“People change when their minds have opened”(Steven Aitchison) . In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, there is many themes such as changing. Many of the characters change but Jem changes drastically. Jem changes by going from an immature boy, to a very mature, caring, young adult. In the beginning of the novel, Jem was characterized as a very immature boy, but later on in the book he starts to act like a young adult. For example, when Scout was being disrespectful to her Auntie, Jem said “you antagonize Aunty and I'll-I’ll spank you”(Lee 184). Usually only adults scold the children. As Jem scolds Scout, he shows that he is old enough to tell her what is wrong and when to stop. As Jem gets older he continues to mature into a young adult that is capable of doing the same things as any other adult around him. In addition to Jem growing into a young adult, he …show more content…
For example Scout never really noticed people's feelings or what they go through, but she explains that “one time Atticus said you never really [know] a man until you stood in his shoes and walked around in them” (Lee 374). Scout starts to realize what people go through and she starts to pay more attention to people. As Scout listens to her father, Atticus, she takes other people's feelings into consideration. Although people may argue that Scout changed more, Jem changed the most throughout the novel. Jem grows and matures the most over the three years that this novel takes place. He explains that he's “ and beginning to understand…. why Boo Radley stayed shut up in the house all this time… it's because he wants to stay inside (Lee 304). When Jem tells Scout, he notices how he's been treating Boo, he realizes that Boo is a very good person that never hurts anyone. Jem is noticing this about Boo, shows that he is now old enough to notice the things he wasn't able to notice two years
Everyday, people of all ages lose their innocence and develop morally through their daily experiences. Children deal with mishaps on the playground, conflicts with friends and family, and trouble in school. Similarly, Adults deal with conflicts within their own families, problems at work, and the loss of a loved one. In each situation, the person is learning important lessons that impact the way a person thinks, acts, approaches situations, and treats others. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Jem loses his innocence and grows morally through his daily experiences in three stages of understanding in Maycomb, Alabama.
However Jem is the character that changes the most. Even though the book is not written from his point of view, we can see how he changes and grows. In the beginning of the book, he is still a child. He is scared of the neighborhood recluse, Boo Radley. He enjoys playing make believe games Dill and Scout like on page 51. You can see his gradual empathy for Boo and his understanding of how Boo is not a bad or scary person. This all takes place after the trial on 304 where Jem says to Scout “Scout, I think I’m beginning to understand something. I think 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.” He finally starts to see how corrupt the world is and as the trial is going on, he is beginning to see the prejudice and the unfair treatment toward people, especially colored people. Especially when Tom got ruled guilty after all the evidence showed that he was innocent (282). Another big piece that shows that Jem has matured the most is shown from pages 203-207 when Atticus is faced with the mob. Jem is protecting not only his little sister and Dill, but he is also protecting his father. This is the first time he ever stood up to Atticus. He stayed at the jail when Atticus told and eventually pleaded him to take the other children home. At any other part of the book prior to this point, Jem would not have had the courage to stand up to his father and protect him. These few examples show only part of how much Jem had learned and matured the most throughout the
One major theme in To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee is that empathy can change how one reacts to his surroundings. In chapter three, protagonist Scout has a bad day at school. She asks Atticus, her father, to homeschool her after she has disagreements with both Burris Ewells and Walter Cunningham. However, Atticus tells her that “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view-until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” (39). Atticus says this to Scout so she can reevaluate the situation and have a more realistic view, however, what he said can be applied to everyday life. To understand the feelings of another is to see the world through their eyes. Only through this can true connection be developed. Empathy creates bonds and friendships between individuals, and when Atticus says
As the novel progresses, both Jem and Scout are shown to mature, this is due to "To Kill A Mockingbird" being a bildungsroman novel. Through this coming of age process, we are actually shown Jem’s new found maturity enabling him to find empathy and acceptance regarding the Boo Radley myths, as he finally took his father’s advice to “climb into someone else’s skin and walk around in it” when he was explaining to Scout his epiphany that he “[is] beginning to understand why Boo Radley’s stayed shut in his house all this time. It’s because he wants to stay inside.”
The book “To Kill a Mockingbird’’ many characters have evolved and changed some for good and others no so much, the 2 biggest ones are scout and jem.
The novel does a fantastic job and letting the reader recognize this. Jem is a hero like character throughout the novel, especially during the end of Halloween defending Scout from Bob Ewell. He changed some of his attributes and therefore changing some of his views. If Jem was the exact same at the start of the novel and the end of the novel, Jem might have run from the scene where Jem and Scout were attacked. Jem always does the right thing in the novel so he changes a little bit but mainly stays the same.
Growing Up Changes People Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird contains two very important characters that develop and drastically change in both personality, and behavior throughout the book. Maturity affects Jem and Scout throughout the novel, and ends up changing their actions and behavior drastically in a positive way, both following in Atticus’s footsteps. To Kill A Mockingbird clearly shows the idea that growing up changes a person's actions and demeanor through Jem and Scout. Growing up changes a person's actions and demeanor through Jem. Jem is the older sibling of the Finch family, and matures and changes before Scout does.
Another change Jem goes through involves his thoughts on other people. The events of the trial take a toll on him as he realizes the evil and prejudice present in people around him. Lastly, Jem becomes more mature and less childish throughout the book. He matures from the events around him such as caring for Scout, learning valuable lessons from Atticus, and learning responsibility from people
In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee , a lot of the characters have changed. However , the character that changes the most is Jem Finch in the ways of growing up into a teenager , becoming more intelligent , and brave. In the novel , Jem Finch starts off as a
The third way the author uses Jem to show how Atticus raised and taught his kids to act is Jem's problem with overcoming his age. There are many times in the book where Jem is shamed or bullied for what his dad believes is right, but the most surprising is when he steals Calpurnia’s scissors to act out Boo stabbing Mr. Radley. After Atticus found out that Jem and Scout were doing this, he scolded them for being immature and for not doing what Atticus told them. Page 45: “What are you playing? He asked.
Jeremy “Jem” Finch is a leading protagonist in Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill a Mocking Bird” published in 1960. Jem matured greatly throughout the duration of the book, starting to resemble and idolize his father, achieves the status of a guardian to his sister and introduces a whole new set of ideals in his lifestyle. He embodies the themes of growth. Throughout the novel we see how perceptions of things such as courage, respect, tolerance, and cruelty changes Jem as he matures.
In addition to Jem’s childish, protective, and playful nature- he is also scheming and possesses a clever mind. He demonstrates this with his knack for avoiding conflict, finding loopholes in regards to the rules Atticus has set for him and Scout, and luring out Boo Radley. This mischievousness sometimes causes Jem to be a troublemaker. Despite his cunning nature- as the novel progresses, Jem changes and develops into a more mature and responsible character as
Jem had changed throughout the story from acting like a child and doing things that children do to becoming more mature and taking part in the
Jem has changed socially throughout tkam. In the book To Kill A Mockingbird jem has changed by a couple different ways, he has started to understand the racism in maycomb and how it affects everything, he has also learnt not to judge people until you really know them, and jem has become a more mature and responsible person. With jem changing throughout the book the way he looks at the world changes. It also changes the way he acts.
As To Kill a Mockingbird progresses, Jem takes definitive steps toward maturity with his actions in the tire and flower incidents, for example. He would later go on to repair the flowerbed he destroyed, and take greater care to protect Scout. Through his actions, we can see Jem develop a sense of morals and responsibility that would prove to be a lifesaver.