preview

To Kill A Mockingbird Chapter 24 Analysis

Decent Essays

7)What is your opinion of the Maycomb ladies, as depicted in Chapter 24?
The Maycomb ladies include Aunt Alexandra, Ms.Merriweather, Ms.Perkins, and Ms.Farrow, along with Miss Maudie, who is an outlier with regards to the behavior of the group. In general, the group is heavily biased and frivolous in their conversations and actions. For example, during the tea party Aunt Alexandra hosts, the ladies express an interest in help the less fortunate, yet still attack Helen Robinson, the epitome of a helpless woman, for somehow being responsible for the trial and the uproar caused by it. Like Aunt Alexandra, the rest of the ladies are conscious of social conventions and act indifferent in the face of events with big implications. For example, on …show more content…

Both Scout and Jem become acutely aware of the social divisions and discrimination in Maycomb during the aftermath of the trial, but each responds to it in a different way. While Scout begins the novel as a naive child who basically echoes the opinions of Jem and looks up to Atticus as a role model, she becomes more independent and shows signs of being a lady, just as Aunt Alexandra wanted her to be. An example of this is on page 237, when Scout says ““After all, if Aunty could be a lady at a time like this, so could I.” to show her support for Aunt Alexandra, a dramatic change from the argumentative nature that Scout possesses earlier in the novel. Also, Scout begins to understand the true nature of malice when she sees Bob Ewell in court, and thus, Boo Radley seems to be less of a threat than before. Jem’s changes, however, are surprising because he becomes more emotionally aware and adult because of the trial, as opposed to his confident, idealistic attitude earlier in the book. Jem begins to form his own opinions and displays moodiness, such as when he yells at Scout for squashing a bug in the yard. He begins to realize that Maycomb isn’t the idyllic town he thought it was, and the forces of racism and prejudice and very real. Through his struggles to come to grips with the verdict, Jem is stripped of his innocence, and his role as a

Get Access