SHORT TEXT RESPONSES Scout is a young but intelligent girl who is trying to understand the world. Scout also has a firm belief that “there’s just one kind of folks. Folks,” which means that she thinks that all people are the same and the fact that you can read or write doesn’t change that. Her belief contrasts with Jem’s belief that Maycomb folks are divided and he thinks that Scout’s thoughts are naïve. At the start of the novel she judges people easily as shown when she gives Ms. Caroline her view on Walter before she ever had a conversation with him and also shown when she judged Ms. Caroline by thinking that assuming Ms. Caroline was wrong when she was just doing what she thought was right. Over the course of the novel Scout grows to have a broader mind to understand people more and to understand more views with the saying from Atticus “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view … until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” Scout also discovers that some things are not what they seem to be during the trial with discovering Dolphus Raymond is not a drunk although he pretends to be. She also finds out that the people in Maycomb, although seeing that Tom is actually innocent, still let their prejudice take over and said that he was guilty. Even though her pure belief in the good of people is cracked, she still holds hope that people are still good.
Atticus is a lawyer who’s sense of justice is strong and he tries to teach his children what is right and wrong but not by telling them straightly but by trying to let them discover for themselves. For example, when he knows that Jem, Scout and Dill are making a game about the Radley’s, instead of telling them outright not to do it, he gives them a choice to stop with his warning but they continue playing he tells them to “stop tormenting that man [Boo]” A bad point about him though is that he is often not at home and is not sporty and doesn’t have a manly skill like going hunting or playing football which is what Jem and Scout want him to be like. But although he is not often there, when he is there he gives good advice and lessons to his children. He is wise and understands that people are not all good but also have the bad so you have to appreciate the good and understand the bad by “climbing into his skin and walking around in it.” At the start of the novel you can see that he is not a doting father but he does have a soft spot for Scout and Jem that is shown when during the evenings Scout climbs onto his lap. Atticus’s understanding of good and evil is that although there is evil in the world, good still exists and he has hope for the people in Maycomb to be more moral and not be prejudiced. And at the end of the book, when Jem breaks his arm because of the attack by Bob Ewell, Atticus was “there all night and he would be there when Jem woke up in the morning” to provide comfort to his son from the awful events of the previous night. He tries to teach the right and wrong of the world by subtly revealing at times that it is wrong that people have prejudice against the Negroes and it is not right.
During the trial of Tom Robinson, a significant point that was game-changing was that Scout, Jem and Dill watch the trial from the coloured balcony with the black people. It is a significant point because it is physically representation of their point of view being different from the rest of the white population of Maycomb county. Their point of view is different to everyone else’s because they are think that justice will always win and that everyone will be given the same chance to redeem themselves if framed in the courtroom. But while the children think like that, it is not the same for the adults who are biased and will side with the white person because of their belief that black people are tricky and evil. Mr. Gilmer for example shows that he thinks that black men lust after white women simply because they’re
To Kill A Mockingbird Jem, Scout, and Dill live in Maycomb, Alabama around the 1930’s, having to struggle through slavery and the poor family’s trying to scrape by. In To Kill A Mockingbird, Jem, Scout, and Dill have some great courage throughout the novel as they have loyalty in their relationships as seen in character, conflict, and symbolism. The main characters in the story show relationships throughout the novel. There is a tight relationship between Jem, Scout, and Dill; they show courage…
To Kill a Mockingbird In "To Kill a Mockingbird" Scout feels bad at the end of the book because she believes that neighbors give in return and she did not give her neighbor, Boo Radley, anything in return for all of the things that he did for her. This comment comes from a child Scout narrator because she does not fully understand what Jem and her really gave Boo in return. Scout believes that Jem and her never gave anything to Boo in return, but they don’t understand that they gave Boo something…
The quote “Atticus was right. One time he said you never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them. Just standing on the Radley porch was enough.”(p.283) is a climactic moment in Harper Lee’s Novel To Kill a Mockingbird as it represents Scout finally growing up and understanding the significance of seeing things from other people’s perspective. This theme is portrayed in the book through many characters. Atticus, Miss Caroline Fishure, Calpurnia, Miss Dubose and Jem…
“To kill A mockingbird” by Harper Lee, set in the United States, explores a range of universal concepts of the 1930s as well as today which enhances our learning enabling readers to become better global citizens. The book was set during a time when racial tension of black versus white was popular. Racism was very common during this difficult time and Harper Lee emphasises this issue through the young Innocent eyes of Scout. In Maycomb, a small, old country town in the south of USA, an elevation of…
Molly Fowler English, Hour 1 Baranoski March 9, 2015 Throughout the story of To Kill a Mockingbird , Scout speaks quite highly, while sometimes lowly, of her brother, Jem. She’s always looking up to him for one reason or another, and is constantly interested in what he is doing, wanting to stick by him at all times and joining him on his life journeys taking them both up and down. Although Scout explains her own thoughts on the events taking place, they could also be her opinion on anothers story…
through the novel innocence is experienced. In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, symbolism plays an important role. There is one symbol that Harper Lee incorporated into the novel and that helps develop ideas by Scout and Jem; a mockingbird. In my life I have gone through many situations where I have been innocent and it has moved on to experience. Multiple characters in this novel are innocent but their innocence is destroyed by evil. The mockingbird is the symbolism of the innocence in this case…
Situations Every one deals with situations differently, and I’ll show you in the reading, in the novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” and in my own personal experience, that people deal with situations differently. In the reading Carol is faced with a situation where everyone compares her to her sister Elena everyone tells her, to be more like her. As much as she tries to be more like her everyone just puts Carol down because she isn’t like her, the only place she feels like she is wanted is in school…
thing based on their skin complexion. The history of man is severely tainted and splashed with the racist actions that are once preconceived thoughts. The great barrier of white people and black people is very evident in history. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, by the author Harper Lee, the theme of prejudice between the white and the black people is evident. This novel takes place in the town of Maycomb, Alabama during the 1930’s. This story is told in the first person and is narrated by Jean Louise…
Nick Bradley Mr. Decaprio English I 11 August, 2014 “To Kill a Mockingbird” “To Kill a Mockingbird”, what can be said about this novel that has not been said already? Written by author Harper Lee, the story is told through the eyes of a young “tom boy” nicknamed Scout Finch. It is interesting to see such a deep novel told through the eyes of such a young child. The story has conflicts at every corner, for example: the altercation with Boo Radley and his father…
other black. By juxtaposing these two characters, Lee proves that justice and compassion reach beyond the boundary of color and human prejudices. The novel's title is a metaphor for both men, each of whom is a mockingbird. In this case however, one mockingbird is shot, the other is forced to kill. Boo and Tom are handicapped men. Lee hints that he may be physically unhealthy, and she makes statements that lead the reader to believe he may be mentally unstable. However, no character sheds any light…