To Kill A Mockingbird Analysis

The intriguing novel, To Kill A Mockingbird is written by the prestigious author Harper Lee. Lee has utilised the lifestyle and attitudes towards ‘African-Americans" in the 1930's to create a novel which presents the reader with Lee's attitudes and values. The dominant reading of the novel is focused on the issues of racial prejudice, but there are also a number of other alternative and oppositional readings. Examples of this are the Marxist and feminist readings which can be applied to the text.

"Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corncribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird" (pg. 119.) Miss Maudie spoke the previous quote with deep thought going into each and every word. She wasn't just trying to teach Scout a lesson, but she wanted there to be a powerful meaning behind it. Miss Maudie's main purpose was to stress that you shouldn't kill something that is doing no harm. Everyday "mockingbirds" are killed, broke down, and mistreated by society.

As Stephen King once said, “The trust of the innocent is the liar’s most useful tool.” In the book "To Kill a Mockingbird", by Harper Lee, Jean Louise Finch, a young girl who also goes by Scout, experiences many things such as racism, friends, and family. Her father, Atticus Finch, is a lawyer who is sacrificing his reputation to defend a black man, Tom Robinson. Scout and her friends take it upon themselves to uncover the mystery of Boo Radley. In this book the mockingbirds represent innocence. Many characters take on the role of the “mockingbird". Exploring Lee’s title, to kill a mockingbird is to kill innocence.

Lee implies that people learn lessons through life experiences that school can ever teach. Throughout this novel, Atticus taught his kids many lessons that was hard for them to hear at times, but it later on helped them in the story. Or it helped them grow up and mature. On page 40 of To Kill A Mockingbird, Atticus was explaining to Scout that Miss.Caroline was new and didn’t know anyone, and she especially didn’t know the Cunningham’s story, Atticus states, “Atticus said… but if Walter and I had put ourselves in her shoes we’d have seen it was an honest mistake on her part” (40). This quote by Atticus is meant to explain to Scout that Miss. Caroline just made an honest human mistake. He tried to get Scout to realize that if he put herself in Miss.Caroline’s shoes then she might better understand the confusion. Obviously you can’t really be in her shoes, but he said it figuratively to show her why it was important to give her another chance, or at least try to be nice and listen. Atticus taught this to Scout at home later on that night. At her school after that she tried to just get by in her class. Lee also shows mainly throughout that the school system doesn’t help when it comes to teaching children life lessons. As shown in the earlier quote Atticus, had told Scout to jump in Walter’s shoes, and walk around in it. This other quote shows how Scout actually takes into consideration of Atticus’ words, and chooses to not bother Jem because she tried to imagine what it had

As children grow up, they open their eyes to the harsh truths in the world around them that they once did not understand or question. This is experienced by the main characters of Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird. The story is of a girl called Scout and her older brother, Jem, who go through the trials of growing up in the fictional small Southern town of Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930s. Racism is rampant in the mindset of the townspeople, shown when the children’s lawyer father, Atticus, takes the case of an obviously innocent African-American man and they convict him in their hearts before the trial even starts. Through this all, we can see the theme of loss of innocence in the children. Lee uses characterization to portray

As the famous American author, Nerburn, says,“It is much easier to become a father than to be one”(http://www.wiseoldsayings.com/fathers-quotes). Nerburn writes about how hard it is to be an eligible father .He proposes the question, “Do people think their father is the person who is able to provide them a lot of guidance or help? In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Jem and Scout live with their father, Atticus, who is a lawyer, and regard him as an excellent example. However, Scout and Jem don’t value Atticus as a father with full diligence because he is elder than most of other students’ father and he is not able to do any sports. Due to the accident with the mad dog, atticus’s educations and the case of Tom Robinson, Jem and Scout come to understand, respect, and finally admire their father.

“It's right hard to say," she said. "Suppose you and Scout talked colored-folks' talk at home it'd be out of place, wouldn't it? Now what if I talked white-folks' talk at church, and with my neighbors? They'd think I was puttin' on airs to beat Moses, "But Cal, you know better," I said. “It's not necessary to tell all you know. It's not ladylike—in the second place, folks don't like to have somebody around knowing more than they do. It aggravates 'em. You're not gonna change

Throughout time the loss of child-like innocence has affected many. In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird the loss of child-like innocence is made evident through the main characters Scout and Jem as well as the minor character of Mayella Ewell. There innocence is lost in both daily life and an unfair and unjust court case. Racism, untrue rumors, and discrimination all pay a toll in losing these characters innocence.

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.

Harper Lee’s Novel To Kill a Mockingbird details the life of young Scout Finch and brother Jem Finch, who is growing up in a time of racial uniqueness. Jem and Scout Finch are what most would call a typical family growing up in the small Alabama town of Maycomb. They encounter many different obstacles during their childhood missions with many characters making the novel an interesting read. Throughout the book, Lee is showing Jem and Scout grow up and become mature young adults. This novel, written by Harper Lee, demonstrates the themes of growing up, Innocence and most importantly, racism.

Harper Lee presents the idea that as children grow up, they learn and experience the harsh truths about the world they once did not understand or question. The novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, encompasses the story of a girl named Scout along with her older brother, Jem, who go through the trials of growing up in the fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama. Racism is rampant in the mindset of the townspeople, shown when Atticus, both a father and lawyer, takes on the case of an innocent African-American man. Through this, we can see young character development in where main characters Scout, Jem, and Dill undergo the theme of innocence and experience. Lee uses characterization to portray Scout as the embodiment of innocence, and soon after shows the

Every child comes of age by recognizing reality and the ways of the world, and as this happens they begin to forget the silly games and make believe that once entertained them. In Harper Lee’s book, “To Kill a Mockingbird”, Jem and Scout are the kids of Maycomb defence attorney, Atticus Finch. He raises his children to respect and love everyone. Atticus has always been the children’s main influence, however as they start school they begin to have more experiences outside of the home and their family life. The main thing introduced to Jem is racism. Especially after their father takes on a case of a black man, Tom Robinson. Jem starts out as an immature little boy, however he comes of age due to several instances such as, helping the Cunningham boy, being punished by Mrs. Dubose, helping his best friend Dill, and defending his sister in a scary event.

Everyone, no matter who they are, was an innocent child at one point. A child who was protected from the rest of reality by their parents or guardians. However, once you go out into the real world, everything you believed starts to fade away, and you start to gain a new perspective on life. Harper Lee, the author of To Kill a Mockingbird, expresses the story of a 9-year-old girl named Scout, who lives in Maycomb, Alabama, during the Great Depression. She retells her experiences that led up to when her older brother, Jem broke his arm. Scout’s father, Atticus, a wise defense attorney, had to take a biased case against Bob Ewell's daughter, Mayella, who had accused Tom Robinson, a black man, of raping her. Atticus, to many people’s surprise,

Childhood is an important part of anyone’s life as they learn to cherish and remember. In the story, Jem and Scout Finch are two kids trapped in a racial society during a time of segregation and inequality. Living in a time like this was a difficult lifestyle, and especially at a young age. Atticus Finch, the wise father of the two children, is a fighting lawyer who defends an innocent man who happens to have dark skin. They had to grow up quickly and take the role of young adults in order to keep their family, town, and each other safe.

The story, in the eyes of two innocent children Scout and her brother Jem, of the discrimination and hypocrisy throughout the town. Maycomb County, Alabama, faces an African American’s injustice while the children learn valuable lessons from their father, Atticus and their housemaid Calpurnia, during the Great Depression. All the while, we are learning from it. To Kill a Mockingbird teaches us the lessons of morale, justice and equality.