Themes In Harper Lee's 'Appearances Can Be Deceiving'

The story To Kill Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, is a timeless 1960 classic. In this story several children grow up in the small Southern town of Maycomb, which goes through the case of the century. A black man, Tom Robinson is accused of rape and faces against the racism of the South. The story shows the case from the point of view of Scout Finch, the daughter of the attorney for Tom Robinson. Many themes are demonstrated but of the themes, the most prevailing theme is “Appearances Can Be Deceiving”, which is presented many times throughout the story. This theme demonstrates itself many times by a character being recognized a certain way, while in reality they are different. Several characters support this theme throughout the book such as Boo

Lafayette Dubose, an old morphine addict that makes the children care for her as she gets off her addiction. These characters help the reader better understand the theme of “Appearances Can Be Deceiving” in the story To Kill A Mockingbird. Boo Radley, a reclusive man who is gossiped about by almost everyone in town, because of this the town believes he is a horrible person who underwent a trial in his youth that his father never forgave him for, forcing him to stay inside the house. Mr. Radley stays indoors and the house is closed up, the Radley family never goes to church and other activities, breaking many codes of the town. Boo Harper Lee recognizes Radley as bad person in his first description: “People

People said he went out at night when the moon was down, and peeped in windows.” (Lee, 9). The town of Maycomb knows nothing of Boo Radley and assumes he prowls at night, performing unusual tasks, and looking in the town’s houses. It is even in question that Boo even exists; he is that perplexing to the town. The fact that the entire town recognizes him as a terrible shows the reader the social shame upon him. He ran with a rebellious crowd in his youth, a