Analysis Of Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird

Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout learned to act in a more adult way and, to a degree, to see the people around her as actual human beings. Scout’s ability to understand another person’s perspective is the climax of her novel-long character development. Without these events, the outcome of the novel would’ve been very different. When Scout finally realized how Boo

redujice is not something we are born with; it is something that we grow to learn from who and what surrounds us, things that help to form our identity. Prejudice is an integral theme in Harper Lee’s, To Kill A Mockingbird. Prejudice is evident throughout the novel, not just in the appalling racism but also through, prejudice against different sexual orientations, gender constructs and feminism. Society had certain constructs that had to be met. Throughout To Kill A Mockingbird, Lee breaks the bounds to overcome barriers, and challenge social constructs.

Jem Finch is a character who is prominent in the development of the story yet is not the main character. He is there while Scout grows up, changing rapidly throughout their experiences. Jem closely resembles his father in attitude after he learns how unfair life can really be (in the trial of Tom Robinson). Both Scout and Jem have a similar naive set mind in the beginning, but as Jem grows he thinks to be far superior than his younger sibling. The author in “To Kill a Mockingbird” shows quite expertly how a young child's mind develops.

In the beginning of the book he starts by knocking on the window and going on his property. Throughout the book Jem starts to mature because he is hitting puberty. When Jem and Scout discover someone has been leaving things for them inside the knot of a tree he then realizes it is Boo. He and scout then try to leave him a thank you note but, his brother Nathan Radley had filled the hole with cement because, “The tree is dying.” He realizes that the stories of Boo are not true and thinks he isn’t as dangerous as the stories he’s heard everyone say. He also realizes after trying to leave a note on the window Nathan Radley comes out with a shotgun. Then they run away and have to crawl under a chain-link fence, which Jem catches his pants on and in the moment takes them off and leaves them. When he comes back for them he finds them folded and the hole had been sewed up by someone (Boo). Jem grows a lot thru the book because of his understanding of Boo and now knows he is actually a good

Throughout the novel, Atticus teaches his children the importance of respect and acceptance of individual differences through daily conversations and his own actions. His words of wisdom expand his children’s empathy and equip them with a broader view of mankind. These teachings are progressively exemplified as both Jem and Scout experience coming of age. During their early years, when summer was dependent on the arrival of Dill, Atticus warns the children to stop playing the “Boo Radley game”. It is then that he first introduces the idea of “climbing into his skin and walking around in it” (Lee pg#).

This is when Jem starts to feel empathy for Boo. Scout is even more afraid of Boo after she knows that he had watched them flee the property. When Boo gave them the soap dolls and put them in a knot hole in a tree, Scout still considered “…everything on the Radley place was poisoned… (81)”. But it all “[had] slipped through Jem’s memory (81)” as he went to go get the dolls. They also decide to write a letter to whoever was sending them those gifts. They still denied that it was Boo though, but deep down, they knew that it was Boo who had given the gifts to them. When the knot-hole they had been receiving the gifts from was filled up, Jem started to cry without Scout knowing why, showing that he is starting to realize Boo is a person but Scout still thinks that Boo is an evil man. When a fire sweeps through Maycomb, Boo gave Scout a blanket without her seeing, and her “stomach turned to water and [she] nearly threw up… (96)” because she continues to believe he is a monster. Jem has already learned the lesson of empathy from Boo while Scout still struggles with this concept at this point in the story.

    Throughout time authors have used symbolism to express a greater meaning in simple words because it allows readers to connect the real world to what they are reading in an abstract way, like philosophers using the dove to represent peace and fire to represent ferocity; in To Kill A Mockingbird  , Harper Lee uses symbolism to make a point about maturity in particular when Miss Maudie gives Jem cake, when scout tries to learn innocence and when scout tries to learn how to observe a situation from someone else's perspective.

Starting with her neighbor, Boo Radley, since the beginning of the book, it is evident that Scout is still in a child-mind set and sees the world in an innocent perspective. In Jem’s description of Boo, Scout’s belief

To be honest Scout and Jem may be kids, but they know so much about how things work around in our world. They learned to not judge people from their aspects, like on how they used to think of Boo Radley as a bad scary man, but after the coincidences that happened with Boo Radley they actually realized that he was not much of a bad guy after all. For example, Boo Radley would place gifts in the tree and also when Boo

Jem and Scout come to the realization that Boo Radley is a human being, not the monster their childhood stories portrayed him as. As Jem and Scout are discussing what ‘background’ means in Maycomb, Jem tells Scout “I’m beginning to understand why Boo Radley’s stayed shut up in the house all this time… it’s because he wants to stay inside” (Lee, 304). Similarly, after Scout accompanies Arthur Radley to his house, after saving the children, Scout stands on his porch as he goes inside. She views their life from his perspective and finally ‘climbs into his skin’ (Lee, 374). They begin to understand Boo and his unusual actions, and Jem realizes he stays inside because he is vulnerable to Maycomb’s prejudice and judgement. Scout finally views their life from his perspective, and understands Boo is truly like anyone else. While they both mature in the sense of gaining perspective from others, when it comes to the trial, Jem understands more than Scout does. During the trial Scout explains, “Jem’s hand, which was resting on the balcony rail, tightened around it. He drew in his breath suddenly” (Lee, 224). However, Scout saw no corresponding reaction, and wondered if Jem was trying to be dramatic (Lee, 224). Jem was very concerned with the case, and clearly understands certain things greater than Scout does. As Atticus is questioning Bob Ewell, Jem clues into what Atticus wants to prove, however, Scout is not capable of seeing what Jem notices. Therefore, Jem understands certain subjects more than Scout because he is more mature. Overall, through the way the children view others in society, they have gained a greater sense of understanding and

Throughout the years women have always been seen as a lesser value on comparison to men. Women are always shaped and molded a certain way to society’s liking. They have been told to act and behave a certain way because that is what is expected of them. Of course there is also the view of certain women that like to fit those expectations. Yet for men, they are influenced and respected when they act as they please and stand out from other men. It is extremely unfair to discriminate women and push them into being a certain way when women have so much potential to offer. Women back then and even now are being limited to a life that is already chosen for them. They are given an ideal as to how a women should behave and

According to the Alabama Academy of Honor Archives, Nelle Harper Lee was born on April 28, 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama to Amasa Coleman and Frances Finch Lee. In the south, it is customary to be called by your middle name. Therefore, throughout the rest of this paper, Nelle Harper Lee will be referred to as Harper Lee.

Immigrants from all over the world come to America with the idea of freedom in mind. Frequently, people think of the type of freedom found in America as a life without constraints, a place where they can express their opinions and act without judgement. The New Oxford English Dictionary defines freedom as “the power or right to act, speak, or think as one wants without hindrance or restraint” (“Freedom”). The promise of freedom in America brings hope, but this hope is not always necessarily fulfilled. Throughout American history, people have fought for many freedoms. While the government integrates these freedoms into laws, people hoping for a life “without hindrance” may find that many times, they still run into obstacles that challenge their

While ideals that pertain to salient values such as insight and understanding are believed important by many, these same ideals are unexpected from some people because of different backgrounds and lifestyles. However, people who are younger, come from an underprivileged place, and people who come from a lower social status can still have the same insight and understanding regardless of their age and background. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses many of her characters to show that despite their differences, they still can have the same ideals that other people have. As the main character, Scout is a principal example of this. She illustrates these points through her actions in the story, even though she is only six years old at the beginning of the novel.

“I could take being called a coward for him. I felt extremely noble for having remembered”(102). In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, author Harper Lee, explores the racial predicaments of the 1920’s and how the matter affected the community of Maycomb County.