What is the significance of Atticus's quote, "You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view"?

"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view - until you climb into his skin and walk around in it."

This quote is significant because it exemplifies one of the major themes in the novel: perspective as a means of reaching tolerance. Atticus believes that part of the reason why there is prejudice is because people do not understand each other. In fact, many people in Maycomb who are misunderstood are shunned or discriminated against by the townspeople, including Boo Radley, the Ewells, and all black people. In speaking these words to Scout, Atticus is trying to teach his daughter how to learn about other people in order to learn tolerance.