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Examples of character analysis, 123 essays
Examples of character analysis, 123 essays
Examples of character analysis, 123 essays
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Christopher Pop
Mr. G Little
English 101
19 November 2015
Appearance vs. Reality in To Kill a Mockingbird
There are many people in the world who are judged by the way they look, dress, or act, resulting in a false or irrelevant opinion of that person. This is the case in To Kill a Mockingbird, where there are many characters who were judged incorrectly and misunderstood, characters who in reality, are completely different people compared to how society sees them. There are three main characters who were misjudged and misunderstood significantly more than the rest. These three characters are Arthur (Boo) Radley, Mrs. Dubose, and Tom Robinson. Arthur (Boo) Radley is a very important character in the novel, and is one of the most
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misjudged of them all. Everyone is scared of him and thinks of him as a scary man who creeps on people at night. Mrs. Dubose is an old lady who is known for being cranky and offensive, and Tom Robinson is seen as a scary, violent person, but is in fact a polite and genuine person. In the novel, all three of these characters are wrongly portrayed, and they are all in reality different from the way that society sees them. In the end though, the children, Jem and Scout, and the people of Maycomb county understand and see that Arthur, Mrs. Dubose, and Tom Robinson are in fact not the people that they thought they were. This is why there are many characters who were judged incorrectly and misunderstood in the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Arthur (Boo) Radley is one of these people. He is not the scary, violent person that the people of Maycomb county portray him as. Arthur is a man who lives in Maycomb county, that people rarely ever see, causing this false opinion of him. He is often portrayed as “shady” and “scary”. The children, Jem and Scout, were always afraid of him and would make sure to stay as far as possible from his residence due to these rumours. However, Arthur is not at all as described, and this is revealed near the end of the novel. The children, Jem and Scout, were attacked by Robert Ewell, and wouldn’t have made it if it wasn’t for Arthur, who came along and saved them. The following quotation shows how Jem and Scout pictured Arthur before he had saved them and revealed himself to the people of Maycomb county. “Inside the house lived a malevolent phantom. People said he existed, but Jem and I had never seen him. People said he went out at night when the moon was down, and peeped in windows. When people’s azaleas froze in a cold snap, it was because he had breathed on them. Any stealthy small crimes committed in Maycomb were his work.” (9). Here, Scout is explaining her and Jem’s understanding of Arthur. She claims that Arthur is a “malevolent phantom” who would go out at night and look inside of people’s windows. She also associates him with the small crimes that have been happening at Maycomb. It is clear as to why Arthur is being portrayed as a “scary” and “shady” person, but Scout even claims that she and Jem have never seen him, therefore, Jem and Scout should not be assuming that he is a bad person. However, this is not that case throughout the novel, because Jem and Scout slowly begin to realize that Arthur is in fact a kind and genuine person. The following quotation shows this. “It is a scary place though, ain’t it?” I said. “Boo doesn’t mean anybody any harm, but I’m right glad you’re along.” (258). In this section of the novel, Jem and Scout are outside at night on the last day of October. The children are walking past the “Radley Place”, and begin to talk about the Radleys. The quotation proves that the Radleys and their household is definitely portrayed in a bad way, given Scout calls it a “scary place”, however, Jem shows his understanding of prejudice and Appearance vs. Reality. Jem confirms that Boo, (Arthur), means no harm to anyone, and that is the reality about Arthur. Many people knew of Arthur, but fewer knew or thought about Mrs. Dubose. She was an old lady in her late nineties who was known to be “cranky” and “offensive”. She lived very close to the children, on the same street. Jem and Scout would often pass by her house, and usually be greeted with various insults. The children are not the only people who were insulted by the lady, but Atticus was as well. Little did the children know that Mrs. Dubose was in reality a very sick person, and was addicted to the popular pain-killer drug, “morphine”. The children later found out that this was the reason why Mrs. Dubose was always so violent. Mrs. Dubose was mostly always having a hard time talking with her neighbors when they came by. The following quotation proves this. “We could do nothing to please her. If I said as sunnily as I could, “Hey, Mrs. Dubose,” I would receive for an answer, “Don’t you say hey to me, you ugly girl! You say good afternoon, Mrs. Dubose!” (103). Here, Scout is explaining her vision of Mrs. Dubose, claiming that if she would say something nice like “Hey, Mrs Dubose”, she would receive an insult in return. This clearly shows why Mrs. Dubose was perceived as “cranky” and “offensive”, but this is not Mrs. Dubose acting in her true character. Mrs. Dubose ended up passing away, and that is when her true self was revealed to Jem and Scout. Atticus is talking to Jem and Scout about Mrs. Dubose’s death when he states “Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict,” said Atticus. “She took it as a pain-killer for years. The doctor put her on it. She’d have spent the rest of her life on it and died without so much agony, but she was too contrary—” (114). When Atticus is saying this, Jem still has this sort of “hate” towards Mrs. Dubose, and only now understands why she was acting in the way that she did. Atticus tells Jem and Scout that Mrs. Dubose was in fact addicted to morphine, and that this is what was causing her anger issues. The children now understand Mrs. Dubose’s true character and no longer see her as “cranky” and “offensive”. Tom Robinson is another character in To Kill a Mockingbird who was wrongly judged throughout the novel, just like Arthur and Mrs.
