Throughout To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the novel is based on stories and events of Harper Lee growing up as a young girl. Based on her own adventurous days of childhood, Harper Lee fictionalizes similar sequences in her novel through a character named Scout, who plays an important role in the book. The novel is based on Harper Lee’s early life as she is growing up, displaying the message of injustice that constantly occurs throughout the book. During Harper Lee’s life as she was maturing she observed The Great Depression, Scottsboro case, and the Civil Rights movement that were occuring during her time. Her books were published after all these events which shaped the theme of her novel. (Chronology) The themes of innocence and injustice are explored through the experiences of Boo Radley and Tom Robinson who are protected by Atticus. Throughout the book innocent victims are wrongly accused and targeted. Starting out in the novel Harper Lee writes about the children who play around each summer with the Boo Radley game.It is a game the kids play each summer, and thier mission is to make Boo Radley come out of his house. Boo Radley is isolated from society because the people of Maycomb believe he is a maniac. Harper Lee writes,” Boo Radley was inside that house, but I couldn’t prove it, and felt it best to keep my mouth shut or I would be accused of believing in Hot Steams,phenomena I was immune to in the daytime.” (39) Jem, Scout and Dill do not know what to expect from Boo Radley, they are not very aware of their surroundings because they are naive and try to please the curiosity of their young minds.They make up absurd accusations about him and do not acknowledge the fact that he is just a human being. In reality, he is ... ... middle of paper ... ...f Tom. But, at the end Tom dies while trying to escape prison. Injustice and innocence are two major themes that define the novel and the importance of it. Both, Tom Robinson and Boo Radley are men who did not receive any fairness by the people of Maycomb, despite the fact that they were righteous men. Harper Lee is an intelligent woman who constructed her novel in a way that broke things up and explained the ideas on injustice and innocence. Harper Lee does not reveal much about her book because she keeps to herself and does not often grant interviews. The novel is parallel to her life which is explored through the characters with their experiences that were similar to the ones of Harper Lee and her friends. (Harper Lee: A Brief Biography) This heart touching story is a great story that displays morality, and shows unjustness full by the corrupted people of Maycomb.
To Kill a Mockingbird is a classic novel written by Harper Lee. The novel is set in the depths of the Great Depression. A lawyer named Atticus Finch is called to defend a black man named Tom Robinson. The story is told from one of Atticus’s children, the mature Scout’s point of view. Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, the Finch Family faces many struggles and difficulties.
One way Harper Lee shows the theme of a loss of innocence is through Boo Radley, a town outcast who comes into the life of the Finch children and the gossip within the Maycomb folks. One way that Boo Radley’s innocence was victimized is when Atticus tells Scout, “Scout’ he said,’ Mr. Ewell fell on his knife. Can you possibly understand?” “Well it’d sort of be like shootin’ a mockingbird, wouldn’t it?” (Lee 370) This shows that Boo Radley is being blamed
In this book, Harper Lee clearly demonstrates the importance of not judging a book by its cover in the person of Boo Radley. Boo was a boy never seen outside his house ever since he was caught by the authorities involving himself in mischief. Rumors had been spread that he was locked in his house and chained to his bed by his overly religious family. Since people never really knew what Boo looked like, Jem made up his own theory. “Boo was six-and-a-half feet tall judging from his tracks; he dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, that’s why his hands were bloodstained – if you ate an animal raw you could never wash the blood off. There was a long jagged scar that ran across his face…” (13). Although nobody really knew Boo, he was blamed for everything that went wrong in the town. As the story goes on Boo starts to secretly involve himself in Jem and Scout’s lives. He does things like putting a blanket on Scout’s shoulders during a fire at Miss. Maudie’s house. “You were so busy looking at the fire; you didn’t know it when he put the blanket around you.
Sometimes, people discriminate one thing, but strongly oppose the discrimination of another thing. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, this issue is very much expressed throughout the story. This thought-provoking story takes place in Maycomb, Alabama during a time when there’s a rape trial against a falsely accused African American named Tom Robinson. There is also a discrimination, of sorts, towards a man named Boo Radley, by three young children named Jeremy “Jem” Finch, Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, and Charles “Dill” Baker Harris. Both Boo Radley and Tom Robinson are similar in their own ways through their inherent goodness.
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, is a courageous tale of leadership and gallantry. This book voices the story of a young girl, Scout, and the town of Maycomb. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird there are numerous quotes to which you should bring to your attention. By far, the most important quote describes what Boo Radley experienced all those years he was locked away in his house, “A boy trotted down the sidewalk dragging a fishing pole beside him. A man stood waiting with his hands on his hips. Summertime, and his children played in the front yard with their friend, enacting a strange drama of their own invention.…. Fall, and his children trotted to and fro around the corner, the day’s woes and triumphs on their faces. They stopped at an oak tree, delighted, puzzled, and apprehensive. Winter, and his children shivered at the front gate, silhouetted against a blazing house…. Summer, and he watched his children’s heart break. Autumn again, and Boo’s children needed him. 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” (Lee 236-237). All those years he has watched as Scout and Jem grew up. All those years he imagined they were his own. Characterization is significant for the reason that Scout realized Boo Radley isn’t the irrational murderer, he is portrayed to be; he is pleasant and generally cares for the children.
To Kill A Mockingbird is a heroic tale of leadership and courage during racial times. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Atticus, To, Jem and Scout are unfortunately exposed to a really racist and prejudice society and town. Which ends up causing them to lose a case and really confuse Jem and Scout when they are young. In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill A Mockingbird it uses characterization to help show a theme which is loss of innocence when people are exposed to surprising and unfair situations.
