To Kill a Mockingbird On a rainy day, a man at the bus stop asks for change. The two choices are walking past him avoiding eye contact, or giving him the change with a smile. Before even talking to this man, one may have already made the assumption that he is homeless or a drug addict wanting to buy his next high. But assumptions cannot accurately explain who he is or why he needs money. The novel To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee explores this idea of judging others before looking at the world from their perspective. Scout and Jem, although raised in a prejudice town, learn from their father Atticus that who a person is racially, does not define them as a person. Although the children make up stories about Arthur “Boo” Radley to pass the time in part one of the novel, in part two the Tom Robinson situation widens their eyes to the biased ways of their town. In the end, Jem and Scout are rescued by Boo Radley, the very person they feared during their childhood. Mockingbirds are used as a symbol in the novel to portray the fact that innocent and caring people are sometimes the most abused. The theme of presumptions and the dangers of judging others are explored through the childhood fable of Boo, the story of Atticus, and the trial of Tom Robinson; the mockingbirds. The residents of Maycomb County delight in gossiping about their neighbors, including those who are isolated. Because Arthur Radley, in most of the novel remained inside with no contact to the
To Kill a Mockingbird is an important text worthy of all the recognition it received in the time following its original publication. A prime piece of fine American literature based in a period of extreme racial segregation and inequality. Set in a southern town of Maycomb Alabama during the depression, Lee follows three years of the life of eight-year-old Scout (Jean Louise) Finch and her older brother Jem (Jeremy) Finch as their father is, for three years, a fundamental figure in a case that had punctured the town as a result of the arrest and eventual trial of a young black man. As the years commence/continue, Scout and Jem, alongside the audience grow increasingly aware of prejudice throughout society as they learn the importance of perspective and being courageous when faced with adversity. By illustrating the influence of prejudice on society, Harper Lee challenges the perspectives of society, criticizing the nature of humankind to stereotype and be prejudice towards one another and in doing so, she successfully convinces the author to look beyond the facade society creates and locate the humanity that is concealed within everybody.
A mockingbird is a symbol of innocence, and to kill it would mean the demolishment of one’s innocence—hence the personified title “To Kill a Mockingbird.” A dominating theme depicted in the novel is the destruction of one’s innocence. In this novel, Scout, Tom Robinson, and Boo Radley are portrayals of mockingbirds through their development and innocence. In the beginning, Scout, our protagonist, is innocent, naive, and confident; due to facing the issues of injustice and racism, she has matured significantly.
Boo Radley, a character who never comes out of his house and sounds as scary as his name portrays an important theme in Harper Lee’s classic To Kill A Mockingbird. The classic is rich with themes and inspires many people to learn from these themes. One of the main themes is developed by Tim Johnson, the pet of Maycomb, Tom Robinson, a black man convicted of rape, and Boo Radley. The theme these characters are developing is that it is a sin to hurt or kill something that is not harmful. Tim Johnson is a marvelous dog that brings joy to the town of Maycomb, but Atticus kills Tim.
‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee displays how human behaviour is judgeful and misleading about others. ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ was set in the 1930s in a quiet town called Maycomb. The authour Harper Lee utilized many moments to exhibit human behaviour such as Atticus being considered weak, Ms. Dubose’s secret battles, Boo Radley as a character and Tom Robinson. In chapter 10 of the novel Atticus Finch is seen as feeble by his children. They believe Atticus is weak and untalented because he’s unable to play football with the other Fathers.
In To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, the town of Maycomb, Alabama experiences deep divides with the presence of many different types of prejudice. Readers explore the understanding of what it means to kill a “mockingbird”. The “mockingbird” figure revolves around the idea of a misjudged and mistreated individual, being taken advantage of while they are causing no harm upon the world. There are two prominent “mockingbird” figures in the novel, one being a black, crippled man with the name of Tom Robinson. The second being a more interesting and profound character called Boo Radley.
