“‘You want to grow up to be a lady, don’t you?’ I said not particularly” (Lee). Jean Louise Finch is a tomboy growing up in a world where a girl is expected to become a lady. Submissive housewives and proper ladies were the expectations set for women in the time To Kill A Mockingbird took place. Scout Finch lived in a household that had a strong male influence; aside from Calpurnia, she had no real present example of what she was supposed to become. Because of this, Scout refused to conform to the ways of the rest of the women in Maycomb and the world (Lee 84). Women in Maycomb, and everywhere else for that matter, were viewed as dolls in every form of the word. Girls were supposed to wear dresses, refrain from cursing, and use manners. They were seen as fragile objects - it was even a crime to cuss near a woman. At one point in the story, it is briefly mentioned that several men were charged with using profane language in the presence of a woman. Scout did not understand the approach that the people in Maycomb had to women and she challenged the roles that people tried to force upon her. Jean Louise, or Scout, had no intention of becoming ladylike. She was, essentially, a tomboy because she grew up playing with Jem and Dill, and she had no mother. In the games they would play, Jem would assign Scout “girl” roles, in which she would not play a major part because men had the more important roles. Jem had a lot to do with Scout’s defiance to ladylike behavior. In more instances than one, he would insult Scout by calling her a girl, or saying that unless she stopped acting like a girl, she couldn’t play with him and Dill. Along with that aspect, Jem was considered a “gentleman” which is a respectable quality for boy or man. However... ... middle of paper ... ...en blacks and whites. Though, another part of Lee’s message, I feel, was to provoke the thought that maybe it’s also unfair to treat men and women differently. All humans are humans despite their differences; everyone is equal, no one is better than anyone. A character like Scout helped display these ideas, because she, even as a child, understood that segregation and discrimination were wrong. Her own refusal to gender roles helped shine some light on the inequality that women experience every day of their lives. Works Cited Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1960. Print. Shmoop Editorial Team. "Alexandra Hancock in To Kill a Mockingbird." Shmoop.com. Shmoop University, Inc., 11 Nov. 2008. Web. 29 Apr. 2014. Ware, Susan. "Women and the Great Depression." The Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History. N.p., n.d. Web. 29 Apr. 2014.
Even though many social forces impact Scout in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, gender impacts Scout the greatest. It affects her in how other people treat her. Unexpectedly, Aunt Alexandra shows up at the Finch household, and Scout asks why she had just shown up. Aunt Alexandra replies, “We decided that it would be good for you to have some feminine influence. It won’t be many years, Jean Louise, before you become interested in clothes and boys” (127). After Alexandra says this, Scout becomes puzzled because she does not think she needs a “feminine influence”. But, as she becomes older she is expected to act more lady like. Since she is a girl, she is expected to act prim and proper. Her being raised around men is acting against these stereotypes. Certainly, it is obvious that boys are more daring than girls. So while Jem and Dill want to get a sneak peak inside of Boo Radley’s house, Scout gets a little apprehensive. Jem shouts out, “Scout I’m telling you for the last time shut your trap or go home. I declare to the lord you’re getting more like a girl every day,” (51-52). After Jem said this, she decides she has no option but to join them. She does...
