At the beginning of the novel, Scout is an innocent five-year-old child who has no experience with reality of the outside world. As the novel goes on, Scout is learning about the harsh world that is around her by all of the events that are happening that has to do with racial prejudice. People throughout the book, even her family, approach her and make crude and slanderous remarks regarding her father representing a colored man. The grounds on which she dynamically changes is centered around whether she will learn that humanity can be evil and how she responds to that.…
To kill a mockingbird is an insightful novel that effectively educates its reader about the discrimination and prejudice against African Americans that was occurring at the time. Through the pity and intensity of Tom Robinson’s trial the reader learns how the rights of African Americans were very different than the white Americans at the time. To kill a mockingbird highlights the pure injustice that Tom Robinson faces, when accused of a crime that he didn’t commit. Due to these accusations Tom’s fate is put on the line and his dignity is robbed from him as the whole of Maycomb assumes that Mayella Ewell is right. Immediately the town people build a sense of hate and anger towards Tom Robinson and attempt to act on their thoughts and opinions. Throughout this text one will learn how not only Negro’s were affected by this prejudice and discrimination but how innocent white Americans, such as the finch family were too.…
To Kill A Mockingbird, authored by Harper Lee, is an American novel of growth and maturation because it focuses on the character development of Scout as she comes to understand the world. This classic novel is set in a racially charged southern town during the Great Depression. The main character and narrator, a young girl named Scout, develops and changes from the conversations and actions that happen in the book. Scout’s direct maturation and learning of life lessons develops by witnessing the hypocrisy of her hometown Maycomb, Alabama, and her father, Atticus, being a major influence in her development.…
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…
To Kill A Mockingbird is a priceless and classic piece of American literature because it emphasizes symbolic changes that we as a country went through. Even though Atticus, Miss Maudie, Jem, Scout and Boo all grew up in a world full of hatred and racism, they overcame it by being respectful, influential, and courageous. It reminds us of how far we’ve come from the harsh past and helps us appreciate our freedom more.…
Kids these days will believe anything they hear, whether it is through social networks or through their friends. Words are twisted, rumors are made, and then innocent people are punished for crimes and actions they didn’t commit. That is exactly what happened in To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. To Kill a Mockingbird is a story about a worn out town named Maycomb, Alabama, that has a lot of racism and equality issues. There are many different types of people including the farmers, the townspeople (people who have better jobs) and teachers. Everybody knows everybody in this town, which really reminds me of West Linn. As we go through life, there are moments where we all have to learn how to stand up for what we believe in, even if we feel embarrassed or shy. Scouts role in To Kill a Mockingbird is a great representation of intelligence; the willing to fight for what is right, and bravery.…
Many parents, teachers, and government officials agree that To Kill A Mockingbird has a negative influence on their children and or students. One source suggests that “particular books lead students in inappropriate directions” (Bloom 4). Elders believe that students are easily influenced and think that they are led by what the read (Bloom 4). Young readers are thought to be vulnerable and not capable of thinking for themselves.…
To Kill A Mockingbird is a book that deals with many of the harsh issues in society in the 1960s, and because it is written in the perspective of a six year old girl trying to understand this unfair world she lives in makes it a very unique perspective. "This is there home, sister,' said Atticus. 'We've made it this way for them they might as well learn to cope with it"(Lee 285). Atticus is talking to Aunt Alexandra after the trial of Tom Robinson. Aunt Alexandra was upset because the children went to the trial and she felt that they were too young to be at a trial of this subject. Even though Scout seems very mature at her age and she is growing up in this world and she is very curious about how the world works and she is trying to explore. "I climbed into the back seat of the car without saying good-bye to anyone, and at home I ran to my room and slammed the door"(Lee 112). Scout is upset because she was being yelled at for hitting her cousin. She was acting more like her own age in this chapter. Instead of her being very wise for her age like she is in the rest of the book she is immature…
Imagine how hard life was for colored people back then. How one couldn’t even receive a fair trial because of someone’s color or ethnicity. How is was virtually impossible for them to receive a fair trial without people using stereotypes to structure their judgment. To Kill a Mockingbird demonstrates many conflicts, one being the beating and rape of a white woman by a black man, which back then was punishable by death. With this case, a man by the name of Atticus accepts to defend the man who is accused : Tom Robinson. Atticus has to endure what the society throws at him, along with his two children : Jem and Scout. To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee reveals, by using characters and characters’ actions and choices, it is morally correct to stand up and do the right thing. Without someone pointing out what is wrong with the society, things will never change for the better.…
Not only is Atticus a patient and understanding parent, he is also very honest with his children. During Tom Robinson’s trial, Scout is confused about everything that is going on. She begins to hear the word ‘rape’ a lot, and asks…
To Kill a Mockingbird is a powerful racial text containing an accurate representation of the time era. Scout and Jem grew from the beginning of the book and learned from these coming of age experiences. From the courthouse scene they learned that people are racist and that the world isn’t always fair. Tom wanted to help the Ewells because they were living in worse conditions than them and felt bad. But in the end was…
In Harper Lee's novel To Kill a Mockingbird, courage is defined as "when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what" (149). This novel, which tells of the prejudice found in a small Alabama town, has many examples of courage. Two major characters who exemplify the theme of courage are Atticus and Jem Finch.…
During the release of To Kill A Mockingbird the norm was to explore and break some rules as a kid. To Kill A Mockingbird was released 30 years after the story’s timeline. Obviously, To Kill A Mockingbird was marketed towards adults in their 30’s. Subtracting 30 from an age 30-39 gets you at most 9. Thus, readers of this book were pretty likely to be similar in age to Jem and Scout when they lived in the same time period. What this means is that Harper Lee subliminally snuck in child-like memories for the readers in this book, so they can look back on their memories, and how life was like before the civil rights act was signed. Readers could also compare their lives to Jem and Scout and identify things that they can relate to. This tactic is effective because the readers are more sympathetic towards Jem and Scout. Human nature also makes humans feel innocence towards a child. In fact even characters in the story feel innocence towards children, especially the scene where the mob was going to lynch Tom but they did not since Jem and Scout were watching, “‘I looked around and up at Mr Cunningham, whose face did a peculiar thing. He squatted down and took me by both shoulders.’”(206). Showing children's innocence and nostalgia are both factors that make readers understand Harper Lee’s message…
In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses Scout and Dill to show how kids are forced to change. One place Harper Lee gives her message of the effect of sexism is when, after hearing Scout swear, Uncle Jack tells her to stop and “of course” she wants to be a lady (105). By saying this, Uncle Jack becomes an example of how Harper Lee shows that there are many expectations for girls, particularly Scout. These times where people verbally describe how they expect Scout to act and live like when Jack tells her not to swear since she is female, are…
When scout was younger she had a bad problem with getting into fights with other kids, mainly because the kids at school would tease her about different things. The teasing only got worse when her father decided to defend a colored man accused of raping a girl. Later in the book Scout learns to control her urges to fight. One particular instance was when she was at finch’s landing a d she punched her cousin for calling her dad a name. She thought that if she used curse words she would feel grown up, that is until her uncle told her that he didn’t want to hear another word like that out of her…