Scout's Learning Experiences Depicted in To Kill A Mockingbird

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 (321). In Harper Lee’s fictional novel To Kill A Mockingbird, she illustrates the harsh reality that exists when ignorance interferes with justice. Set in a small Southern town during the 1930’s, Atticus Finch chooses to defend a black man who is falsely accused of raping a white woman. The town’s representation of Tom Robinson is mirrored by Atticus’s children, Jem and Scout, and their treatment of the town recluse Boo Radley. Scout learns that everyone deserves to be treated with equality, no matter what color skin they have or what social class they belong to.

Jean Louise “Scout” Finch is a girl who is too young to comprehend the nature of the members of her community. For example, Scout does not understand why Cecil Jacobs said “Scout Finch’s daddy defended niggers (85)” as if it were an insult like “(Atticus) runnin’ a still” (86). Since Scout loves her dad and wants to defend him, it is hard for her to think why someone would want to make fun of him. So, when she hears this it is difficult for her to keep from fighting, like her father told her to do. Moreover when Scout sees Mr. Walter Cunningham talking to her dad she asks him many questions until he decides to leave with his mob. Since Scout did not realize the severity of the hatred of the mob she ran into, she talked to them with courtesy and made them rethink lynching Atticus’s client Tom Robinson. Even though all she did was ask Walter how his son was and how his legal affairs were going, Scout’s words hit close to home. Through innocent diction and remembering to mind her father, Scout unknowingly helps her father and ends up learning more ...

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...e she recognizes “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.” (321). Scout finally comes to the conclusion that Boo Radley did not want to be bothered and it was rude of her and her companions to bother him. Scout understands how she was making a timid man very frightened and she feels empathetic. By being understanding of others Scout starts thinking and acting more like an adult.

We understand that by simple methods like looking up for guidance Scout blossoms into a mature young woman. In doing so, we have also realized that Scout Finch gained much of her wisdom from the teachings of the people around her and observing the world for herself. We can therefore say that Scout has found the meaning of equality and what is right and wrong, like protecting the harmless.