Readers also see countless examples of sexism alongside others. Many of these examples of sexism are seen in Scout and her reactions when others refer to her as a girl or tell her that she must act more ladylike. Whenever Scout’s brother Jem wants her to do something for him or keep her from doing something, he refers to her as Miss Priss (Lee 62), because Jem knows that Scout absolutely despises being represented as a girl or feminine in any way. The main reason why Scout hates being a girl so much is that she wants to be able to do whatever she wants without being confined to what her society believes that a proper woman should be and how they should act. Even many of the women in the story tell Scout that she needs to act according to their standards and Aunt Alexandra is back with another lesson for Scout. “It won’t be many years, Jean Louise, before you become interested in clothes and boys” (Lee 170). It is clear that Alexandra knows that Scout is in no way a lady by her standards, but still has hope for her. Scout however understands exactly what her Aunt is getting at and is very quick to let readers know that she is not on board with Alexandra’s plan. Alexandra represents the general population of women and how they see themselves and how the rest of the world sees
Harper Lee’s timeless novel To Kill a Mockingbird is told by Jean Louise ‘Scout’ Finch, a fiery young girl from the quiet town of Maycomb, Alabama. In defiance of the traditionally passive role of Southern women, Scout grew up as a tomboy and, like her older brother Jem, was unafraid to engage other children in physical confrontations. At the onset of the novel, Scout displayed these aggressive tendencies, fighting classmates whom she believed had wronged her or her family. However, Scout developed as a character in the first half of To Kill a Mockingbird to the extent that she was willing to walk away from fights that weren’t worth fighting. Scout’s willingness to engage in combat with other children early on in the novel was evident in the description of her treatment of Walter Cunningham after being punished for explaining his financial situation to her teacher. Scout described this fight, saying, “Catching Walter Cunningham in the schoolyard gave me some pleasure, but when I was rubbing his nose in the dirt Jem came by and told me to stop...Jem said, ‘…Scout here…she won’t fight you anymore.’ ‘I wouldn’t be too certain of that,’ I said” (Lee 30-31). As evidenced by this description, Scout had a quick temper and was just as willing as many of her male classmates to fight others, reflecting the combative sense of justice common to the children of her day. A key tenant of her aggressive morality was an unwillingness to turn away from a fight for fear of being called a coward. Scout held these beliefs throughout the beginning of the novel and fought many other children to defend her reputation. However, through moral instruction from her father, Atticus Finch, Scout was able to abandon much of her aggression. She grew to recognize...
Throughout the novel Lee shows how Scout and Jem learn to respect everyone, to refrain from attacking others based on physical appearance, and to have the courage to set things right. As they gain experience, they will utilize these lessons to become more successful in the future and provide an example to everyone on how to understand other people and become a better person overall.
One way Harper Lee develops gender inequity through stereotypes is through Scout’s experiences with the women in Maycomb. Scout is laughed at for wearing pants under her dress. Scout prefers pants over dresses because she’s a tomboy and can be more active in “britches.” On Sunday, Scout dressed up, but still had pants under her dress. When Scout is at the gathering with the women, Miss Maudie says, “‘You’re mighty dressed up, Miss Jean Louise,’ she said. ‘Where are your britches today?’ ‘Under my dress.’ I hadn’t meant to be funny, but the ladies laughed. My cheeks grew hot as I realized my mistake” (Lee 307). Because Scout is laughed at for wearing pants and not for something she thought was funny, she feels singled out and degraded. The ladies of Maycomb laughed at her because she had done something “wrong” in their eyes. She wore pants
Jem matures a lot throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird. At the beginning of the novel, Scout and Jem played together pretty well, not counting the occasional fights. Jem likes playing with Scout and plays with her as if she is his little brother rather than his little sister. Over time, Scout starts to take offence at being called a girl. One time, Jem
Scout Finch is not the stereotypical girl from the 1930’s. Agents the wishes of everyone around her, she grows up in overalls instead of dresses. Scout plays in the dirt and sand, instead of in the kitchen. In the novel To Kill a Mocking Bird, by Harper Lee, Scout is the wild spirited narrator, growing up in the small town of Maycomb. As she gets older, she learns mostly from her father Atticus how to interact with people. Scout learns to show dignity and respect to everyone, under any circumstances.
Prior to the feminist movement of the 1960s, women had to follow strict gender roles. Scout is a prime example of a female child struggling to fit these roles placed upon her by not only males in society, but women too. The moment Aunt Alexandra enters Maycomb, she places it upon herself to mould young Scout and Jem into their societal roles. Scout especially suffers a great deal of criticism and pressure from her Aunt to be the stereotypical girl;
In most countries, women only earn between 60 and 75% of men’s wages, for the same work. Sexism is still a problem in today’s society, but it has improved since Scout’s generation in “To Kill a Mockingbird.” Scout believes from an early age that girls aren’t good, and that she can avoid the judgement that comes with being a girl by not acting like one. Being a girl for Scout is less a matter of what she's born with and more a matter of what she does. Scout’s elders influence her perception of womanhood by putting preconceived sexist views in her head. In “To Kill a Mockingbird” Harper Lee shows the reader how all women are expected to act lady like and be proper through the actions of Mrs. Dubose, Jem, and Atticus.