To Kill A Mockingbird is a courageous tale of leadership and bravery to others. From Atticus helping Tom, to Boo trying to communicate with the kids. Harper Lee used real-life events as inspirations for her novel To Kill A Mockingbird. There are connections to Jim Crow Laws, mob mentality, and issues of racism in that time period.
Throughout the novel Harper Lee explores the racism, prejudice, and the innocence that occurs throughout the book. She shows these themes through her strong use of symbolism throughout the story. Even though To Kill a Mockingbird was written in the 1960’s, the powerful symbolism this book contributes to our society is tremendous. This attribute is racist (Smykowski). To Kill a Mockingbird reveals a story about Scout’s childhood growing up with her father and brother, in an accustomed southern town that believed heavily in ethnological morals (Shackelford).
Boo Radley is the next door neighbor of the Finch’s. He is an outsider of the community, because he does not leave the house. He got in some trouble as a teenager, so his father locked him up inside the house. After his father died, his brother moved in with him. While Boo was locked up inside is house, the people of Maycomb County made up stories about him. The legend of Boo Radley was well-known to the people of Maycomb. Jem describes Boo, “Boo was about six-and-a-half feet tall, judging from his tracks; he dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, that’s why his hands were bloodstained—if you ate an animal raw, you could never wash the blood off. There was a long jagged scar that ran across his face; what teeth he had were yellow and rotten; his eyes popped, and he drooled most of the time.” (Lee ). Boo is an innocent character because all he does stay inside his own house, and does not bother anybody. Yet the entire town believes that he could be a murderer. Harper Lee is showing that if you do not fit into southern society, they will make you into an outsider and a bad legend. Another example of Boo Radley being an innocent character is when he gives a blanket to Scout. Miss Maudie Atkinson, one of the Finch’s neighbors, had a house fire. Atticus (Scout and Jem’s father) woke up the kids and made them go outside, in case the fire spread to their house. While Scout was not looking someone gave her a blanket, “‘Someday, maybe, Scout can thank him for covering her up.’ ‘Thank who?’ I asked. ‘Boo Radley. You were so busy looking at the fire you didn’t know it when he put the blanket around you.’”(Lee ). Boo Radley is an innocent character because he helped warm up Scout in the cold, yet Scout was still scared that Boo had been near here. Harper Lee is showing us that Boo could do a nice thing, and yet Scout would still be scared because of his reputation. Finally, another
The manner in which they are incorporated into the story add a lifelike effect that is not there otherwise. These are, of course, not the only themes; Harper Lee uses many different ones to emotionally connect to the readers. This novel is a timeless coming of age tale of little Scout Finch, who simply wishes to have fun and find adventure in Maycomb County. It will be read and analyzed by decorated scholars and young students alike for centuries to come. It has influenced politics, civil rights movements, and so many other things. It is truly one of the greatest literary works of all
To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel written by a beloved author, Harper Lee. Despite dealing with serious issues of rape and racial inequality, this novel is renowned for its moral in the value of friendship and family. Lee writes about a young girl, Jean Louise Finch, who is also acknowledged as Scout. Scout grows up in the small fictional town of Maycomb County in the 1930s. She lives with her older brother Jem, their housekeeper Calpurnia, and her widowed father who is an attorney that is faithful to racial equality and later on defends Tom Robinson, a black man charged with raping a white woman. Scout has a basic faith in her community that they are good people but then throughout the novel especially during Tom Robinson's case her faith is tried-and-trued by the hatred and prejudice that looms in the hearts of the people in her community and her perception of the world is changed forever.
The book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, which is one of the best books, is filled with incredible connections and fantastic foreshadowing. Once you pick up this book, you will need the key of being able to dissect the book in order to unlock its full potential. Through the three-and-a-half year-long journey that is To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee takes Jeremy Atticus Finch and Jean Louise Finch through a never-ending pile of events. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is about Jem and Scout Finch and their childhood in Maycomb, Alabama. Their lives consist of a never-ending-chain-of-events, many interesting and unique people, and life’s lessons that give Jem, Scout, and Atticus a fresh view of the world. Not many people have actually seen and experienced Tom Robinson and Arthur “Boo” Radley, and this leads to incorrect thoughts about each character. Tom and Boo have a lot of good in them. They are both like Mockingbirds because they are both innocent humans harmed by the evil of mankind. In Harper Lee’s novel, both Boo Radley and Tom Robinson are innocent characters, but Boo’s kindness is hidden by rumors and Tom’s generosity is hidden by stereotypes.
The book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a Pulitzer Prize winning novel. It is set in the 1930s, a time when racism was very prominent. Harper Lee emphasizes the themes of prejudice and tolerance in her novel through the use of her characters and their interactions within the Maycomb community. The narrator of the story, Scout, comes across many people and situations with prejudice and tolerance, as her father defends a black man.
Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird: The Significance of a Mockingbird In a society surrounded by corruption, racism, and cruelty it is rare to find purity. Innocence is constantly being destroyed. For this reason, the harmless citizens need to be treasured and protected. Harper Lee’s classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird portrays the injustices of the 1930’s that expose the innocent to the malice of the society’s intentions. Some characters in the novel are characterized as harmless and pure and are symbolized by mockingbirds.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is an amazing book. This book takes place during the Great Depression in Maycomb County, Alabama. This book describes the wild and unforgettable story of Jean Louise Finch, the protagonist and narrator, who is in the book is called Scout Finch. Scout is a stubborn tomboy who is very intelligent and has an early head start at school, and not only knows how to read in first grade, but has developed a great fondness of reading. She does not like to cause waves, but she enjoys playing with her brother, Jem, climbing trees, and other unladylike games. One antagonist in To Kill a Mockingbird is Bob Ewell. He, a Caucasian man, brought a case against a black man and falsely accused him of raping Bob’s daughter.