Boo Radley Character Analysis

Set in the town of Maycomb County, this novel describes the journey of two young kids growing up in a small-minded town, learning about the importance of innocence and the judgement that occurs within. The individuals of Maycomb are very similar, with the exception of Arthur “Boo” Radley, the town’s recluse. Boo Radley has never been seen outside, and as a result of this, the children in the town are frightened of him and make up rumors about the monstrous things he allegedly does. This leaves the individuals in the town curious as to if Boo Radley really is a “malevolent phantom” like everyone assumes that he is or if he is just misunderstood and harmless. In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, Boo Radley is a saviour. This is

At the beginning of the novel, Boo Radley is addressed. Rumors have floated around, referring to Boo as a “malevolent phantom” while accusing him of being guilty of “any stealthy small crimes that were committed in Maycomb.” When Scout was younger she believed in these rumors, and always felt on edge when close to the Radley Place. Despite this, Scout, her brother Jem, and her friend Dill always attempted to try and get Boo out of his creepy abode.

Scout, Jem, and Dill work many summers to try to get Boo to come out of the Radley house for the first time in many years. Jem had been told many things about Boo in his short years in Maycomb, and he tells his sister Scout about the ‘monster’, saying, “Boo was about six-and-a-half feet tall, judging from his tracks; he dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, that’s why his hands were bloodstained—if you ate an animal raw, you could never wash the blood off. There was a long jagged scar that ran across his face; what teeth he had were yellow and rotten; his eyes popped, and he drooled most of the time” (chap. 1). Jem’s ideas about Boo are very biased toward rumors that can be heard around Maycomb. This shows how Maycomb’s people often judge before they know, seeing as no one has seen Boo Radley in over twenty years and people are prejudiced to believing the unknown is always bad. Prejudice and rumors can often not be trusted and Boo Radley is no exception. After Miss Maudie’s house catches fire and half the town rushes outside to watch it burn, Atticus tells Scout, “someday you should thank him for covering you up” then Scout asks, “Thank Who?” And gets a response from Atticus, “Boo Radley. You were too busy looking at the fire, you didn’t even notice when he put the blanket around you” (chap. 8). Boo Radley is not really a bad person, he

In How to Kill a Mockingbird the kids, Jem and Scout, obsess over this man named Boo Radley. Boo never came out of his house and

Scout, Jem and Dill talked about him. However, when he was introduced near the end of the story, Mr. Arthur “Boo” Radley dug down into himself and mustered up enough courage to prove himself. Boo Radley saved the two children and presented his courageousness. Scout and Jem were walking home from the Maycomb pageant and Halloween celebration when Jem heard a noise. He had Scout stop walking and tried to listen. The children just assumed that they were going to be scared by Cecil Jacobs. Then, when they stopped at one point, the footsteps rapidly increased towards them, the unknown person was running. It turns out that it was Bob Ewell who had planned on hurting or killing Scout and Jem. Radley noticed them running and heard some commotion. When he ran outside, he realized that the kids were in danger and went out and saved their lives. He revealed boundless courage and integrity in saving the children. Heck Tate said, “I never heard tell that it’s against the law for a citizen to do his utmost to prevent a crime frim being committed, which is exactly what he did, but maybe I’ll say it’s my duty to tell the town all about it and hush it up. Know what’d happen then? All the ladies in Maycomb includin’ my wife’d be knocking on his door bringing angel food cakes… but not this man Mr. Finch” (Lee 276) in regard to Boo Radley and his actions in saving Scout and Jem Finch from death. He is saying that regardless of him killing Bob Ewell, he is a hero and if he were not there for the children that they could be in a critical situation now. There was a second instance in the book that he manifested great courage. Boo Radley had never left his house and remained locked up in the house next door. He found happiness in being alone. So when he was out with Scout, Atticus and Heck Tate, he acted out of place and anxious. Harper Lee describes his mannerisms as that he “...shuffled to his feet, light from the livingroom

Most Maycomb citizens, including Scout in the beginning, think that Boo Radley is a lunatic that nobody wants to mess with. As the story progresses and Scout learns about Mr. Dolphus Raymond and Tom Robinson, she starts to see why Boo wants to be a recluse. He wants to escape from the evil and discrimination in Maycomb. Towards the climax of Boo’s story, Scout starts to see Boo as an actual human, not just as a rumor from Miss Stephanie Crawford, the neighborhood scold. She sees him as a living human being and cares for him, unlike most Maycomb inhabitants. In the end, Scout realizes that “Atticus was right. One time he said you never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them. Just standing on the Radley porch was enough” (374). One night, she drowsily remarks about the character in The Gray Ghost “Atticus, when they finally saw him, why he hadn’t done any of those things…Atticus, he was real nice…” (376). This is symbolic of Boo Radley because he is rumored for things he had never done, but when Scout finally meets Boo as a person, she finally realizes that all those accusations are lies and one must respect others as individuals.