It takes a village to raise a child, whether that child be a motherless caucasian girl in Alabama, or a poor black child living in squalor in a foreign land. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee describes the experiences of Scout, an impressionable young tomboy. Scout is without a real mother; she looks to women in the Maycomb community to help her define what it means to be female. Her concept of womanhood develops as she interacts with several women who foster her welfare and growth. The most influential women in Scout’s life are Aunt Alexandra, Miss Maudie, and Calpurnia. Other female characters, including the ladies of the Missionary Circle, influence Scout’s conceptualization of womanhood, but not always in a nurturing, helpful way .
But in chapter twenty-four it is talking about Aunt Alexandra hosting a missionary meeting. Which meant every lady in Maycomb county was at the Finch’s house. Scout is there because Jem would not let her go with Dill and him. Scout states that she “divided the lonely hours between Calpurnia (the help) and Miss Maudie (Lee, 305). During this chapter, you can also see how Scout acts around Aunt Alexandra and how she feels she has to walk on eggshells while Aunty is around. But since Scout was hanging out with all of the lady’s this meant she had to dress like one, scout wore a dress with her pants own underneath. Which Miss Maudie made a comment about. But as they were enjoying their refreshments, Miss Stephanie Crawford started to ask Scout questions. Miss Stephanie asked, “Whatcha going to be when you grow up, Jean Louis”? “A lawyer”? (Lee, 307). Scout answered her back saying “Nome, I hadn’t thought about it…” (Lee, 308). Scout tried to change the conversation but Miss Stephanie just kept encouraging it. The ladies were laughing at Scout and the stuff Miss Stephanie was saying, while she was still asking questions “Miss Maudie’s hand touched mine [Scout] and I answered mildly enough”, “Nome, just a lady”. (Lee, 308) Miss Stephanie told her that she would not get very far in becoming a lady if she did not wear more
Besides discrimination and white privilege, gender discrimination also plays a role in this novel/film. Jem and Scout have grown up without a mother, and has a black house servant, Calpurnia, stand as a mother figure even though her and Scout do not get along. Throughout the movie, Scout is portrayed as not wanting to wear dresses and not acting “ladylike” as Calpurnia says. These two clash throughout the film because of Calpurnia’s expectations of being a “lady” and how Scout takes “being a girl” as an
As girls grow in life, they mature and change into women. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Scout, the main character, begins to mature into a woman. In the beginning of the book, she is a tomboy who cannot wait to pick a fistfight with anyone, but at the end, she lowers her fists because her father, Atticus, tells her not to fight. Scout’s views of womanhood, influenced by how Aunt Alexandra, Miss Maudie, and Calpurnia act, make her think more about becoming a woman and less of a tomboy.
When the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, was written by Harper Lee, the Southern United States was still clinging tightly to traditional values. Southern societies pressured men to behave as gentlemen, and women were expected to be polite and wear dresses. These stringent gender roles were adhered to in small southern towns because they were isolated from the more progressive attitudes in other areas of the United States. Harper Lee documents the life of one young girl growing up in the small town of Maycomb, Alabama. Jean Louise Finch, also known as "Scout," is a young girl searching for her identity. Scout, a young tomboy, is pressured by adults who insist she should conform to the traditional role of a southern lady. Harper Lee establishes and promotes Jean’s masculinity through the use of nicknames, fighting, and masculine clothing, while contrasting her with women that fit the stereotypical female model.
When Scout (in a tire) rolled in front of Boo Radley’s house and did not bring the tire out with her Jem got mad at her and scowled “‘I swear, Scout, sometimes you act so much like a girl it’s mortifyin’’” (Lee 50). Jem’s tone implies that he views girls as being scared. Hence, he thinks her getting too scared to get the tire, in front of the house of the most feared man to children in Maycomb, is her acting like a girl and he condones her for it. Also at the tea party, Miss. Maudie asks Scout, “‘Where are your britches today?’ ‘Under my dress.’ I hadn’t meant to be funny, but the ladies laughed” (Lee 307). By the ladies laughing at Scout, the author reveals how Scout finding comfort in her tomboy ways is frowned and laughed upon by society. Afterwards Miss. Stephanie, a town gossip at the tea party, proceeds to tell Scout “‘you won’t get very far until you start wearing dresses more often’” (Lee 308). The purpose of Miss. Stephanie telling Scout this is to demonstrate to Scout that in Maycomb without acting ladylike she will not get anywhere in their society because if was a tomboy all her life she would be considered