An Equal Balance of Evil and Good Are people too quick to judge the good and evil of the humans around them? To Kill a Mockingbird is a historical fiction novel written by Harper Lee, but the events in the novel are told from the perspective of a young girl named Scout. Readers are taken through the journey of Scout’s childhood as she experiences inequality and prejudice in her small town of Maycomb, Alabama. While Scout matures and develops along with the storyline, she remains unaffected by the bigotry of the adults around her. Lee succeeds in proving that no one is entirely good or entirely bad as depicted through Boo Radley’s benevolent actions towards Scout and Jem, Mayella’s uneasy behavior during the trial, and Atticus’ lessons to his children concerning the morality of humans. Initially Scout and Jem viewed Boo Radley as a malicious and mysterious man; however, the children soon came to discover that Boo Radley had been performing kind gestures for them. For instance, after getting his pants caught in the fence of the Radley house, Jem came back to retrieve them. The next morning, he told Scout of the surprise he found when he arrived, “When I went back, they were folded across the fence… like they were expectin’ me” (59). Although it takes him a while to realize it, Jem discovers that Boo Radley was the person who mended his torn-up pants. This is the beginning of the plot where Scout and Jem start to understand that Boo Radley is not as bad as everyone else thinks
Strength doesn’t come from what you can do. It comes from overcoming the things you once thought you couldn’t.”
“To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee is an exceedingly powerful novel. It includes many significant minor themes such as racism and hatred which leave the reader to have grown more attentive to the past once they complete the book. The book takes place in Maycomb County Alabama during the great depression. During this period there was a great deal of hate and prejudice towards people of color, in addition to a great regard to social class. The novels protagonists, Atticus Finch a well-respected lawyer and his children Jeremy “Jem” Finch and Jean Louise “Scout” Finch are a few of the towns occupants who respect others regardless of social class or race. For this reason, Atticus has no objections
To Kill a Mockingbird, author Harper Lee uses unhypocritical, more experienced characters like Atticus to expose Jem and Scout to adult knowledge. Their adult influence is what brings about the empathetic growth and maturity of Jem and Scout.
Rumors regarding others’ flaws or secrets are constantly spread throughout all societies, but when are they ever true? This is an insightful question that the characters Jem and Scout may be asking themselves following their experiences of racial prejudice and unfair judgement of others in the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. Racial issues are still a problem in society today, as are many of the other morals taught throughout the story. For example, the discrimination of the character Tom Robinson leads the children, Jem and Scout, to come to the conclusion that society creates opinions about others based on prejudice, rather than the truth. The author includes many important literary devices that develop the novel and teaches
Can you recollect a person that you hate all the time? Is this person rude, not sociable, emotionally abusive, or just plain racist? In To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the novel digs deep into the roots of Social Classes. One of these classes, in particular, is “White Trash.” “White Trash” is a class that has the poor white people that don’t contribute much to society and sometimes even make the society worse. There is one character that everyone loathes in Maycomb, and he is Mr. Ewell. Harper Lee portrays Mr. Ewell and his kids as uneducated, racist, murderous pigs because of three reasons. This family disrespects other members of the community in cruel ways, abuses their power by accusing a black man of rape, and tries to kill two
“The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience,” (Lee 120). This quote from To Kill a Mockingbird is a good representation of the book. The book is set in the fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama during the Great Depression. Jean Louise (Scout) Finch, narrates the story of herself and her family facing the racial prejudices of the time. When her father Atticus, defends an innocent black man in a rape trial, Maycomb turns on Scout's family. Atticus, Scout, and her brother Jem stand up for what they believe in even if their neighbors disagree. By analyzing Harper Lee’s use of symbolism and tone, the reader can learn that courage isn’t physical strength, you gain morals as you grow, and prejudice kills innocence.
In her coming-of-age novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee, portrays the main character Jean Louise “Scout” Finch to reveal to the causes and effects of lies in the small southern town, Maycomb County. In Maycomb County, Alabama, the civilians of the town make “telling lies” a helpful thing to do. Most of the people who live in the town come up with lies to protect themselves and other, affecting the lives of innocents. This harmful and selfish act harms the town and its citizens in many ways. Through the use of characterization, rising actions, and falling actions, Lee portrays gossip spreading and telling lies have a big impact on the town, Maycomb.
