Preview

Examples Of Jem's Coming Of Age In To Kill A Mockingbird

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
388 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Examples Of Jem's Coming Of Age In To Kill A Mockingbird
The book To Kill a Mockingbird is a story about racism, prejudice, and most important of them all, a coming of age for the main character(s). The novel tells about a young girl, Scout, and her family, who struggle through a rough time when her father is assigned to be a lawyer for a black man, even though back in the time the story takes place, it was basically hopeless for them to win. During the story, both Scout and her older brother, Jem, have a coming-of-age experience. However, for this essay, I’ll focus on only one; Jem’s.

Jem’s coming-of-age experience happens between the pages 110-112, where Jem finds out Mrs. Dubose has died. In the first paragraph, Atticus comes back into the house from Mrs. Dubose’s, carrying a candy box. Jem

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    I chose chapters two through three in the book To Kill A Mockingbird as a Coming Of Age scene.…

    • 207 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    As people grow in life, they mature and change in many different ways. Harper Lee is the author of To Kill a Mocking Bird. This book is about Scout Finch and her life in the 1930’s in Maycomb County, Alabama. Harpe, shows how Scout matures and progresses in this book along with many other things. For example Scout, the main character, realizes her town is racist after the Tom Robinson trial. Harper also informs the reader about things Scout does not understand throughout the book. One of the things she demonstrates is the reason why Jem, Scout’s brother, is acting different. She does not know what people act like at that age because she is a lot younger, so all of his behavior is new to her. One of the other examples Harper shows is the very unique relationship between Miss Caroline, Scout’s teacher, and Scout. They would like each other, but Miss Caroline’s teaching strategy is bad for Scout because she is able read.…

    • 826 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jem is Atticus' son - also Scout's brother. During the course of the novel, he profoundly and rapidly matures. Scout being the little sister, always relying on her older brother, notices these transitions greatly. She slowly starts understanding her brother and also starts to live life with a different perspective. Jem finally recognizes true courage in none other than Atticus. He then becomes more mature and does not find childish things nor…

    • 694 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” and Peter Carstair’s motion picture “September” are two compelling works that explore the poignant theme of coming-of-age. While over thirty years separate the two pieces, both texts capture the raw emotions and difficulties of innocent children growing into mature adults in an ever-changing society. These changes are portrayed in many different way, but are most prominent through the racism in their surroundings, the character’s deep personal development and their loss of innocence.…

    • 573 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As Jem grows up, he begins to face many challenges and learns to take responsibility. Throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Jem ages from ten to thirteen. He goes through the same issues as adults in the Maycomb community do and in time he begins to understand the lesson that is to be learned. Jem begins to follow Atticus’ footsteps and his courage becomes stronger. He grows moodier and confusing as the story becomes darker.…

    • 228 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    To begin, the author of the story To Kill A Mockingbird tells the life of brother, Jeremy Finch and his sister, Scout who grew up in the era of racism and social inequality. Jeremy Finch, better known as Jem, is a typical young boy who grew up in a small Alabama town of Maycomb. He was described has someone who had an interest in sports, guns and being tough. The author, Harper Lee develops the character of Jem, who encounters many conflicts (internal and external) and shows how many of them were handled with using the theme of coming of age. With Jem’s voice and characterization, Lee shows how a young immature boy can grow into a mature, independent man.…

    • 120 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Jem Finch Quotes

    • 557 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In the small town of Maycomb, Alabama a racism problem arises in the county court system, when a black man is tried on attempted rape against a white girl. The story is based around the Finch family it consists of Atticus, Jem, Scout, Aunt Rachel and Calpernia. Atticus the father is put into a hard pressed situation when the judge appoints Atticus to defend Tom Robinson, the black man accused of raping a white girl. The whole town is against Atticus defending Tom and their whole family Is taking a verbal beating from members of the town that don’t like blacks people. The following paragraphs are going to be aimed at Jem Finch the oldest son who is starting to mature and understand things in a new way. Some of the things he is going to realize is that he has a new sense of family pride/caring; another is his new view on being a leader. He is finally taking responsibility for all of his actions.…

