Killing a Tradition in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

There are countless people who judge others by their image or the words whispered by friends. This has been true since people have begun interacting with one another. Indeed, people feel the need to categorize everything and everyone leading to stereotyping and bias based upon appearances. In today’s society, there are many incidents involving racial and gender inequality demonstrating that little has changed since the 1960s. In this novel, Scout Finch, a young girl, recounts her life as she observes social concerns including racism and prejudice. When her father Atticus, a criminal attorney, agrees to defend an innocent black man, Scout comes to realize that not everything is as perfect as it seems. Appropriately, Scout and her brother Jem learn not to judge others as a result of interactions with three characters that they encounter throughout their childhood. Boo Radley, known as the town’s ‘evil monster’, Mrs. Dubose, an elderly, ill-tempered woman who lives near the Finches and Tom Robinson, an African-American man being accused of raping a white woman that is being defended by their father, all teach the children that character is not a reflection of one’s outwards appearance. As such, through knowing these people and their circumstances, Scout and Jem’s sense of social justice and fairness matures. It is through their eyes that Harper Lee, in To Kill a Mockingbird, demonstrates the immorality of judging others without consideration of who they are and what

‘To Kill A Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee explores several different issues which are still relevant in today’s society. Harper Lee uses conventions within the novel to convey these ideas. The three main issues Lee explores are; Importance of Moral Education, Prejudice and Bravery and Courage.

Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is about two children, Jem and Scout, and their relationships with their father, Atticus. The children raise themselves growing up, many people would say they were irresponsible, but they are both appear to be intelligent individuals. The novel, To Kill a Mockingbird the novel demonstrates a rigid class structure and social stratification in the County of Maycomb. People should not be judged by their social class, they should be judged on their personality.

Picture this, you are 13 year old boy in the early 1930’s, living in a small town in the south, and you think that everybody in your small town are the greatest people in the world. Until one day, the reality of the prejudice society and hypocritical people in your town hits you and you have no choice but to continue growing up knowing that what is happening, is not okay. That is exactly what Jem and his little sister Scout had to do in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Harper Lee uses characterization to demonstrate the idea of growing up and learning to see the world around you for how it really is. Growing up and developing your own ideas about how the world works is an important life lesson that Jem and Scout are quick to learn.

Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is a first person narrative describing the life of Jem and Scout, a brother and sister who are the main protagonists of the novel. Jem and Scout grow up in a town where they are constantly surrounded by racial inequality, social unrest and prejudice. Jem Finch is considered a normal young boy growing up in the small Alabama town of Maycomb. Like his friends Jem likes to likes take part in activities that are perceived to be masculine in nature such as sports. Yet the way he is raised is very different than his friends and his upbringing is considered to be against the cultural norm of the time. Harper Lee creates the character of Jem to show the reader

“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.” (Chapter 3 TKAM). This essential piece of advice from Atticus guides Scout through the her journey of growing up and helps her develop an enriched sense of self, she understands that not everyone around her is the same. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee portrays children all being raised in the same small town while having completely different backgrounds and morals. Harper Lee’s book illustrates how the varying aspects of a child's life affects their behavior and outlook on life. Surroundings, Family, and financial status all play a big role in how the children were prepared to be active, responsible,

In the real world, there are harsh realities that all children must face one day to finally mature into an adult. Jem and Scout, in To Kill A Mockingbird, face situations like seeing an unjust trial with Bob Ewell, a white man, falsely accusing Tom Robinson, a black man, and being attacked by Bob Ewell, that put them face-to-face with hatred, partisanship, and racism. Through characterization and the conflicts that the characters face, Harper Lee shows the theme that innocence is lost through the confrontation of evil.

The integration of the two subjects, is between Jim Crow laws and To Kill A Mockingbird, that in 1930’s segregation of blacks and whites was needed, from the point of view. The creation of Jim Crow laws was to make and keep an enforcement that everything is either for blacks or whites. In contexts of To Kill A Mockingbird, Scout describes when traveling to the black church that there were two completely different sides of the town, one for white and one for blacks.

Unexpected and uncontrollable events have a way of creeping into people’s lives and causing a wave of emotions that will affect the way a person lives the rest of their life. In her award-winning novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee address issues by looking at them through the eyes of a child. The story follows six-year-old Scout Finch as she grows up in Maycomb, Alabama during the great depression. Harper Lee writes for several events throughout the book test Scouts morals in order to call attention to how interactions shape a person. By learning from others, Scout grows to understand the intricacies of the human relationship.

To Kill a Mockingbird shows how a child grows throughout his or her childhood. Throughout the novel, Scout becomes a mature girl by going through several experiences with her brother and father which form an understanding of the world to her. By allowing the reader to see the coming of age of Scout by the use of first person point of view, Harper Lee shows the many lessons that Scout learns from her father Atticus; the lessons are that you do not really know a man until you have been in his shoes, don’t kill mockingbirds, and don’t judge a person because of their race.

To Kill a Mockingbird Society has a strong influence on our children nowadays. The people we are in the past, has built what they are now and shaped them to either be heroes or dropouts. It is said that the people one socializes with, changes them; teaches them. In To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, his characters Scout and Jem Finch are shaped by the characters they are interacted with in the novel. The siblings change due to the characters, Dill Harris, Calpurnia, and Atticus Finch in ways they could not imagine as kids.

In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows the readers some important themes. Lee shows the readers how Scout has grown and matured throughout the novel. With this in mind Harper Lee makes sure that she changes how social inequality is viewed by Scout as she matures and can understand it better. To Kill a Mockingbird is a book all about innocence and social inequality, due to Scout getting older, the innocence goes away and the social inequalities grow. A great deal of characters play a massive role in the social inequality part of the book.

In Harper Lee’s, To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper uses many literary elements to grab the attention of the readers. Many of these literary elements help contribute to the point of coming of age as well; these apply to the book but can go with the movie. Some of the literary elements are also used to show the way African-Americans were treated near the 1900’s era and to show how accustomed people were to racism.

In July of 1960, a soon-to-be very famous book was published. To Kill a Mockingbird was written by the one and only Harper Lee, and was soon to be a household necessity. As many people would discover after reading the novel it seems Harper Lee definitely challenged the social status quo of the 1930s. She consciously addressed the controversial habits of the time that hadn’t been addressed or discussed. She talks about the lives of black men and women, white children, the pressure to act like a girl, and the lives of the daily people living in a small town.

Harper Lee uses her novel to teach us important lessons from the characters presented in To Kill a Mockingbird. Atticus, a fair and moral character, whose parenting style is unique, lined with honest and example, teaches us to follow his ways. Scout, an innocent girl who teaches us what’s important in life. Tom Robinson, someone who is ostracized for being African American, can teach us the importance of equal treatment and awakens us to our surrounding society. Lee’s construction of characters gives us perspective to issues in our society today, how they still matter and what we can learn from the novel such as compassion, justice and understanding.