Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird is a study in the way people’s view of the world changes as they grow older. To Kill a Mockingbird is from the point of view of a six year old girl, Scout, the daughter of a lawyer. She is forced to grow up quickly when Atticus defends an innocent black man in the South, much to the dismay of most of the white citizens. Lee uses similes and personification in To Kill a Mockingbird to show the challenges and discoveries that children make while transitioning from a child to an adult. Harper lee uses a simile to show how differently children and adults process information. Lee writes, “but the events hung over us like smoke in a closed room” In this simile, Lee choses the phrase “smoke in a closed room“ shows how the case will not get out of their heads. It also represents how they thought so unclearly of that day. “smoke in a closed room” shows how Jem and Scout didn’t understand how they could have lost the case, the whole thing was cloudy. Lee believes that someone’s emotions will be easier to control and that will understand things better when they grow up. In conclusion, Lee uses a simile to give evidence of how growing up is a continuous learning experience. …show more content…
Lee writes, “so I tackled his entailment once more in a last-ditch effort to make him feel at home” Lee chose the word “tackled,” because it represents more of an attack, like how it is Scouts last chance, so she has to give it all she has. The theme is growing up because you can see that scout is getting more mature and taking a very dangerous situation and trying to take care of it. The author wrote this quote using personification to show you that as you grow up the more maturely you will handle different
As children grow up, they open their eyes to the harsh truths in the world around them that they once did not understand or question. This is experienced by the main characters of Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. The story is of a girl called Scout and her older brother, Jem, who go through the trials of growing up in the fictional small Southern town of Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930s. Racism is rampant in the mindset of the townspeople, shown when the children’s lawyer father, Atticus, takes the case of an obviously innocent African-American man and they convict him in their hearts before the trial even starts. Through this all, we can see the theme of loss of innocence in the children. Lee uses characterization to portray
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a fictional novel about a young girl named Scout Finch. The story revolves around Scout and her family as they face prejudice and discrimination in Maycomb County. At the beginning of the novel, Scout is an innocent girl who hasn't come into contact with the evils of the world. At the end of the novel, Scout develops with understanding of that good always wins over evil no longer is always true. The events Scout saw made her knowledgable and aware of the human nature around her to mature with understanding of the world.
When real life problems are seen from the perspective of a child, they often change the child in dramatic ways. Such is the case in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, a story narrated by a young girl living in Maycomb, Alabama during the Great Depression. The young girl, Scout, lives with her brother and father, a lawyer who is defending a black man accused of raping a woman from town. In the beginning of the story Scout spends her time playing silly games around the house and yard with her brother Jem and neighbor Dill. As she becomes more aware of the social bias and racial tensions that are building in the small town, Scout and her world begin to change. Although Scout may not fully understand the ins and outs of the real world, she
In ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ written by Harper Lee, the author has used numerous different methods to portray the themes of innocence, maturity and growing up. These themes were put in so that the audience could become more empathetic towards the characters, especially the protagonists. She depicts these themes through characters, events, using symbolism, imagery and contrast located throughout the book.
A young boy named Jem, his sister Scout and their father Atticus all face these real issues, which then helps to grow them as a person. To begin, Harper Lee’s use of dialogue helps demonstrate the theme of maturity. Cecil Jacobs, one of Scout's classmates, was bullying Scout. Cecil announced on the playground that, Scout’s dad was defending a black man in the courtroom for raping a white woman.
Throughout the course of the novel, we watch two kids become two adults through a series of trials and tribulations. While this may not be the main focus of the novel, it’s impossible to ignore. Amid the countless portrayals of racism, injustice, and other negative commentary, Harper Lee shows us a much simpler human truth: everyone has to grow up, whether they want to or not. Our first view of both characters is that of innocent children. Both Scout
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, tells the story of a six year old girl named Scout, seeing evil, hypocrisy, and injustice in the adult world. The novel takes place in her eyes, enabling the reader to know what she’s thinking but preventing them to know what’s going on in the other character's head. Scout’s character developed over the three years that the novel covers into a wiser child than most children in today’s society, but in the novel’s setting, it is a believable maturation.
