Preview

Examples Of Appearances In To Kill A Mockingbird

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
622 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Examples Of Appearances In To Kill A Mockingbird
Society’s opinions in the 1930s were based on appearances. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee, this idea is portrayed. Where, she focuses on Scout and Jem as they grow up in Maycomb Alabama during the 1930s. They were always quick to make conclusions about others, but as they got older, they learned numerous times that appearances are deceiving from talking to three different people, Mrs. Dubose, Mr Dolphus Raymond, and Boo Radley. Harper Lee uses these characters to display that people are often more complex than they appear.
Mrs. Dubose was cruel because she was trying to stop taking morphine, and withdrawal symptoms are irritability and pain. The people of Maycomb did not know this, so in Maycomb, “neighborhood opinion

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Powerful Essays

    Mr Dolphus Raymond Quotes

    • 1058 Words
    • 5 Pages

    People are not always as they seem, is one of the many themes in Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Throughout the novel Jean Louise Finch (Scout) overhears countless rumors about certain folks in Maycomb County, such as Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose is a revolting old lady, Mr. Dolphus Raymond is an evil man, and Arthur Radley (Boo) is the most rebellious individual in Maycomb. However, truly in the end Scout comes to know the people she once feared; and she realizes that they are not as bad as Maycomb citizens make them out to be.…

    • 1058 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Stereotypes are generalized traits that people assume about a group of people. In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird stereotypes are used frequently with how different families act, and also how different races appear to others. In the book stereotypes are important when Harper Lee makes the Ewells portray the stereotype for “white trash”. During the trial for the raping of Mayella Ewell this becomes very clear when she writes, “ No truant officers could keep their numerous offspring in school; no public health officer could free them from congenital defects, various worms, and the diseases indigenous to filthy surroundings.”(Lee 227). Lee made this family the stereotypical “white trash” family because it shows the true…

    • 255 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    During the 1930’s in Maycomb Alabama, prejudicial, preconceived and hypocritical views reigned over empathetic and open-minded attitudes, but by Harper Lee’s use of Scout as the protagonist in the novel, a sense of hope is created. Scout represents exploration and the need for knowledge and through using her as the protagonist, harper lee can convey that through having an educated and understanding generation, there is hope for the future. Scout, being the daughter of the most progressive thinking man in Maycomb, is able to empathise with many people and through using her optimism and developing views and opinions she is able to “finally see” that most people are “real nice” if you get to know them and prove that there is a real sense of hope carried throughout To Kill a mockingbird.…

    • 875 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    It is not right to judge someone before you know them, this is one of most popular “golden rules”, and it is a main theme of To Kill a Mockingbird. Mrs. Dubose seems to be a mean, old, lady, but as the reader gets to know her they would realize that she acts that way because she is going through withdrawal. Dolphus Raymond always seems to be drunk; as the characters Scout and Dill both find out that he simply acts different than others and he wants to give people a “reason” for why he acts like that. Boo Radley seems to be very menacing and deadly, but he is actually just very shy. The main theme of To Kill a Mockingbird, is that it is not right to judge someone before you know them, which is proven to be true in the lives of the characters,…

    • 823 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The first example of him being a mockingbird was his disability. His crippled arm prevents him from doing things which make him weaker just like a small mocking bird is. Atticus said in the trail, “how”. The reason Atticus said that is because how could someone choke you with only one working hand. “His left arm was a full 12 inches shorter then his right”(248).…

    • 360 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Scout Finch Stereotypes

    • 932 Words
    • 4 Pages

    A great deal of people in the world today have a habit of making generalizations about certain people, without knowing them fully. People often lack information about their assumptions; which are based on they may have read, seen on television or in the media, or have heard from other people. Due to these beliefs in stereotypes, people end up developing prejudices against others. Most of the time things really aren't what they seem. The novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, is a significant example of this. Jem and Scout Finch grew up in the 1930's, in Maycomb, a town that's extremely prejudice towards a lot of different people, but also a town that was oblivious to the fact that people are much different from the interior than they are on the exterior. Jem and Scout, and the people of Maycomb make conclusions about the ones around them quite often, so, naturally, when they…

    • 932 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Harper Lee, author of the novel, "To Kill a Mockingbird" exploits various textual features which are used to make characters like Aunt Alexandra marginalized. Throughout the novel she is illustrated as a foil to Atticus's attitudes and beliefs; additionally she symbolizes high-class society during the Great Depression. These techniques position the reader to view Aunt Alexandra as an antagonist.…

