Mrs Grace Merriweather Character Analysis

In the story, Scout if affected by racism and prejudice at her school, and around town. At school, she is picked on by a town boy called Cecil Jacobs for her father doing his job in

Scout depicts the theme of human dignity by following Atticus' words of wisdom and putting them to use in her everyday life. She demonstrates the immense understanding that humans are to be treated

One way the main character, Scout, learns that before they judge someone they need to walk in that person’s shoes and understand them is through her first grade teacher. In the beginning of the book, Scout was starting school, she was going into first grade and she had a new teacher named Miss Caroline. Miss Caroline wasn't from Maycomb, she was from Winston

Harper Lee introduces Scout as an insensible tomboy caught in the midst of contrite prejudicial conception. She has not yet discovered what is right and wrong due to various misconceptions that the people of Maycomb

The irony in the lack of understanding of the Mrunas in the missionary circle’s discussions creates a source of division for Maycomb. They categorize the Mrunas as outcasts of society which is ironic since they are not true members of the community through their failure to recognize the way that a community should function. When Scout attended the missionary circle meeting, she “learned more about the poor Mruna’s social life from listening to Mrs. Merriweather: they had so little sense of family that the tribe was one big family. A child had as many fathers as there were men in the community, as many mothers as there were women” (Lee 287). The irony in Mrs. Merriweather saying that the Mrunas had “so little sense of family” is that, in reality, the missionary circle doesn’t know how to behave like a family since they constantly gossip about members of

The next lesson Scout learns is about the hierarchy in her society. During the Tom Robinson trial there is a part where Mr. Gilmer asks Tom Robison why he is helping Mayella Ewell. To this Tom Robinson replies, “Yes suh. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more’n the rest of ’em-” (Lee 264). To what Tom had said Mr. Gilmer glanced at the jury surprisingly and said, “You felt sorry for her, you felt sorry for her?” (Lee 264) Scout realized that Mr. Gilmer is surprised because in Maycomb white men were the most powerful, then it is the white women, then the black men and lastly the black women. Since a black man is sorry for white women it not considered right for Tom to do this. So Scout basically learns that there is a hierarchy in her society. Scout learns one more thing about her society, it is about race. She finds a lot of racist behaviour in the people of Maycomb. There is an incident in the book where Scout and Jem are taken to a black church by Calpurnia. When the reach the church Eula May doesn’t let them come in to the church because the children were white. So Scout realizes that not only white people are racist to black people the black people are also racist to white people. So these are the three main facts Scout learns about her society.

As previously mentioned, the point of view in this narrative is from Scout. Her upbringing has been respectful to the African-Americans in her society and she shows this with her

I can infer the Scout is very naive by trying to make conversation with Mr. Cunningham but at the same time she is trying to apply what she has been taught by Atticus. She states, "Atticus had said it was the polite thing to talk to people about what they were interested in." Once she noticed that he did not show any interest regarding his son, she than thinks, "I tackled his entailment once more in a last-ditch effort to make him feel at home." As the reader, I can tell that she is trying to be as compassion as she can to a man who might not show compassion to others.

Though she is one of the novel's youngest characters, Scout Finch has broken boundaries that has had a profound impact on both herself and those around her. To begin, Scout crosses a glaring social boundary simply by behaving and dressing as a tomboy. While Scout sees no problem in wearing pants, she is met with disapproval from her Aunt Alexandra who states that "[Scout] could not possibly hope to be a lady if [she] wears breeches" (92). As a result of dressing and behaving in a manner not typical of a "lady", Scout is met with distain from the conservative women in Maycomb and has a strained relationship with Aunt Alexandra. Furthermore, Scout crosses an undeniable boundary when she attends the black First Purchase church with Calpurnia, the Finches' black cook.

Harper Lee introduces Scout as an insensible tomboy caught in the midst of contrite prejudicial conception. She has not yet discovered what is right and wrong due to various misconceptions that the people of

In Maycomb County, the residents live in a world of racism and injustice, so much so that even young children are affected by the results. Through standing with Atticus and his decisions, Scout undergoes constant indirect racism when her cousin says, “I guess it ain’t your fault if Uncle Atticus is a nigger-lover besides, but I’m here to tell you it certainly does mortify the rest of the family-” (Lee, pg. 94). Even with family, Scout begins to understand that not everyone shares her close family’s views, and that she may even be discriminated against for protecting her and her father’s beliefs. To add, Atticus always stands his ground, though the things and the people he defends cannot always win, such as when his only evidence is “a black man’s word against the Ewells’” (Lee, pg. 100 ). Atticus can believe in someone regardless of their skin color, yet the majority of his town is filled with racists who won’t believe him, even with

The society Scout grew up in was one of judgement and classification of people by things they can not control, such as race. A clear example of the way that the community would label an African American was stated by Atticus, “Scout, nigger-lover is just one of those terms that don’t mean anything- like

First of all, Lee’s critical tone of prejudice is demonstrated by Scout’s innocent curiosity and perception of her surrounding society. Specifically, Lee’s critical tone is illustrated by Scout’s curiosity and the numerous questions she asks her family members throughout the duration of the novel. For example, when Scout raises questions to her Aunt Alexandra concerning her prejudice towards the Cunningham family, her innocence is exhibited by her desire to understand the world, but also to question it. A specific example of Scout’s curiosity is when Aunt Alexandra informs Scout not to invite Walter over for dinner, which leads Scout to ask “Why not, Aunty? They’re good folks” (223). Aunt Alexandra responds with: “The thing is, you can scrub Walter Cunningham till he shines, you can put him in shoes and a new suit, but he’ll never be like Jem” (224). Aunt Alexandra’s response exemplifies her prejudice towards the structure of the social classes in Maycomb County. However, Scout’s innocent nature enables her to remain uncorrupted by prejudice and to question the unquestionable. Lee’s use of a child as a narrator allows her to ask the tough questions regarding Maycomb County’s way of life and question why it is prejudiced towards a certain individual or group of individuals. Moreover, Harper Lee’s choice of narration

Slavery was abolished in 1865 by Abraham Lincoln. Although the blacks were free they were not “equal” making the next set of laws which were the Jim Crow laws which were passed in 1890 with the quote “Separate but equal.” Harper Lee writes a novel placing the setting in the Deep South, during the 1930’s. During the 1930’s, the Jim Crow laws of segregation were established. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird Lee writes an eye opener about the racism in the Deep South.

Morality is not a virtue that many can tolerate without a conscience. It was considered the critical awareness of humanity's standards of conduct that are accepted as proper. Yet, for Scout, morality becomes not only a principle, but also a necessity in order for her to survive in the prejudiced society of Maycomb County. It is solely the essence of ethics that causes her to frown upon the injustices brought about by intolerance. Thus, Scout's maturity towards understanding the vitality of morality allows her to become a noble individual in an unjust social order.