The sun still rose in the east and set in the west. Birds still flew and fish still swam. The citizens of Maycomb proceeded with their lives as normal, but Scout felt as though everything was different. Scout developed and matured enormously throughout Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Prolonged summers, during The Great Depression, consisted of acting out characters, spying on the mysterious Arthur (Boo) Radley, and running around wild and free. These jaunty summers frequently overshadowed the realities of Scout’s world. As her life continued, experiences and encounters provided her the opportunity to step out of the picture frame and see the entire picture. Scout’s perspective is continually altered and progressed through challenging situations with Miss Caroline, experiences of goodness and solidarity in the black community with Calpurnia, and situations when her once fictional neighbor, Boo Radley, became a reality.
Maycomb County, Alabama during the Great Depression a young lady, Mayella Ewell blamed a black man, Tom Robinson of something incredibly despicable that turned Maycomb upside down. Mayella took advantage of the laws back then so that she could end the aggression her father gave her. Mayella is powerful due to the fact that she is white, her family is the poorest family out there, but because of her color she will always be preferred over African-Americans. In “To Kill A Mockingbird,” Harper Lee uses class, race, and gender to determine if Mayella has power after all.
Courage is an essential human quality. Facing fears against all odds is a feature in many novels. Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is no exception. Many characters depicts the quality. Some in normal situations others, take on terrifying tasks in a unique and original way. Scout, Jem, Atticus, and Ms. Dubose show bravery in many areas of their lives, one character risks their careers, others have a situation that lacks massive consequences.
"'Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy...That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird.'" (119) Reading the beginning of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, one would assume there is no connection with the title to the storyline. After delving deeper into the novel the connection becomes evident. The concept of the mockingbird is introduced when Scout is given a gun for Christmas, she is then told by her father that it is a sin to kill a mockingbird. Scout dismisses this fact until it becomes relevant again, when someone in her life is compared to mockingbird after a life altering experience.
In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee, many themes are conveyed throughout the book, including the lessons of childhood. As Scout and Jem grow up, Atticus attempts to teach them proper morals and values. They become very aware of their surroundings and try their best to do the right thing.
Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird details the life of a typical white American family during the era of the Great Depression. Although each of the family members is portrayed in a detailed manner throughout the novel, Jean Louise Finch is the main character, as well as the narrator for the majority of the novel. The narration of “Scout” works through two points of view: The view of an independent six year old girl, and simultaneously, the view of a mature woman who is recapping some moments of her earlier childhood. Lee does a superior job in combining the two very unique voices, and forming what came to be a well known novel throughout the United States. The mature adult voice narrating the story To Kill A Mockingbird not only informs readers of the views of the young Scout, but also gives the mature outlook on the events in which the child could not see.
The classic novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” is a thrilling bildungsroman following the timeline of a young girl named Jean-Louise (Scout) Finch, written by Harper Lee. As a young girl, Scout lacked a biological mother, the result of a sudden health tragedy. Mothers play a very important role in the life of a young girl. A Mother's goal is to guide their children down a healthy path of life while providing the necessary components needed to thrive. Although Scout's mother died years ago, her mother figure was superseded by Calpurnia because she is trusted by Atticus to care for the children, she enforces rules and disciplinary actions towards Scout, and she teaches Scout important lessons throughout the progression of the storyline.
As people grow up, their views change immensely, and reality overtakes their fantasies. In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, she uses her character Scout’s changing attitudes towards other characters to demonstrate this. Throughout the story, Boo Radley, a mysterious neighbor of Scout’s, is constantly being misjudged by the people of the town. As a consequence of this and Scout’s young age, she believes the rumors about him that are spread, and even puts her own twist on some of them; albeit with the help of Jem and Dill. However, as the story progresses and her character changes, Lee substantiates this with Scout’s changing opinion on Boo Radley. By the end of the story, Scout matures, and so does her view of Boo.