    • 557 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, the author Harper Lee showed the hardships of growing up in the 30's. The characters Jem and Scout are thrown in the middle of difficult times when their father, Atticus, chooses to represent a black man. From this choice of their father, Jem and Scout come to understand that the world isn't fair and they learn how to deal with it. Through the interactions of the childhood world and the adult world, Jem and Scout's personalities and learning change. Jem starts to feel the effects of Atticus's choice to represent a black man when he has an encounter with an old lady, Mrs. Dubose. When Mrs. Dubose was rude to Jem, he got angry and ruined her flowers. Jm was young and didn't understand the effects of his actions. Atticus told Jem that he needs to just hold his head high "and be a gentleman"(133). Jem was just a boy and wasn't used tp dealing with cruelness, especially coming from an adult. His father made it clear…

    • 428 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The scene I have chosen that represents coming of age is the scene where Jem says no to his father for the first time, and where scout uses her brain and not violence. This scene uses tone, conflict, and character to show the coming of age of Jem, and Scout. It shows coming of age because they both become more mature and aware of their thoughts. First of all, an example of tone is from the film “To Kill A Mockingbird”. Jem says “no,sir.”…

    • 477 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    As most people have read the novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, many have wondered, what contributes most to the story’s themes? Well, throughout the novel, there are three main literary elements that come into play. In the passage “‘It ain’t right, Atticus…”’(pg.284) to “I looked up, and his face was vehement”(pg.296), Harper Lee uses the literary element character, setting, and tone to develop the theme that recognizing perspectives contributes to coming of age. As many other themes in the novel, the theme will show a change in how Jem starts to view the world, and the major roles included in it, such as racism. But his perspective comes mostly from the kind of character he is.…

    • 1008 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Jem Finch matures and becomes a person with good morals, that he has learned from his father, Atticus Finch. After Jem learns about the humility of Atticus and his talent of marksmanship he says to his sister, Scout,”...I wouldn’t care if he couldn’t do a blessed thing… Atticus is a gentleman just like me”(Lee 99). Jem has a change in character, he learns it isn’t about what other people are doing, it’s about what is right. Jem now wants to be like his father who is someone with all the proper morals of doing what is right, not popular. Atticus is a huge influence on Jem as he matures, from being an example for Jem to forcing him to learn life skills. Jem learns what reading to the mean old lady, that…

    • 391 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    “You never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them” (Lee 237). Atticus always tells Jem and Scout to never judge people until you take a walk in their shoes. For a while, Scout couldn’t fathom the idea of seeing things from another person’s perspective. Not because of her selfishness, but because her innocence, and immaturity. To Kill a Mockingbird takes place in a small, ordinary town in Maycomb, Alabama; although, for the main characters Jem and Scout Finch, life is everything but ordinary. The book takes place during the early 1930s, and goes on a three-year journey through the fascinating lives of the Finches. The coming of age is an occurring theme in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee through the following…

    • 768 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Coming of Age Novels

    • 978 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Coming of age novels, Cold Sassy Tree and To Kill a Mockingbird introduce readers to 14 year old Will Tweedy of Cold Sassy, Georgia and 5 year old Jean Louise “Scout” Finch of Maycomb County, Alabama. Both characters were brought up in small, close-knit southern towns, with false views of the world, and ignorance to knowledge and experience. As the stories progess however, the two gain a new type of knowledge and realization of the world. Experiences dealing with love, death, racism and discrimination helped the character’s child-like ideas of the world blossom into a more adult-like perspective. Will and Scout had changed in ways both . My paper will further discuss the traits that Scout Finch and Will Tweedy share.…

    • 978 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    “I believe that maturity is not an outgrowing, but a growing up: that an adult is not a dead child, but a child that survived”- Ursula K Le Guin. In the poignant tale of “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, Scout showed both shows traits of perseverance and courage to preserve her fragile, yet powerful innocence through her maturation. The up-and-coming story of a curious girl named Scout set the scene for this tragic piece of literature and depicts the tenacity needed to surpass all obstacles. Firstly, the destruction of the innocent caused Scout to acknowledge the harsh realities and learn valuable life lessons. Secondly, the delusional nature of Scout was skewed by the societal pressures,…

    • 171 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird Jem is an example of a character whose coming-of-age process involves gaining a different perspective. In the 1930s, growing up in a small Southern town came with traditional biased toward people of color, but Jem saw first hand how color at no time effect oneself's personality. Jem’s father, Atticus, a lawyer, defended an innocent black man and after losing the trial Jem said, “‘It…

    • 639 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays