What Is The Maturation Of To Kill A Mockingbird

In the classic novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, many themes are expressed through the maturation of the characters. The main protagonist, Jean-Louise “Scout”, plays a vital role in expressing the importance of understanding others. This main theme is expressed by Scout as she grows up in a time when racism and prejudice was at its worst. At first, Scout is introduced as an outgoing child who was naïve and short-tempered with people who crossed her. The first time we see her short-temper is on her first days of school when she physically beat up Walter Cunningham for getting her in trouble, but she had said the mean things about his family not him. This behavior shows again when seeing Miss Caroline upset after class, “As I was the last to leave, I saw her sink down into her chair and bury her head in her arms. Had her conduct been more friendly toward me, I would have felt sorry for her.” (22). Although she shows a glimpse of maturity, Scout still shows no empathy for Miss Caroline due to her conduct towards Scout. This state of mind for
In the chaos, Jem had forgotten his pants that had been mangled and needed repair. The next day Jem went to retrieve his pants and this caused him to become very distant from the family for unknown reasons which made Scout worry,” As Atticus had once advised me to do, I tried to climb into Jem’s skin and walked it around …” This is a sign of empathy as she tries to understand more about what is bothering Jem and what she could do to help. Scout continues to show farther maturity when she does not fight Cecil Jacobs for his words about Atticus. This resentment from physical abuse is unlike her childish behaviors from when she was