The True Lessons of Maycomb

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.

Situations in one’s life change change his morals and values. Jem and Scout, main characters in Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, learn new principles of life throughout an important court case their father takes on. To Kill A Mockingbird has many themes that relate to the real, modern world. Empathy, courage, morals, bettering oneself, and personal integrity each are a life lesson in the novel, and can be related to the world today.

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.

In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, the author follows the childhood of the main character known as Jeremy Atticus Finch. He is the son of lawyer Atticus Finch, and older brother of Jean Louise Finch, also known as Scout. The family lives in a fictional town called Maycomb, Alabama. In their early lives, the two siblings were infatuated in figuring out the secrets of the Radley family, especially Boo Radley, in the house down their road. At the beginning of the story, their curiosity plays a big part in their lives. This builds during their many experiences and gives the readers a better sense of the characters’ traits. Jem Finch plays one of the key roles in the storyline and has a very brave, emotional, and protective personality.

Through the eyes of an innocent child, the story of To Kill a Mockingbird introduces a world of corruption. In the disordered town of Maycomb, certain character traits are developed and displayed in a specific local family. The opposition against their beliefs brings daunting situations to their door. Yet, this one family perseveres through the continuous corruption of Maycomb. Therefore, this recurring motif of character development really plays into the characters and, consequently, the story. This evident pattern of courage composes the Finch family: Jem, Scout, and Atticus.

A mockingbird is a harmless bird that makes the world a more pleasant place. In “To Kill a Mockingbird”, by Harper Lee, the mockingbird symbolizes Boo Radley and Tom Robinson/ They were both more than peaceful people who never did harm, until a man’s inhumanity hurt them or ruined their life. This novel exposes the inhumanity through various scenario’s throughout the telling of Scout’s story. Lee’s prize-winning novel has remained quite popular since its publication in 1960. Recalling her experiences as a six year old girl from an adult perspective, Jean Louise Finch, nicknamed “Scout”, describes the circumstances involving her

Towards the middle of the book, there is a trial with Tom Robinson and Mayella Ewell where Tom pleads guilty for doing something he did not do. Tom tried to escape from prison, but got shot 17 times because he did not agree with what he was getting punished for. At the end of the book, Boo Radley comes out to help the kids because Bob Ewell attacked the children. Boo always kept an eye out for the kids because he came and brought the kids home as safe as he could after the attack. Scout had the moment she had been waiting for to talk to Boo and she figured out why he likes staying inside. In To Kill A Mockingbird, and in the article, “Raisman says she was threatened, ignored over abuse claims”, shows how Raisman and Tom Robinson were abused and threatened for something they did not do when other people hurt them. Tom and Raisman both tried to stand up for what happened but got ignored trying to share their side. They tried fighting for what actually happened, but nothing happened for awhile. For example, people knew Tom would never hurt Mayella and he had people on his side defending him but was still found

Courage’s Distinct Traits as Presented in To Kill a Mockingbird Courage is a common theme expressed throughout countless novels spanning years, but in To Kill a Mockingbird, courage drives the plot of the novel and helps the main characters gain a better grasp of the world around them. Throughout the span of the novel, each of the characters are forced to take new perspectives on the events unfolding in front of them to overcome the deeply rooted prejudice of an old Southern town. Scout, Jem, Atticus, and other characters central to the plot of the novel discover that it takes different forms of bravery to overcome obstacles, and that each form is strong in their own right. Courage, as elucidated by Harper Lee in To Kill A Mockingbird, is

George Rusu Mrs. Sanford English 1 Honors Period 5 30 July, 2014 Integrity and Innocence When the young and inexperienced are tasked with facing the reality behind what the real world demands of them, most succumb to the responsibilities associated with maturing. The strong willed, however, adapt to their surroundings to face this task. Jem Finch, from Harper Lee’s bildungsroman novel To Kill a Mockingbird, is a ten year old boy growing up in Maycomb, Alabama, a small and quaint town during the Great Depression. Throughout the entire tale, his moral integrity is challenged as he deals with a variety of issues ranging from the spite and fear surrounding a house in his neighborhood, to racism and hatred of others, and even preserving his family’s

The book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is about how good and evil can co-exist in the world. The two main characters in the novel are Jean Louise “Scout” Finch and Jeremy Atticus “Jem” Finch who lives in the small town called Maycomb located in Alabama. The town Maycomb is full of people who contradict themselves. Although Jem and Scout grow up to be more mature throughout the book by realizing the things about the world, the adults in the town are still able to mature and grow also. Although they have been through many more life experiences than Jem and Scout, they still have their faults.

Tom Robinson is an African American who is symbolic in this novel for the test of racism in the town of Maycomb. Tom is accused for an attack of Mayella Ewell and is seen as a typical black man, but it turns out that he is very kind and gentle. This trial of Tom Robinson affects Jem more than any other young child. He knew that this man was innocent, but “Jem, moving into adulthood, also feels Tom’s despair” (Bruell, page 45) He feels this every time the jury announced him guilty and felt as if there was another stab at Tom. “You just can’t convict a man on evidence like that—you can’t.” (Lee, page). Jem feels that the evidence that was given was not convincing enough as he was on the side of Tom. There is no chance for Robinson in this situation as a black man in a primarily white town attacks a white woman. Jem feels that society is lost and ultimately Jem loses his faith in humanity and is “…marked forever by this experience” (Bruell, page 45). Boo Radley was accused of horrible things and Jem finally realizes the bravery of Boo and his reasons to stay inside his home. “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."(Bloom, page 32) Jem feels that Boo’s isolation is necessary and not a negative thing at all. Many would believe that Boo Radley exiling himself from society was

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 seems to teach the reader important life skills over the two years we get to know the little town of Maycomb. Scout and Jem learn how to give respect to their elders, learn how important honesty is, and knowing that every action has a consequence. “As the Cunninghams had no money to pay a lawyer, they simply paid us with what they had”(21). In Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, the lesson of respect is taught in the way of their last names. The Cunninghams are poor, however they will repay people with other actions, such as giving Aticus a bag of nuts.

Jean Louise Finch, better known as Scout, is the narrator and one of the main characters in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Scout is an intelligent six-year-old girl and may be described as a tomboy. As a child, she gets into plenty of mischief with her older brother, Jem, and close friend, Dill. Based on their experiences in the book, there’s a present theme consisting of racism, reputation, and social classes. Throughout the book, Scout gains a sense of reality of imperfection in society, based on these themes and her personal experiences.

To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel written by Harper Lee. The novel is about the experiences of two siblings growing up in Maycomb, Alabama during the 1930s. Scout and her brother, Jem Finch, over several years, learn valuable lessons about life and society. The main themes of the story are the loss of cherubic innocence and the rift of inequality in society. The novel is largely influenced when it was written by the author’s own experiences, Civil Rights, and the Great Depression. The Great Depression is referenced many times in the novel since the Great Depression plays an important part influencing the story’s setting, plot, and characters. In To Kill a Mockingbird there are signs that the Great Depression is present and that certain characters are affected more by it than others, and the Great Depression is shown in the story’s families and their lives.