Preview

To Kill A Mockingbird Chapter 1-14

Better Essays
Open Document
Open Document
2437 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
To Kill A Mockingbird Chapter 1-14
Chapter 1

In this chapter the Finch family is introduced by Scout. Simon Finch established a homestead, ‘Finch’s Landing’, on the banks of the Alabama River. Both of his sons ended up leaving the landing as, Atticus, studied law; the other had studied medicine. Their sister Alexandra stayed and took care of the landing with her husband. Atticus moves to Maycomb, Alabama where he raises his two children, Scout and Jem. These children have always been fascinated by the Radley house because of the mystery that it held. Boo Radley lives in the house and his story is that he is crazy and his father imprisons him in the household. The children decide to dare each other to touch the house.

Chapter 2

Scout is set to start school and really does not want to go. Jem tells her to stay with the kids her age and not follow Jem and his friends. Scout is chastised for already being able to read, as her father and, Calpurnia the family cook, had introduced her to reading and writing at a very young age. Scout tries to offer Walter Cunningham money for him to buy lunch and he would not accept it. When she explained what happened to her teacher she was punished by the teacher.
…show more content…
After the fight Jem invites Walter over for dinner that night, and at the dinner table Scout comments on Walter’s eating habits and was immediately punished by Cal. The Ewell family is introduced because the behavior of Burris’ behavior in the classroom. Scout asked Atticus if she could skip school like the Ewell kids and Atticus explains why she had to still attend school.

Chapter

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    #3 Scout was telling the story about Boo Radley, she said Radley was locked up in a basement as a teenager for once getting in trouble with police. Boo has been locked up in the house ever since and people think he goes out at night.…

    • 1017 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    On Scout’s first day of school, she hits Walter Cunningham because Miss Caroline punished her for saying that the Cunningham’s don’t receive what they can’t pay back. Jem breaks them up and invites Walter to have dinner at their house and thinks that instead of fighting, Scout should treat Walter with respect.…

    • 228 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The book To Kill a Mockingbird is set in a small town, called Macomb, in the deep south of Alabama. Atticus Finch, one of the main characters and one of the best loved characters in American literature is the loving father of Jim and scout. Atticus was assigned to defend a black man in trial where the cards were stacked against him because of his race. Most of the town wanted Tom Robinson, the defendant, in the electric chair. Since his life was in danger from the town, Atticus went down to the county jail to protect and watch after Tom. When Atticus told Jim and Scout he was leaving and would not be home until after they had gone to…

    • 671 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Scout Finch matures by the means of seeing the perspectives of her lower class friend, Walter Cunningham and her neighbor, Miss Maudie. Walter Cunningham is a classmate of Scout whom she invites home to dinner after fighting with him. He is poor but still has self respect, and he refuses to take money from people without being able to pay them back. At the dinner, they serve roast and vegetables, which Walter has never eaten before, so he pours syrup on it. Scout is confused that “he's gone drowned his dinner in syrup”(pg 32). The maid, Calpurnia scolds scout for making Walter feel ashamed and furiously tells her, “That boy’s yo’ comp’ny and if he wants to eat up the table cloth you let him, you hear?”(pg 32). After getting scolded by Calpurnia, Scout realizes that Walter must already feel out of place and recognizes his perspective by seeing the way that he lives.…

    • 403 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    These cruel parts of the world have not had the chance to corrupt her. One night when Tom Robinson was in jail Atticus went to sit out front so no one would bother Tom. Jem, Dill, and Scout wanted to know as to why he would go to the jail so late at night so they followed him. Soon after the kids got there the men in the town showed up to kill Tom. The kids then and went to stand in between the men and Atticus. Because of Scout's innocence she did not understand that the men were there to hurt anyone, so she started a conversation with one of the men; she asked about his kid and how he was doing. Once the man realized that she was just a little innocent girl she told everyone to leave because he did not want anyone to do anything in front of the kids that could take there innocents…

