To Kill A Mockingbird As A Outsider Analysis

For my paper I have chosen to analyze the movie “To Kill a Mockingbird.” This movie is based on the novel – by the same name – written by Harper Lee. The story has two major plotlines. One follows Jem, Scout, and Dill as they try to uncover the secrets behind the infamous “Boo” Radley. It’s only at the end of the movie that we learn “Boo’s” real name to be Arthur, and that we discover he actually tries to protect people, as he saved Jem and Scout’s lives. The other major plotline, and the one more relevant to this class, follows Atticus Finch, Jem and Scout’s father, as he tries to represent Tom Robinson. Mr. Robinson is an African American man who has been charged with raping Mayella Ewell. The movie then

Boo has a reputation of being a killer, through his teenage years he went through unaccounted mishaps which resulted in him staying at home being imprisoned by his parents. Having a commendable , clean reputation is exceedingly paramount in Maycomb society, his family made sure that he did not cop into several more confrontations. The Radleys, welcome anywhere in town, kept to themselves, a predilection unforgivable in maycomb (Lee 11). Nonetheless The Radleys have separated themselves from the rest of the

“Remember, it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird,” (Lee 119). In To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, this is the quote that Atticus, one of the main characters, says to his kids. Atticus is a lawyer who takes on a tough case in his town, Maycomb. His kids are Scout, and Jem. Throughout the book, they grow and mature. They don’t mess around with their neighbor, Boo, as much as they used to. But, luckily because of him, they live to see the next day. In To Kill a Mockingbird, it shows that because of prejudice, innocent people can be harmed. This is shown through Tom Robinson, Boo Radley, and Jem.

Outsiders are people who are excluded from or don’t fit in with groups of people. Many outsiders are misunderstood and judged based on physical appearance and not on the kind of person they are. In the novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, many different people are outsiders. This novel takes place during the Great Depression in a small town called Maycomb. Maycomb is a very racist and religious town.

    Throughout time authors have used symbolism to express a greater meaning in simple words because it allows readers to connect the real world to what they are reading in an abstract way, like philosophers using the dove to represent peace and fire to represent ferocity; in To Kill A Mockingbird  , Harper Lee uses symbolism to make a point about maturity in particular when Miss Maudie gives Jem cake, when scout tries to learn innocence and when scout tries to learn how to observe a situation from someone else's perspective.

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 just takes three kids and their traits to make a difference in a community. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, racism, classism, and sexism are all showcased, through the eyes of children. The children, Dill, Scout, and Jem, try to understand and change the segregated ways of the town of Macomb. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Dill, Scout, and Jem create chaos, causing changes in Macomb County, by not judging people only from their background, speaking out for what is right, and are continually being persistent.

Harper Lee wrote in To Kill A Mockingbird, “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view.” His words explain how you can not judge or make a conclusion about a person until you look at a situation from their point of view, or perspective. This can lead to striking opinions, creating conflict and tension between two people. Similarly, in The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton, the narrator, Ponyboy has never felt much of a connection with his oldest brother Darry, as S.E. Hinton portrays their relationship as strain. After their parents died, Darry was left to raise his two brothers by himself. Since he had to play the roles of a mother, father, and big brother; he had a lot on his

Growing up is a difficult task, especially when the town around you doesn’t offer to help you understand what’s going on around you. Using many examples of the loss of childhood innocence, Harper Lee shows us that a corrupted society leads to growing up faster and one’s childhood is stripped away. Through Jem, the eldest of the Finch children, and Scout, the youngest, the readers see how a trial in 1930 Alabama takes a toll of young minds. In Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, she implies that growing up leads to loss of innocence, especially in troubling times.

“Morals, Manners, Customs, and Public Perception” by Judge Paul Heath Till uses the theme of Southern Civility to express the change and influence our fast-changing society plays in the reconstruction of the Southern culture. Judge Till’s explanation of the Southern Civility can also be reflected in Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird”, who uses the culture of the South to emphasize the conflicts and the expectations that the family must live up to be accepted into the community. The Southern civility is presented in both texts through the understanding and importance of family and the basic concept of values and mannerism.

“Shoot all the Bluejays you want, if you can hit’em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee pg. 90). The bird, mentioned nearly twice, seems to show little importance to the story. Nonetheless, it resembles the perception of some characters. The one time Scout had ever heard Atticus say it was a sin to do anything was when referring to the mockingbird. He advised his children when hunting to never shoot a mockingbird. Miss Maudie followed with further detail by explaining that “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” (Lee pg.90).

Charles Lamb once said, “Lawyers, I suppose, were children once.” The author of To Kill

To Kill A Mockingbird remains one of the most produced and distributed political commentaries in America, despite its publishing over 50 years ago. The reason the book grosses such a high distribution rate can be attributed to its relevance even today

Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel that takes place throughout the 1930s in a small town in Alabama called Maycomb. During this time period, people dealt with large amounts of discrimination, along with the effects of the Great Depression. Harper Lee is able to develop various themes using this setting, such as the stereotyping of gender roles, loss of innocence, excess violence, superstition, and prejudice. Some readers believe that the theme of innocence is most relevant to the novel as its message directly relates to Scout and Jem Finch, two major characters in the story. However, the theme of prejudice and superstition is more prevalent. This theme creates a well-developed storyline for the different “mockingbirds” in the novel while also projecting the actual struggles that came with living in the 1930s. Readers should understand these themes because it is important for them to realize that prejudice leads to injustice, negatively affecting society as a result. Not only that, readers will become more aware of the fact that these problems are still impacting people to this day. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee expresses the theme of prejudice and superstition through several characters, including Tom Robinson, Dolphus Raymond, and Boo Radley, to reveal how these judgements ultimately lead to the downfall of Maycomb.

In both the text “To Kill a Mockingbird” written by Harper Lee and the film “A Time to Kill” directed by Joel Schumacher, similar ideas are presented using language devices and stylistic features in differing ways to appeal to their target audience. Each have very similar storylines in which a white lawyer defends a an African-American in a prejudiced court case. Racism is a key idea presented strongly in each due to the eras they are set in. The era and country set in each story provide a strong base for the prominent issue. With the unpleasant happenings in each text and through the racist acts the idea of compassion shines through. As well as compassion being a significant idea, forgiveness is also presented through the racists acts.