Scout Finch Character Analysis

Scout in To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee is a novel set in the United States during the 1930's. This novel deals with the hardships of growing up, among other important themes. Scout, the main character in the book, underwent many challenges during her early life that resulted in her maturing at a young age. Scout learned the meaning of racism, courage, and tolerance (comprehension).

As people grow in life, they mature and change. In the novel , To Kill a Mockingbird ,by Harper Lee, Scout, the main character, matures as the book continues. Slowly but surely, Scout learns to control her explosive temper, to refrain from fistfights, and to respect Calpurnia, their maid, and to really learn her value to the family. Scout simply changes because she matures, and she also changes because Atticus, her father, asks her to.

Scout empathizes with Walter Cunningham during school at the beginning of the novel. Her teacher Miss Caroline offers Walter a quarter because he has no lunch. Walter’s family can’t afford lunch so he says he has forgotten his lunch money. He declines her offer, Miss Caroline can’t see why so she continues

Scout Finch is the narrator of the book; she is very mature in her opinions and actions. She is a tomboy, which leads her to be very competitive and to get in fights with her male classmates. However, Scout is a very good kid; she always has the best intentions for her actions. Scout's primary role model is her father, Atticus who's main concerns while raising her was for her to become an intelligent, conscientious, individual while also being innocent to the social pressures of her town as a child.

As the story begins and we start to analyze the characters, Scout comes off as an being unable to grasp the realities of life due to her childlike innocence. We see this through her thoughts and actions. Walter Cunningham has a misfit with Scout in the beginning of the novel that can be an example of both her innocence and intolerance. It starts when Scout's teacher, Miss Caroline, tells Walter to take her money for lunch and suggests paying her back later. Walter refuses and Miss Caroline gets irritated. In attempt to explain why Walter doesn't take the money, Scout tells Miss Caroline the stigma of the Cunninghams. Scout says that Walter can't pay her back because he doesn't have the money; No Cunningham would ever take anything they couldn't pay back. When Scout gets in trouble for talking back, she blames it on Walter and reacted as follows, "Catching Walter Cunningham in the schoolyard gave me some pleasure, but when I was rubbing his nose in the dirt..." (Lee 30). This quote

Many times throughout the novel, Scout acts before she thinks. This is specifically shown when she says to her teacher, “ ‘Walter’s one of the Cunninghams, Miss Caroline.’...The Cunninghams never took anything they can’t pay back-no church baskets and no scrip stamps, ” (Lee 20). Scout assumes it’s her duty and Walter wants her to to explain his problems to the teacher when really it’s not her duty at all. If Scout was to take a step back and to find out how Walter sees things, she may not had to explain his issue to the teacher and instead let him speak for himself. Later when Scout and Jem invite Walter over for dinner Scout says, “But he’s gone and drowned his dinner in syrup,” (Lee

Scout Finch changes and grows significantly over the course of Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird. In the beginning of the novel, Scout is a young girl who hadn't thought much of the prejudice in the world and was quick to judge others. Throughout the novel she becomes more aware of the prejudice in her own community, more sympathetic and understanding of others, and learns to stick to her morals. These changes were largely influenced by her father's example, the trial he was a part of, and her experiences in school.

The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee involves growing up and maturing. There are many characters who undergo some type of character growth, but none more than Jean Louise Finch, also known as Scout. In the beginning of the novel Scout is a very naïve young girl, but by the end, she is a highly mature young lady who is ready to take on almost anything that the world may throw at her. The growth of Scout is fuelled through her exposure to events occurring around her, her questions and wonderings, and her relationships with other people.

The famous quote from Anne Frank, “parents can only give good advice or put them on the right paths, but the final forming of a person's character lies in their own hands,” couldn’t be truer to Harper Lee’s character, Scout Finch. Throughout the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Scout Finch changes and grows both emotionally and socially with the help of her friends and family.

(pg.128) Scout’s observation and recognition of this reveals the reconsideration of her actions and thoughts to Mrs. Dubose. Compassion- Scout is very warm and friendly. Scout tells Miss Caroline that the Cunningham’s “don’t have much, but they get along on it.”(pg. 28)

Atticus Finch once said, “you never really understand a person until you consider things from [their] point of view” (Lee 85-87). He tells that to Scout but she still doesn’t understand the meaning of it. On the other hand, Jem understands more than Scout even when she doesn’t notice what’s going on. The character that changed the most in the novel of “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee is Jem Finch.

At an age where most boys tend to only care about sports and friends, Jeremy (Jem) Atticus Finch was forced to deal with life-changing and troubling situations that caused him to mature much sooner than other boys. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the author provides a story that includes a first-hand view of an American boy who grew up quickly because of the changing world around him. Jem Finch went through many events that presented a very different viewpoint that conflicted with things that he thought he knew as a child. There were many traumatic experiences Jem Finch had to go through, all leading up to his young adult years. Not only has his mentality matured through these events, but also his understanding of his community around him. The protagonist Jem Finch changes throughout the novel by having to grow up at a younger age than anyone normally would by watching an animal get shot by his own father, witnessing a controversial and significantly biased trial, and surviving his own near-death experience.

One of the hallmarks of memorable literature is the creation of interesting, believable characters. This is a reason why Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” is still remembered to this day. Harper Lee’s characters demonstrate realism through their actions and words, and I believe Atticus Finch is a fine example of such. There are many ways to describe Scout, due to the characterization displayed of her by Harper Lee.

Both Scout Finch and Lily Owens have a fair share of challenges in life. One very big challenge for both Scout and Lily is not having a mother. Both girls mothers died when they were young, and have had a black woman as a caregiver. Both Scout and Lily start to see their caregiver as a mother figure who gets put out of her role and replaced with another woman who shows them how to do life. Scout has a very supportive father while Lily’s father is borderline abusive. Even through their lives are opposite of each other the girls have their mothers in common.

In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout is one of the main characters and the narrator. During the time the book begins, she is a little 6 year-old girl who is mature for her age, and she continues to mature as the book progresses. Over the course of the novel, Scout develops an exceptional character which is constantly changing from the effects of different events and characters. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee uses the minor characters Boo Radley, Miss Maudie, and Aunt Alexandra to help develop Scout into a strong and compassionate human being from the innocent child she used to be.