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee is a beautiful story depicting a family living in the South of the 1930’s, and their struggle against the prejudice which was common to that time. The book centers on Atticus Finch, the father of the family as well as a lawyer, and his fight against prejudice. We see the story unfold through the innocent eyes of his young daughter, Scout, who is free from prejudice and not yet jaded. By viewing events as Scout sees them, the author shows us how to overcome prejudices, and gain tolerance.
literary devices to show the loss in innocence throughout Jems life in the story. Harper lee uses symbolism, imagery, and foreshadowing throughout the book.
Therefore the author implies that Scout can only grow from this point. This also allows Scout to move with the plot, because the fire is the turning point of the novel. It separates the childish games of Scout, Jem, and Dill, and their Boo Radley phase from the very adult world of racism and the Tom Robinson trial. By showing Scout at her climax, and connecting it to the turning point of the novel, Lee can show the reader a more noticeable change in her character. She also stresses Scout’s moments of bluntness, because it is the contrast between her mature and immature instances that make her mature moments more notable. For example, when Scout sees Boo Radley for the first time, she shows maturity beyond her years. The ordeal was explained by Scout as, “Our neighbor’s image blurred with my sudden tears. ‘Hey Boo’ I said” (Lee 362). The way Scout first reacts by saying hi so calmly shows her maturity. She handles the situation so profoundly by instantly treating him like an equal, something that is difficult even for the adults in Maycomb. This helps out the moral of gradual maturity from innocence because it was her original immaturity that got her so involved with Boo Radley in the first place. Had she not been so obsessed with him, the direct understanding with him would not be possible. Therefore, this proves that Scout’s childhood habits ironically push her closer to growing up. As childhood innocence
Lee uses a rhetorical device, polysyndeton, to reinforce her tone towards Atticus. Throughout the novel, Lee has been affection and loving towards Atticus, through all the trials and tribulations that he has put her through. This final page reinforces the idea that Scout loves Atticus and does not blame him for the hard times that she has gone through. Scout still feels trust and safety in Atticus as she describes that “his voice was so deep and his knee was so snug that I slept” showing that she is still comfortable with him (Page 375-376). Readers understand that Scout has no true understanding of what happened over the last few months in her life, but as she tells this story looking back she understands and knows what Atticus did was right.
In the novel written by Harper Lee titled To Kill a Mockingbird, it is a story that revolves around two children named Jem and Scout and their experiences in a prejudiced town as they grow up and mature into young adults. They learn lessons regarding what the real world has to offer during a time of segregation. As they discover new ideas, they also manage to learn more about themselves. Lee utilizes imagery, direct characterization, and dialogue to express the recurring theme of coming of age, also known as Bildungsroman.
(CH) This quote is important to the characterization of both Jem and Scout. In the beginning of the novel, Jem and Scout are like partners in crime. They play together with Dill and seem to have strong brother-sister relationship. Now Jem ignores Scout as much as possible and tends to leave her out. Scout is confused and frustrated that Jem would turn on her like that. (T) This quote also clearly give us an example of the many themes; coming of age. While Jem is being trying to grow up, Scout is still very young and is struggling to deal with maturity. Jem is twelve and is about to be a teenager, he is changing and growing up, with or without Scout. (R) I reacted to this quote very strongly because of how Jem ‘s way of treating Scout shifted
To Kill a Mockingbird Essay Amongst the countless existing works of literature, almost all novels demonstrate the maturation of protagonists in one way or another. Just like many coming-of-age novels before it, To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee vividly illustrates the development of characters as the story progresses over a three-year period. What makes this novel stand out is that the story is told from the point of view of an innocent child, who is struggling to make sense of the world and to fit in while learning through experiences. Scout Finch, the narrator as well as the main character of the book, gains maturity through discovering the presence of evil, establishing a deep compassion for the innocent, and recognizing the truth
Written during America’s struggle for racial equality in the 1953s, Harper Lee’s classic novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” demonstrates many themes relevant to adolescents today, particularly that of growing up. During the three years covered by the novel, the characters in Maycomb are faced with many challenges, in particular, the characters of Jem and Scout. Once images of innocents at the start of the novel, but have gained a more complex understanding of the world by the end.