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Walter Cunningham Patterns

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Walter Cunningham Patterns
In “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, ancestral traditions being embedded in the heads of newer generations of society is marked by controversy, but people are stubbornly holding on to the old habits of their forefathers by resisting social change. Scout finds out why the people of Maycomb county are still grasping on to old habits by the analyzation of aunt Alexandra and the criticism Scout faces due to her non female apparel. In addition, Scout also reveals the condition of the Cunningham household by examining the different attributes of Walter Cunningham who represents the state of the Cunningham’s household. Overall the most essential lesson Scout learns is that the people of Maycomb county are not willing to change the traditions …show more content…
Scout meets Walter Cunningham on the first day of school where he arrives with no lunch money and the teacher questions him because of it, after enough debate, Scout decides to defend Walter which gets her into trouble, Scout then proceeds to beat him up. As reconciliation, Jem invites Walter to dinner, where he arrives bare-foot and wearing dirty clothes. After the encounter with Walter came to a close, aunt Alexandra forbade any interactions with Walter because of his dirty appearance. Aunt Alexandra states, “Because-he-is-trash, that’s why you can’t play with him. I’ll not have you go around him, picking up his bad habit and learning lord-knows-what” (Lee 238). This quote demonstrates that the Cunningham family has done in insufficient job in the raising of Walter due to his household environment. Aunt Alexandra called Walter trash for having a dirty attire. Through this, one can see the reason for his dirty clothes is his family’s financial situation at home. Just by his appearance, the conditions of his family household can be seen. The people of Maycomb county are turning a blind eye towards the impoverished family households which can also be observed with the Ewell’s family. Aunt Alexandra is virtually ignoring the poor conditions of the Cunningham’s household by not allowing any interactions with
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