    • 378 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Atticus has nurtured Scouts mind, conscience and individuality without bogging her down with social hypocrisies and propriety. Atticus's hands off parenting style has lead Scout to be wearing overalls and climbing trees with Jem, her brother and Dill their neighbour. Instead of wearing dresses and learning manners like any other girl in her same position, she has been able to grow up freely and with out much baggage. Despite being very intelligent (she could read before she started school), she does not grasp social niceties, this is shown when Scout goes to school and bluntly tell her teacher Ms Caroline that one of her class mates Walter Cunningham is too poor to pay her back for lunch. "You're shamin' him, Miss Caroline. Walter hasn't got a quarter at home to bring you" pg 24 Scout upset from being told off at school starts to fight Walter Cunningham but Jem intervenes and invites Walter for dinner. During dinner it is revealed to her that Walter's family may be poor but doesn't mean that they are bad people and should be treated with respect. Scout realises not to be judgemental and should treat all people, big or small, poor or rich with…

    • 679 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    What Does Atticus Learn

    • 612 Words
    • 3 Pages

    When she begins school and is able to read it and write it makes her teacher, Mrs. Caroline aggravated which almost makes Scout want to drop out of the first grade. But when Atticus shows Scout what it is like for Mrs. Caroline she has more respect for her. He tells her that Mrs. Caroline is knew to Maycomb county and the teaching system, so Scout’s advancement threw her lesson off and frustrated her. Then when Scout, has to inform her teacher about the Ewell’s and how they only go to school on the first day, and how the Cunningham’s do not take anything because they cannot pay anyone back is embarrassing for the teacher to have to find out from her students. This gives Scout a more positive outlook on her class and stops her from wanting to drop out of the first grade. This trick helped Scout throughout the rest of the novel as…

    • 612 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Scout Finch Femininity

    • 1647 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Scout, as the narrator of the story, was at the forefront of all information and events that we learned about. This made it extremely easy to understand and decipher her emotions and the impact of each instance on the young child. I felt sympathy for her, as she was confronted by tough situations, but did not have the experience or knowledge that an older individual would use to make sense of the problem. Such a situation occurs when Scout is confronted by Cecil Jacobs in the schoolyard, who announced that Scout’s father was defending an African American man. Scout was upset, but she managed to control her aggression and withhold from fighting Cecil. She managed to control these feelings because she believed she would let Atticus down if she fought him, and instead talked to Atticus about what was said at the school. Scout didn’t understand why the kids were so interested in this man and why this case made everyone so upset with her father. This is one of the first examples of the maturing that Scout goes through in the course of the…

    • 1647 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Atticus is the father figure for his kids, Jem and Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird. The Finch family lives in Maycomb, Alabama during the Great Depression. The kids spend much of their time playing with their gregarious neighbor, Dill, and spying on their reclusive and mysterious neighbor Boo Radley. When their father, Atticus, who is a widowed man and a respected lawyer, defends a black man named Tom Robinson against fabricated rape charges against a white girl, he is in/at a detriment. The trial, events following and the people they have interactions with, expose Jem and Scout to racism and stereotyping. This completely changes their view of the world. The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, uses characterization to portray how a child’s…

    • 945 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Atticus Perspectives

    • 706 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In chapter three when Scout gets home from school, she is ranting to Atticus about her day regarding her Miss Caroline and Walter Cunningham.…