    • 774 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In our society, there is a lot of mislead or misguided judgement towards others. No one takes the time to verily study someone, and find out who they are. Instead, they base a person’s whole personality strictly on their appearance and what they hear about them. In To Kill A Mockingbird, there are great deals of misjudgment, and inequity particularly against characters like Mrs.Dubose, Boo Radley and Tom Robinson. They were all perceived as people they weren't. Everyone didn’t see the truth, the reality. They were so quick to judge they missed the true qualities of these people. Appearance versus reality is a vast issue in the story. Everyone should be against appearance over reality because no one should have to be judged by what's on…

    • 140 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Harper Lee’s, full name Nelle Lee’s, novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, published in 1960, there are many instances where characters challenge stereotypes or work to help defy them. Jem, for instance, is a character who does not act how a typical boy is supposed to, challenge the stereotypes of males. Another example is Atticus, a lawyer and the father of the narrator. Lastly, Boo Radley, a man prejudged by the entire town, ends up being the biggest hero in Harper Lee’s book. In summary, Jem, Atticus, and Boo Radley are all people who contribute to the novel’s theme of challenge stereotypes and prejudice.…

    • 530 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Prejudice towards different people is a huge part of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird novel. Nearly every little mishap in the book has been somehow linked or caused by prejudice. Naturally, the town of Maycomb is affected by it, and the effect isn’t for the best. Prejudice is a destructive force in Maycomb, bringing nothing to the town. The cause of Maycomb being destroyed is prejudice spreading hatred throughout the town, separating the people, and excluding and enabling members of the town to fully get what they need.…

    • 966 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    To Kill a Mockingbird has had a large influence on English Literature and is most definitely Harper Lee's greatest masterpiece. Many topics of human morals have been touched in this novel. To be more specific, the topic of prejudice towards African-Americans in the southern states is a very prominent one. This book reflects reasons why prejudice exists, the inner strength of the black community, and what should have been done to correct this problem. These fit ideally into the theme "beauty and the beast".…

    • 521 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Everyone in their life will be challenged with a situation that requires them to make a decision. The book To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, is said to be an American classic that everyone should read. The book takes place in the small town of Maycomb, Alabama, in the 1930’s during the Great Depression, a catastrophic event in US history when the stock market crashed causing many to lose their jobs and homes. This plays a major role in the book as it affects the way of how white people viewed the African Americans, as less. Atticus, the main paternal figure of the book and the lawyer defending a falsely accused African American of rape, Jem, son of Atticus, and Mrs.Dubose, an elderly woman who criticizes…

    • 1043 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    "To Kill A MockingBird''

    • 681 Words
    • 3 Pages

    “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” (Lee). In the Maycomb County there is a lot of whites, blacks and even some mixed. There are some that are wealthy and some that are not. Some get along and others do not. Even in a small town, they all live so differently. Throughout Harper lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, hypocrisy, injustice and evil is envisioned in an adult society. Miss Gates and Lula contradict themselves. Atticus is harassed, Tom Robinson gets accused for a crime he did not commit. Bob Ewell tries to kill Scout and Jem and Maycomb is loaded with rumours of Boo Radley,…

    • 681 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Best Essays

    The objective of this thesis paper is to delve into the work of Harper Lee and examine her uses of prejudice. This research defines the different uses of prejudice the novel and in the world. The research reflects upon the racism, sexism, and social classing of the 1930s through the primary sources of articles and books. Throughout the research, it has been found that the prejudices mentioned in Lee’s book have extensive histories that date back hundreds of years. Through showing the history of prejudice, this research pinpoints the political and social aspects of Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird.…

    • 1240 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Best Essays
  • Good Essays

    The 1930s was a time of depression and prejudice. The stock market plumited and a majority of people lost their jobs. For this reason, men predominantly became drunks and abusive. African Americans were treated as second class citizens and their words did not mean as much as a caucation’s words. Anyone who stood up for, or defended an African American was considered a “negro lover”, and also bought shame to his or her family. Usually the truth became distorted and was in favor of whites over blacks. In “To Kill a Mockingbird”, the truth versus reality is distorted through three main themes, the three ways are, Tom Robinson being accused of rape, Tom Robinson feeling bad for Mayella Ewell, and Tom Robinson being convicted of the rape of Mayella Ewell.…

    • 631 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays