race is viewed in Maycomb at the time. However,
because she has taken care of the children for so long, she has become almost like a
mother to them. The children are able to see past her skin color and see her only as the
caring woman that she is, someone who will protect them when their father is not around
and who fulfils the role of a mother nicely. Because they learn to see past her skin
color, they are in a much better position to see past Tom Robinson's skin color as well
and to see him as the innocent man that he is. Because of this, they are even more
startled by the outcome of the trial and it gives them a glimpse into the adult world of
hatred and prejudice. They do not like what they see, and rightfully so. This is how
change is made in future generations.

Miss Maudie is also a
female role model. She is a widow, like Atticus, and in some ways acts as his other half
even without a romantic entanglement. She is highly critical of the hypocrisy in the
town, particularly of the so-called church goers - and she is not afraid to share her
wisdom with the children. Her views align with what they have already learned from
Atticus. As a result, her position in the story is to act as a codification of the
values that the children are learning from this experience.