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Does ethics play a role in killing a mockingbird
Ethical lessons in killing a mockingbird
Ethical lessons in killing a mockingbird
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Throughout the classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Jem Finch’s impulsive character fuels his actions. For instance, Mrs. Dubose, a nosy old lady, one day insinuates something about his father’s work that crosses the line. Mrs. Dubose constantly pesters Jem and his younger sister, Scout, about their father’s decisions and how she believes they should behave. Atticus, their father, preaches that Jem needs to keep his head held high and act like a gentleman even if she provokes him. Despite his father’s advice, out of frustration, Jem uses Scout’s newly bought baton to cut the tops off all of Mrs. Dubose’s prized camellia bushes. Scout, in disbelief, watches as Jem “did not begin to calm down until he had cut the tops off every camellia bush Mrs. Dubose owned until the ground was littered with green buds and leaves. …show more content…
He bent my baton against his knee, snapped it in two and threw it down” (Lee 103).
After Jem ruins Mrs.Dubose’s yard, his anger has not quite dissipated so he takes it out on Scout by fighting her. Unable to tolerate Mrs.Dubose’s ignorant statements about someone he cares about, Jem instinctively lashes out, which exhibits his struggle with emotional control. Although Atticus lectures him multiple times to not let what she says get to him, his compulsive nature causes him to act inappropriately. Another case of Jem’s impulsive personality occurs late one night, when Jem notices that Atticus takes the car into town- an unusual behavior since Atticus always walks. Jem spontaneously acts out of curiosity and decides to follow his father, regardless of the danger and consequences that could possibly follow. When Scout hears Jem prepare to sneak out, she intervenes and exclaims, “‘It’s almost ten o’clock Jem.’ He knew it, but he was going anyway” (Lee 149). He disregards his common sense and leaves, fully aware that his plan could lead to disaster. Similar to the incident with Mrs. Dubose, his impulses result in a
catastrophe. Later, he finds his father and a mob outside of the jail and creates a fuss. Even after several warnings and threats from the dangerous men, Jem still refuses to leave. Any other rational person would wish to escape this situation, but Jem’s rash nature makes it challenging for him to walk away. These two examples demonstrate Jem’s impulsive behavior- a prominent trait that shapes the way he perceives and reacts to events throughout the entire novel.
Jem and Scouts’ father, Atticus, is very misjudged by their children. They believe that Atticus is a very semantic man that goes to work, comes back, and has no skill whatsoever in sports. Scout criticizes Atticus by saying “Atticus did not… or do anything that could possibly arouse the admiration of anyone”(118). This demonstrates that Jem and Scout are not satisfied with Atticus’s physical and amusing skills. They thought of him as an old man in his fifties that had no energy left, and had a routine of going to bed and reading in the living room instead of running around. Later, they visit there across the street neighbor, Mrs. Maudie to talk about how boring their Dad is, when Mrs. Maudie says” ‘Well, he can make everybody’s will so airtight can’t anybody meddle with him’… ‘Well, did you know he is the best checker-player in this town? Why down at the Landing when we were coming up, Atticus Finch could beat everybody on both sides of the river”(120). This establishes that they find out that their Dad isn’t so useless anymore. Even though the children find out all these activities he is excellent at, sometimes even the best, they are still not overly impressed. After Calpurnia calls the cops on the dog, Tim Johnson, The sheriff and Atticus arrive at the scene “ ‘Take him, Mr. Finch’. Mr. Tate handed the rifle to Attics; Jem and I nearly fainted…’’d you see him, Scout? ’d you see him just standing there?...’n’ all of a sudden he just relaxed all over, an’ it looked like that gun was a part of him’”(126-129).
Mrs. Dubose is a bitter, old lady that is extremely rude to Scout and Jem, yelling dirty thing at them everytime they pass by her house. Jem hatred for that woman was so short, that one day he grabbed Scout’s baton and lost his temper, Scout explains that “He did not begin to calm down until he had cut the tops off every camellia bush Mrs. Dubose owned…” (137). As a punishment for his sudden outrage, Mrs. Dubose asks that he read for her everyday and they learn things about her along the way. They described that “...From time to time she would open her mouth wide...cords of saliva would collect at her lips...Her mouth seemed to have private existence of its own” (143). Later on in the chapter, Atticus reveals that she was a morphine addict
When Atticus discovered what Jem had done, he was furious and punished him by making him go read to Mrs. Dubose everyday. He knew, though, in his heart that she had it coming. Atticus had told Scout that "when summer comes you'll have to keep your head about far worse things it's not fair for you and Jem, but
Jem’s perception of bravery has changed throughout the course of the book. His maturity is a result of Atticus’s actions around him. At the beginning of the book, Jem is dared by his neighbour Dill to touch the door of the Radley’s; the Radley house symbolizes fear in the minds of the children. Jem does so thinking the act is courageous while Scout remarks, “In all his life, Jem had never declined a dare.” This shows that like most children, Jem is often more idealistic than realistic. His reactions are instinctive and often unplanned and reckless.