    • 706 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    <br>In the early chapters of the book, Scout picks fights at the slightest provocation. One example of this is when Scout beats up Walter Cunningham, one of her classmates, for "not having his lunch", which isn't a very good reason at all. "Catching Walter Cunningham in the schoolyard gave me some pleasure, but when I was rubbing his nose in the dirt Jem came by and told me to stop. ‘You're bigger'n he is,' he said … ‘He made me start off on the wrong foot.' … ‘Let him go Scout. Why?' ‘He didn't have any lunch,' I said, and explained my involvement in Walter's dietary affairs" (27). Scout is also very mischievous and has a devious mentality towards Calpurnia. She describes Calpurnia as a tyrannical presence, and she does everything she can to get her out of the house. One time Scout does this is when Walter comes over to her house to eat dinner. Scout criticizes Walter for drowning his food in molasses, and Calpurnia scolds Scout. After Walter leaves, Scout asks Atticus to fire Calpurnia, which of course he doesn't do. "Jem said suddenly grinned at him. ‘Come on home to dinner with us, Walter,' he said. … Walter stood where he was, biting his lip. Jem and I gave up, and we were nearly to the Radley Place when Walter called, ‘Hey, I'm comin'!' While Walter piled food on his plate, he and Atticus talked together like to men, to the wonderment of Jem and me. Atticus was expounding on farm problems when Walter interrupted to ask if there was any molasses in the house… Walter poured syrup on his vegetables and meat with a generous…

    • 625 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Firstly, Scout and Jem Finch learn the following lesson: don’t judge people by your own standards, especially when you are more privileged than they are. In Maycomb County, many people were poorer than the Finch’s were. For example, a specific family, the Cunningham’s, were known all around Maycomb for being one of the lowliest families. When Walter, one of the Cunningham children, went over to the Finch’s house for dinner one afternoon, he began pouring molasses all over his food. Pouring the hot syrupy mixture on food must have been a custom in the Cunningham family, but Scout, however, thought it was disgusting. In front of everyone at the dinner table, including her father and Calpurnia, their maid, Scout began to protest the fact that he had drowned his dinner in syrup, and that it was highly repulsive. Upon hearing Scout’s blatant distaste, Calpurnia pulled Scout into the kitchen to yell at her. Calpurnia told Scout that when they have company, she must be respectful of their ways, since not everyone eats like they do. When Scout…

    • 1022 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Scout learns that certain people in town are feared, distrusted or hated because of their skin color, personal decisions, or rank on the social hierarchy, also known as class warfare. Colored people don’t receive as much respect as white people because they are lower in the social hierarchy than the white people who are on the top. By stepping into the shoes of Boo Radley, Walter Cunningham, and Dolphus Raymond, Scout learns a lot about class warfare. Tom Robinson is a black man who is falsely accused of beating and raping Mayella Ewell. The jury finds him guilty, and Scout knows that it was wrong. Her father, Atticus, was Tom’s lawyer, so she was able to experience each step of the trial. Arthur “Boo” Radley was feared by all of Maycomb because he stabbed his father with a pair of scissors when he was younger. Scout constantly wonders what it would feel like to be trapped in your house for so many years and be all alone to understand why Boo does not have great social skills and is quite shy. He left many things for the children in the hole of a tree, but expected nothing in return. Scout and Jem both recognized that he was not a bad man, and just needed some friends. Dolphus Raymond was the town dunk. Actually, he wasn’t. He drank Coca-Cola out of a paper bag to make everyone think that he was drunk. Dill and Scout got the opportunity to talk to him during the trail, when they decided to take a…

    • 1211 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    However, Scout struggles with this concept. This is shown when a poor boy named Walter Cunningham visits the finch residence for a meal and Scout acts very judgemental , criticising him for the way he acts at the dinner table .Not only does this part of the book show…

    • 2298 Words
    • 10 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    As the children grow up, their view of the world around them is changed by the events that occur in Maycomb. Scout is teased at school because her father is defending a black person. Children at school call Atticus a "nigger-lover". Scout does not think twice before beating anybody up and standing up for her father until Atticus asks Scout to ignore all the gossip about them and to "stop beating up kids at school." Scout decides to listen to Atticus because Atticus rarely ever asked anything from them. This is when Scout starts to learn how to be a lady and Jem grows up to be a man. Aunt Alexandra's stay with the…

    • 570 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays