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In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, a young girl named Scout is shown to overcome her age and mature throughout the scenarios of the story; two important ones being Scout’s awareness for Boo Radley and the Tom Robinson trial . In addition, I have greatly changed this year by realizing how precious and stunning life is through volunteering at a hospital and seeing more unfortunate people. To begin, Scout greatly matures through her interactions with and curiosity of Boo Radley. In the beginning of the story, Scout is just an inquiring child in Maycomb County who fears the mystery of Boo Radley. Rather than seeing him for herself, Scout chooses to believe the stories that have longed her neighborhood for years. At the start of …show more content…
the book, Scout says ¨every scratch of feet on gravel was Boo Radley seeking revenge, every passing Negro laughing in the night was Boo Radley loose and after us¨ (5). Despite Scout never seeing Boo Radley, she somehow has a visual interpretation of him in her childish mind, because she chooses to listen to what others have to say. Jem and Scout both describe Boo as a "malevolent phantom,¨ giving him no chance to prove who he really is (8). During a different scene in the book, Atticus tells Scout ¨You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view--until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it¨ (30). At the time, Atticus´s wise words do not phase Scout, but as she grows throughout the story, she later understands what Atticus once told her. It isn’t until the end of the novel that Lee shows us how much Scout has changed; she stops bothering Boo, and when Boo saves her life, she realizes that he is not the “monster” that everyone described him as. After Scout’s encounter with Boo, she refers back to Atticus’s wise words and acknowledges all the unnecessary rumors that brought pain to Boo. “Just standing on the Radley porch was enough” for Scout to piece together her father’s advice and view Boo differently. Scout realizes that he’s only a lonely person who is constantly viewed down upon because of his choice to stay silent. This teaches Scout to never judge a person; she matures and learned valued lessons from Boo Radley. Secondly, Scout shows herself changing for the better throughout the Tom Robinson case, which molds her into a new and considerate young lady.
In the beginning of the case, Scout gets in fights for no apparent reason; it is a childish actions to portray herself - a child. During the Tom Robinson case, Cecil Jacobs “announced in the schoolyard [before] that Scout Finch’s daddy defended n******” (). As a young girl, Scout did not know what these harsh words meant, but she knew they weren't right. When he first said them, Scout’s first thoughts were to fight him, but Atticus had told her before that he did not want her fighting anyone. When Atticus talks to her about the situation and why Cecil said that, Scout asks him why he took the case, and he says ¨Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win¨ (76). From this, we can see that Atticus is trying to be the bigger person and help someone in need; he is providing an example for his children and showing them to stand up when they know something’s not right. After the talk between Scout and Atticus, Scout no longer fights people when they make rude remarks. She continues to have the urge to, but she forces to keep her fists clenched and her heart open. She shows herself growing; being a child is now only a label to …show more content…
her. Lastly, I have grown as a person this past year through learning to put others before myself and to always be appreciative of what I have.
In particular, I started volunteering in a hospital this year, and it has opened my eyes, showing me how fast life can be taken from you. It has taught me to cherish every moment and to stay positive. Now, no matter what I’m going through, I am always thankful that I’m not in the hospital; I am still healthy and alive, and I am very much grateful for that. In addition, visiting my grandparents who live in Compton has changed my views on how to go through my day. Being in such a scary and unsafe environment, seeing hundreds of homeless and hungry people, and hearing gunshots has woken me up. Seeing people live in poverty and the little kids who call that their home breaks my heart. It has taught me to be grateful for everything and to not take things for granted. It has shown me how blessed I am to live in such a safe neighborhood, go to a good school, and be surrounded by a loving family and wonderful friends. There are so many kids who can’t say that, and after this year, I realize how many people have to go through hard things like those at such a young
age. In conclusion, To Kill a Mockingbird is a heartwarming story that portrays how young children, like Scout, can gradually mature through the experiences they face and the people who surround them. Scout greatly changes through learning more about Boo Radley and being present during the entire process of Tom Robinson’s journey of the trial.
At the beginning of the book, Scout was not a nice child. She had hard times controlling herself, and usually she was not able to. She knew Atticus wouldn't like it if he heard of her fighting, but still she fought a lot, like the time she got angry to Cecil Jacobs and fought him (pg. 99). She was also mean and rude, which can easily be seen as she got angry and protested it when Walter poured syrup all over his dinner (pg. 32). As she was young, she also was not able to look at things from other people's perspective. This could easily be seen in her first day of school, as she only saw things from her point of view, never caring about her teacher's perspective (pg. 26). Her youth also ...
As people grow in life, they mature and change. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Scout, the main character, matures as the book continues. Slowly but surely, Scout learns to control her explosive temper, to refrain from fistfights, and to respect Calpurnia, their maid, and to really learn her value to the family. Scout simply changes because she matures, and she also changes because Atticus, her father, asks her to. In the early chapters of the book, Scout picks fights at the slightest provocation.
The quote by Zora Neale Hurston, “There are years that ask questions and years that answer,” shows that coming of age is a tricky project that takes time and effort. In Harper Lee’s book To Kill a Mockingbird, she writes about Scout Finch, the narrator, reflecting on her past and the challenges she went through in her hometown, Maycomb, with her brother Jem and childhood friend Dill.. Harper Lee uses the young characters in the novel to show experiences, their role models, and conflict help shape a person from child to adult.
How does a child's views of the world affect their future maturity? In To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout, a seven year old girl, grows up in a very troubled time, with large amounts of segregation between white people and people of color. So, when Scout’s father defends a black man falsely accused of rape charges; events start unfolding making her life go in a completely different direction than she expected. We see how she handles these mature topics around her as she is morphing from childhood to maturity. More importantly, Scout’s innocent views on reality start helping her understand events from the novel more clearly.
Scout's reaction is quite unique. She is a combination of Atticus and Dolphus. Scout is a mixture of both of them because Atticus would never get in a fist fight, and Dolphus would never talk about what he did and what he should have done afterwards, but Atticus always does. Scout is faced with a lot of trouble in and out of school involving the trial. Almost all of her fights start with someone calling Atticus a n*****-lover. Scout gets in a fight with her cousin, Francis, because he says Atticus is a n*****-lover: "Francis looked at me carefully, concluded that I had been sufficiently subdued, and crooned softly, 'N*****-lover...' This time I split my knuckle to the bone on his front teeth" (Lee 96). If Atticus would of been in that situation, he would of talked to Francis about what that really means, and why he is defending Tom. Whereas if Scout is replaced with Dolphus, the scene would not be much different. One of the main things that makes Scout and Atticus alike is that they both can reflect afterwards on what should have happened and apply it to the next situation. This is effective because throughout the rest of the book Scout's fight rate goes down. After her fight with Francis, Uncle Jack tries to talk to her, but Scout is used to Atticus' method: "'Well, in first place you never stopped to gimme a chance to tell you my side of it- you just lit right into me. When Jem an' I fuss Atticus doesn't ever just listen
When Scout goes to the courtroom to hear Atticus speak and fight for Tom’s freedom, she realizes that Atticus is trying his hardest to defend an innocent man. Finally, Scout grows through her interest in school by learning about Hitler and the horrible historical events that have happened in the world. Her maturity is expressed by what she has learned about the world around her and can apply those things to her everyday life. Moreover, Scout has matured greatly in the novel and she has learned many lessons about life, family, and womanhood.
The narrator of the story, Scout Finch, is a curious young girl who is surprisingly mature for her age. When her older brother Jem, and shared friend Dill go to the intriguing Radley house to deliver a note to Boo Radley, whom Macomb County hasn’t seen in 15 years, Scout is
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 that refusing to fight, although branded as cowardice, could serve a higher purpose.... ... middle of paper ...
Change is something everyone goes through in life, whether it is for the better, or for the worse. Change can be a result of one’s personal behavior, and other times it is from one’s surroundings. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee (1960), starts off with a young girl named Scout who is not your average lady. She wears breeches, and swears despite her young age. As Scout ages, her personality progresses and she starts to look through different perspectives, opening her eyes past Maycomb.This is only possible with the help of her family and her neighbors. She learns how to empathize with others, all the while dealing with struggles of her own. Scout’s young childhood atmosphere and role model’s make her depict on who she truly is, eventually
In conclusion, To Kill a Mockingbird is a book about growing up and taking other people into consideration. Scout Finch is the main example of this. She starts the novel as a naive, ill mannered, tomboy. By the last page, Scout has transformed into an understanding, empathetic, polite, young lady. There is not a specific age where a girl turns into a woman or where a boy turns into a man. Maturity is reached through experiences and how they are handled.
Scout is a really curious girl but she is often scared of what she is seeking to find. Scout is curious but scared of Boo Radley the reason being of all the rumors people are saying about him. “Through all the head-shaking, quelling of nausea and Jem yelling, I had heard another sound, so
Each and every person will go through a coming of age experience sometime in their life. Those experiences can come in different forms. But, each coming of age experience ends up shaping us to become a mature adult. In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee tells a coming of age story through Scout Finch, an aging girl’s point of view. Her brother, Jem Finch who experiences coming of age before Scout, realizes that being an adult was not what he hoped. Jem recognizes a different perspective of bravery from Mrs.Dubose, a vile, elderly woman’s perspective. In chapter 11, Harper Lee uses literary elements such as character, conflict, and setting to establish Jem’s new outlook on life.
It was not until Atticus had told Scout not to fight on his behalf, that Scout found the courage inside her to walk away. Her actions here show her respect for Atticus, and her dignity. She realizes now that fighting is not always the best way for her to solve her problems. Even after all the kids were calling her a coward, she had enough dignity to follow her father’s wishes and not fight.
Maturity is a coming of age when a person is growing emotionally and mentally. Maturity is gained by experiences and decision-making, thus learning from mistakes. This is evident in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Through characterization and symbolism Lee displays maturity.
Everyone goes through a gradual change from immaturity to maturity fueled by a multitude of hardships that they face all throughout their life and this is certainly the case when it comes to how Scout matures in the coming-of-age novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. A coming-of-age story is a genre of literature that focuses on the growth of a protagonist from youth to childhood. This exceptional coming-of-age novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, demonstrates how one of the main characters, Jean Louise Finch or ¨Scout¨ evolves from a naive child into a responsible and thoughtful adult. At the very beginning of the novel, Scout is introduced as an immature and a somewhat rude child.