In the novel, there is a quote about when Jem destroyed Mrs. Dubose’s camellias when Mrs. Dubose called Atticus Finch a n*****-lover. Jem was furious and thus destroyed her flowers, leading inevitably to his actions backfiring against him. In this quote, it shows Atticus returning home with the camellia buds clenched in his hand asking Jem why he pulled out her flowers, and Jem also has to go apologize and tell Atticus what punishment Mrs. Dubose gave him: “Atticus switched on the ceiling light in the living room and found us there, frozen still. He carried my baton in one hand; it's filthy yellow tassel trailed on the rug. He held out his other hand; it contained fat camellia buds. ‘Jem,’ he said, ‘are you responsible for this?’ ‘Yes sir.’ ‘Why’d you do it?’ Jem said softly, ‘She said you lawed for n****** and trash.’ ‘You did all this because she said that?’ Jem’s lips moved, but his, ‘Yes sir,’ was inaudible. . . . . . ‘I strongly advise you to have a talk with Mrs. Dubose,’ said Atticus, ‘Come straight home afterward’ . . . . . . When Jem returned, he found me still in Atticus’s lap. ‘Well, son?’ said Atticus. . . . . ‘I cleaned it up for her and said I was sorry, but I ain’t, and that I’d work on ‘em every
He also starts to think more about whats right instead of thinking what others will think about his decision. For ex amble when Dill is hiding under Scout‘s bed he calls in Atticus much to his friends dismay. Jem again shows maturity when Scout is beating Walter Cunningham and Jem stops it because he know that the Cunninghams don‘t have money and therefore he cant help it that he doesn‘t have lunchmoney. Jem understands that instead of fighting him they should treat him with respect and he asks Walter to come have lunch at their house.
On several occasions, Scout gets into a fight with people who make unpleasant comments about her father. Atticus continuously tells her that this is wrong and that she needs to learn to control her anger, “You might hear some ugly talk about it at school, but do one thing for me if you will: you just hold your head high and keep those fists down. No matter what anybody says to you, don’t you let ‘em get your goat. Try fighting with your head for a change” (Lee 101). The day after this discussion with Atticus, Scout is approached by a fellow student who had previously made a mean comment about her father. “I drew a bead on him, remembered what Atticus had said, then dropped my fists and walked away...it was the first time I ever walked away from a fight” (Lee 102). Although she struggles at first, Scout develops a higher level of maturity which allows her to control her temper and simply defend her father with her words, without being rude. Jem is also faced with these type of situations and struggles with his anger, for instance when he attacks Mrs. Dubose’s flowers. Atticus goes to great lengths to teach his children that in life, they must learn to stay calm and be kind to everyone, despite how cruel those people may be. Scout and Jem face several situations in which their control is tested, which leads them to “come of age”
Furthermore, in chapter eleven of To Kill a Mockingbird, Jem has to repent his wrongdoing by reading to Mrs. Dubose. Jem's moral obligation takes precedence over his failure, revealing that Jem is a strong character and allows himself to be punished. While being disciplined, he responds benevolently but with quite a bit of quiet resentment -- an idiosyncrasy that Jem carries wit...
Jems naïve views are soon corrupted as he goes through experiences like with Boo Radley, but Jem manages to grow in strength as he sheds his pure qualities and learns to have hope. Jem and Scouts childhood friend Dill represents another killing of a mockingbird, as his innocence is destroyed during his trial experience. Scouts childish views dissipates as she witnesses different events in her life, and she grows in experience and maturity as she encounters racial prejudice, making her learn how to maintain her pure conscience that Atticus has developed without losing hope or becoming cynical. Harper Lee’s novel explores human morality, as she weaves the path from childhood to a more adult perspective, illustrating the evils in a corrupt world how to understand them without losing
Jem has been doing a good job of protecting Jem from Mr. Ewell and other dangers but when they were chatting Jem really showed how much he cared about Scout’s feelings. After Mr. Ewell kept bragging about winning the trial against Tom Robinson. “Jem told me to not be afraid, Mr. Ewell was more hot gas than anything” (Lee 241). Scout was told by Jem to basically not fear Mr. Ewell. Even though Mr. Ewell told Atticus that he would get Atticus. Jem seemed pretty nice to start but something has changed within him. Jem told Scout not to fear Mr. Ewell but there is something else that Jem told Scout. “Jem also told me that if I breathed a word to Atticus, if in any way let Atticus know I knew, Jem would personally never speak to me again” (Lee 241). Jem told Scout not to tell Atticus that she knew about what Mr. Ewell said about there being one down and about two more to go.. Jem was very confusing at this time because he went from being kind to Scout and telling her not to fear. Then he basically turned to the dark side and said if Scout knew about what Mr. Ewell said, Jem would never speak to Scout