As I read the beginning of chapter 12 Jem 's hit the middle school years, and everyone knows what that means: he 's angsty, moody, prone to prolonged silences broken by angry outbursts, and he all of a sudden thinks Scout should act like a girl. Also the story says that Jem is now the age of twelve, but he is now starting to get to the age where he doesn 't want to hang out with Scout and also feels annoyed. Also to add to Scout’s trouble, Dill will not be coming to Maycomb this summer, but Calpurnia eases her loneliness. What is even worse that Atticus has been called by the state legislature and to come into a special session and is away for two weeks. Calpurnia doesn 't trust Jem and Scout to go to church by themselves (there was a past
Jem and Scout go to the school fair and play games before getting ready for the Halloween pageant. Scout dresses as a ham for the pageant but falls asleep. She winds up missing her part, and coming out on stage late. She attempts to catch up to where the other students. She is told that the crowd laughed at her and that she ruined the pageant.
Tom was charged with the rape of a local young girl, Mayella Ewell. Although he did not commit the crime, the town’s racist mindset led them to side with the guilty party, Bob Ewell. Tom Robinson was shot and killed, so in a sense, Maycomb County killed a mockingbird. The second is Boo Radley, a mysterious man that never shows his face, causing him to fall victim to the imaginations of Maycomb residents, especially those of children like Jem and Scout. Although Jem and Scout have their theories and alleged stories about Boo, he ends up saving their lives in a plot twist.
In Chapter 12 of Harper Lee’s, To Kill a Mockingbird, there are many events and situations in which irony is used to support the theme of the chapter. An example of this is in the very beginning of the chapter, when Scout is concerned about how distant and moody Jem is acting, and asks Atticus, “’Reckon he’s got a tapeworm?’” (Lee 153), to which Atticus replies no, and that Jem is growing. This is dramatic irony because the readers understand that Jem is acting oddly because he’s growing, but Scout doesn’t know this until she asks Atticus about it. This quote supports the theme of Chapter 12 by showing when Jem started to grow distance from Scout, getting aggravated with her and telling her to stop bothering him, and shows how the children
Harper Lee and Tate Taylor contend that those who do not fit into society are misunderstood and often have different realities. To Kill a Mockingbird is set in 1935 in Maycomb, a Southern American town where everyone attends church and socialises with people within their social hierarchy. However, the Radleys isolate themselves from Maycomb by not going to church and worshipping at home. Furthermore, the Radley’s house doors and shutters are always closed, which is “another thing alien to Maycomb’s ways.” As a result, the Radley’s do not fit into Maycomb societal standards.
Suspense is what makes a book become an outstanding book. This is why Harper Lee, author of To Kill a Mockingbird, heaped suspense into the book. Interestingly, suspense is defined as a state or feeling of excited or anxious uncertainty about what may happen. Lee uses numerous literary techniques to develop suspense in the story. Two that she uses to employ suspense is cliffhangers and imagery.
In the passage Jem and Scout walk home during the dark hours,giving Bob Ewell an opportunity to stage an attack. As Bob Ewell attacks them Boo Radley rushes in to rescue Jem and Scout. After this Scout now understands what Atticus meant it is a sin to kill a mockingbird. The killing of a mockingbird is much like killing the innocent. It is beyond a crime and worse than the most heinous atrocities.
September begins and Dill leaves Maycomb to go back to the town of Meridian. Scout feels sad but is excited to go to school for the first time. She has been longing to go to school and in the past would spy on the school children through a telescope. However, on her first day of school she gets assigned to Miss Caroline Fisher who is unaware of the Maycomb customs because she is from north Alabama. Miss Caroline Fisher is not very pleasant with the children and becomes extremely upset with Scout when she learns that Atticus has taught Scout to read.
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, is a story about inequality, injustice and racism seen through the eyes of two innocent children, Jem and Scout. Jem and Scout live in Maycomb, Alabama and learn these sad lessons through their relationships with their father Atticus, their maid Calpurnia, their mysterious neighbor Boo Radley, and Tom Robinson, a black man who is accused of a terrible crime. Through their relationship with Boo and Tom, Jem and Scout learn about racism and inequality that changes how they see the world. Boo Radley and Tom Robinson are two different people who share similar struggles with inequality throughout this story. Boo and Tom experience a form of racism and discrimination.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a masterful novel that dives into the life of Scout as a child. In the novel, Lee goes into much depth about Scout’s life so that the reader can always keep up with what is happening. When a book is converted into a movie, many things often change no matter what book it is. This remains true for To Kill a Mockingbird between the book and the film. The film is a wonderful work but there were still many things cut out that were in the book.