Boo Radley is a mysterious and suspicious character, where throughout the beginning and middle of the book, Scout, Jem, and Dill have a preconception of him being a mean, old man. At the ending of the book, when Boo saves the children from Mr. Ewell, Scout sees how she prejudiced him based on other people’s beliefs. Boo is one of the most misunderstood characters of the book, starting out as a fantasy and a monster, but then he turns out to be very thoughtful, brave, and kind.

Arthur Radley, also known as Boo Radley, is the children's childhood mystery man. The rumors circled the entire neighborhood and the absurdity of them ranged from watching people at night to eating raw squirrels and cats. Scout, Jem, and their friend Dill took a special interest in Boo Radley, but what they did not know was that Boo Radley was watching their lives unfold. He served as their protector and even provided gifts to the children to get them through the hardships they went through. ¨Summer, and he watched his children's heart break. Autumn again, and Boo's children needed him.¨(Lee, 374) Despite the horrendous rumors that the children believed about Radley, he is an empathetic person and did not judge them for believing what they believe and saves the children's lives. Empathy was also shown towards Boo Radley from an unexpected character, Mr. Heck Tate, the Maycomb sheriff. ¨...Mr. Finch, taking the one man who's done you and this town a great service an' draggin' him with his shy way into the limelight--to me, that's a sin.¨(Lee,369-370) After saving Atticus's children, Mr. Heck Tate knew that the town would not leave Boo Radley in peace, and decides to change the story to keep Boo Radley out of the limelight. Empathy was carefully conveyed in the character of Boo Radley, and Mr. Heck

Scout shows her phenomenal understanding of life when she says, “"Atticus looked like he needed cheering up. I ran to him and hugged him and kissed him with all my might. 'Yes sir, I understand,' I reassured him. 'Mr. Tate was right.' Atticus disengaged himself and looked at me. 'What do you mean?' 'Well, it'd be sort of like shootin' a mockingbird, wouldn't it?' (Lee 276). When Scout says this she means that Boo Radley has never harmed a soul and it is a sin to bring him to trial, just like a mockingbird. This makes Atticus very proud and shows the reader Scouts immense development as a moral

A character that displays many aspects of being a mockingbird is Boo Radley. Boo is a man who initially in the story does not come out of his house due to his fear of being persecuted. He is seen as the town mystery and some people do not even believe he exists. On page 44, two of the the main characters who are children named Jem and Scout are walking home from school when they start finding a gifts inside a tree knot hole outside of the Radley place. The children assume the gifts are from Boo and their assumptions are later proven correct. The act of Boo giving the children gifts makes him appear as he cares for the children. In like manner, Boo exhibits the kindness of a mockingbird is on page 95. While watching Miss Maudie’s house fire someone wraps a blanket around Scout, but she does not realise until she gets back home. She guesses Boo Radley was the one who did it and again her guess was proven correct. This act of kindness models his selflessness. Lastly, throughout the story Boo is described as

Not having control is frustrating. It makes one wonder what you could have done differently to change the outcome. Being an outcast is not as different as you think. Feeling alone is one of the worst things anyone can experience. Not having a support system or someone to talk to can be even harder.

Despite all the dangers they knew or thought they knew about Boo they still went into his yard and disrupted him and his family. Atticus said “…someday, maybe, scout can thank him for covering her up…Boo Radley. You were so busy looking at the fire you didn’t know it when he put the blanket around you.” Boo Radley is a good guy that no one gives a chance because even though Scout and Jem never left him alone for a couple of years he still nice to them, he was almost like their guardian angel because he made sure they were warm at the fire and protected them when Bob Edwell attacked them.

In the beginning of the story Scout perceives Boo Radley as a phantom, throughout the story Scout grows up, with the guidance of Miss Maudie, and starts to understand and respect Boo Radley. Miss Maudie helps Scout understand why people do certain things in the world. Miss Maudie explains why Boo Radley isn’t required to come out of his house, “Arthur Radley just stays in the house, that’s all,” said Miss Maudie. “Wouldn’t you just stay in the house if you

Two children walking home from a play late at night. They could barely see each other

Lee characterizes the narrator (Scout) and the Radleys in very specific ways. She first describes the house that the Radleys live in to be weathered and fading, “The house was low, was once white with a deep front porch and green shutters, but had long ago darkened to the color of the slate-gray yard around it.” The description makes the house seem very isolated and dark. Lee also has everyone especially the negroes stay away from the house because of the strange occurrences that had happened there including the “malevolent phantom”. If a baseball was hit into the backyard of the Radleys, near their pecan tree, no questions were asked, the ball was just lost. All of this is multiplied by the fact that Boo Radley never comes out of the house,