Although Atticus would play keep away in football, he wouldn’t allow Jem to tackle him. Jem felt that his dad should allow him to tackle him, but Atticus responded with the statement that he was too old. "Jem was football crazy. Atticus was never too tired to play keep-away, but when Jem wanted to tackle him, Atticus would say, I 'm too old for that, son."(pg.118). As the story progresses, they begin to see their dad in a different view. After Atticus shoots the rabid dog, Scout and Jem starts to respect and admiration for him increased dramatically. They gain a new respect for him as the novel closes. Both Jem and Scout realize what a great man Atticus is. They realize that he is a good person who works hard to defend Tom Robinson and overall on his job as well. They soon have a great amount of respect for their father when he was defending Tom Robinson. He sets a good example and cares about his
Jem Finch demonstrates growing maturity throughout the novel. After Tom Robinson’s trial, Scout reveals Jem’s feelings. “It was Jem’s turn to cry.” Scout uncovers, “His face was streaked with angry tears as we made our way through the cheerful crowd,” (TKAM 284). Jem understands the trial is not fair because of race. He is mature enough to realize this while Scout is not. Another example of Jem’s maturity is exemplified when he is fulfilling his obligation to read to Mrs. Dubose. Scout describes, “ ‘So you brought that dirty little sister of yours did you?’ was her greeting… ‘My sister ain’t dirty and I ain’t scared of you’, although I noticed his knees shaking,” (TKAM 141). Rather than Jem replying to Mrs. Dubose with an insult, he dismisses her comment. Furthermore, this showcases his patience and tolerance, which comes with maturity. Finally, Jem validates his maturity when the Finch children find Dill under Scout’s bed. “You oughta let your mother know where you are.” announced Jem, “You oughta let her know you are here…”(TKAM 187). At this point Jem knows the right way to handle this situation is to let an adult know where Dill is. Even though Scout believes she can keep him under her bed forever, Jem recognizes the reality. When Jem’s maturity is put to the test he demonstrates good judgment and decision-making.
Although Atticus was not always upfront and obvious with his lessons, he has taught Jem and Scout many valuable life teachings throughout To Kill a Mockingbird. The first lesson he has taught Jem and Scout is the what real courage looks like. After Jem loses his head and destroys Mrs. Dubose’s camellias he is told to go to Mrs. Dubose’s house everyday and read to her for a few hours everyday for a month. Jem ends up actually reading to her for more than a month, which makes him a bit angry. Eventually his job of reading to her is over, and he goes back to his normal schedule. One day Atticus is called to the Dubose house and it is revealed that Mrs. Dubose has died. Atticus is telling his children just how brave Mrs. Dubose was, and that she
Aforementioned, Jem changes his views in the world as he begins to understand there is depravity and hopes for some morality in the world. The reader is able to see the process of Jem’s maturation and the characteristics he acquires during the progression of the plot. Toward the culmination of the trial, Jem starts to cry. Scout says, “It was Jem’s turn to cry. His face was streaked with angry tears as we made our way towards the cheerful crowd.” (Lee 284). Lee’s use of connotation emphasizes Jem’s anguish at the lost trial. Words like “angry” juxtapose “cheerful”. Angry expresses deep annoyance and displeasure which the reader is able to notice with Scout describing Jem’s actions. Jem realizes that the town villainy has prevailed and weeps at the loss of his hope in Maycomb. Previously, Jem was excited at the prospect of winning. Jem urged Scout, “we’re gonna win...He made it plain and easy as...You could’ve understood it, even”(Lee 270). Jem seemingly believes that Maycomb, an outright racist town, will internalize Atticus’s liberal words and rule in favor of the truth and not prejudice. While some may argue this is naivete, Jem demonstrates a childlike hope that the world does not contain overwhelming hate and injustice. On the other hand, Scout’s character is oblivious to her surroundings. She fails to realize topics that Jem doesn’t explain. For example, “Hey, Mr. Cunningham. How's your
At first, Jem takes part in the Boo Radley game, unaware of the harm he may be doing to people in the Radley house who can hear the children make fun of Boo. Atticus catches Jem once and says "'So that's what you were doing, wasn't it?' 'Makin' fun of him?' 'No," said Atticus, "Putting his life's history on display for the edification of the neighborhood.' Jem seemed to swell a little. 'I didn't say we were doin' that, I didn't say it!' Atticus grinned dryly. 'You just told me,' he said. 'You stop this nonsense right now, every one of you.'" (49). He also chops down Mrs. Dubose's roses. Mrs. Dubose was a rather cranky and offensive old woman who lived nearby. She spoke out harshly against Atticus, and in a fit of rage, Jem attacked her flower bed. As punishment, he had to read to her every day after school. Unknowingly, Jem was