Dubose. Tom is a black man who was 25 years old, married and has three children. He was accused of rape, and sent to jail. Tom had supposedly raped a girl by the name of “Mayella Ewell”. Little did everyone know that Mayella was making up the whole story, to cover up the fact that she kissed a black man, which was not tolerated at the time. Tom appeared in the county court, and was clearly not guilty, judging by the things that he said, and the very little and irrelevant evidence that Mayella gave. Mayella’s father claims that Tom had beaten her, and specifically said that she had injuries around her neck and on her right eye, basically the right side of her body. This, however, doesn’t tie in with Tom Robinson’s characteristics. Tom has a crippled left arm, due to a childhood accident, and that arm in nearly useless to him. Therefore, if Tom had beaten Mayella, her left side would have been injured, not her right. The following proves that Tom’s left arm is indeed of no use. “His left arm was fully twelve inches shorter than his right, and hung dead at his side. It ended in a small shriveled hand, and from as far away as the balcony I could see that it was no use to him.” (188). Here, Scout is confirming that Tom is in fact innocent in the case, because of his left arm deformity. Tom would be unable to cause damage to the right side of Mayella’s body, proving that he is in fact innocent, and not the “violent” person that the people of Maycomb see him as. In reality, Tom was actually a very nice and helpful person. He would actually help Mayella complete her chores on a daily basis until the incident, and the following quotation proves this. “You did all this chopping and work from sheer goodness, boy?” “Tried to help her, I says.” Mr. Gilmer smiled grimly at the jury. “You’re a mighty good fellow, it seems— did all this for not one
penny?” “Yes, suh. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more’n the rest of ‘em—”. (201). Here, Tom is in court and he is explaining how he would help Mayella to do her chores to the lawyer. Tom claims that he would pass by Mayella’s house on a daily basis, and she would have something different for Tom to help her with every day. Tom was always happy and willing to help her, otherwise he wouldn’t have done it. This quotation proves that Tom is a kind, and honest person. He was clearly telling the truth, even though he was determined guilty in the end. He was determined guilty because Tom’s skin prevented the jury from accepting Tom’s story over Bob and Mayella’s story. Also, Mayella’s testimony gave no specifics regarding the supposed “rape” and was unable to prove that Tom had in fact raped her. This is why Tom Robinson was wrongly judged by the people of Maycomb county in To Kill a Mockingbird. There are clearly many characters who were misjudged and misunderstood in To Kill a Mockingbird, characters who in reality, are completely different compared to how society sees them, but why does this happen? Arthur (Boo) Radley is a so called “shady” person, but is in reality “kind” and “caring”. Mrs. Dubose was perceived as a “cranky” and “offensive” old lady, but was actually acting this way because of her addiction to drugs. Lastly, Tom Robinson is an innocent man who was accused of something that he did not do, leading to a false opinion of him, such as “scary” or “violent”. The reason this is happening is because we were taught this way as children, growing up. We believed as many say, “Seeing is believing”, which is not always the case. Arthur, Mrs. Dubose and Tom Robinson were all misjudged and misunderstood because of their outer appearance. They were all wrongly perceived in a negative way, because the children, and the people of Maycomb, took no time to closely examine the people, and the way they act on the inside, which is the reality of who they truly are. A good quotation to represent this is “Never judge a book by its cover”. Works Cited Lee, Harper. “To Kill a Mockingbird”. New York City: Warner Books Inc, 1982. Print.
Boo Radley is more subtle in showing how he represents the mockingbird, as he is more of a quiet, shy character. Boo was confined to his home but is still aware of the people around him. The children view him more as a superstition than a person in the beginning of the novel but Scout realizes just how good of a person Boo really is when he saves her and Jem from Mr. Ewell. Tom Robinson represented the killing of the mockingbird. He was looked down upon by most of the community but he was an innocent man who had no intention of harming anyone, yet he was still convicted of the crime and sentenced to
The race for Tom Robinson led to think he was guilty of a crime he didn't commit. Racism also led to Aunt Alexandra's harsh beliefs against Calpurnia. Boo Radley is seen as an outcast. He is characterized by stereotypes and rumors. People assume that he is a bad guy, because of a mistake he made in the past.
The novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, is an American classic, narrated by the young Scout Finch, the most engrossing character in the book. The novel is about the adventures of two siblings over the time of about three years. Jem and Jean Louise (Scout) Finch were two young siblings who one day met another young boy named Dill. Over time, Jem and Scout grow up under the careful watch of their father and friends, learning how to be adults. They play games, they sneak into a courthouse, and they learn a valuable life lesson. Scout was an intriguing character. As the narrator, you learn more about Scout’s feelings towards the events in the book and soon learn to love her. Let me introduce you to Scout Finch.
One of the storylines in the novel is the Robinson-Ewell trial. Tom Robinson is an innocent African-American, accused of raping Mayella Ewell, a lower-class white girl. At the trial hearing, everyone is able to tell his or her side of the story before Tom is allowed to speak. All stories, however, offer two different versions of Tom and Mayella’s relationship. Moreover, Mayella and Bob Ewell tell the jury what they expect to hear, about Tom being a monster. They explain that there was no reason for his actions against Mayella. According to them, along with the rest of Maycomb, it's just expected that a black man would rape any white woman if he had the opportunity. The Tom spoken of by the Ewells shows the stereotypes that justify whites to be superior to blacks. However, Tom tells the jury about his innocence. He pr...
You can't always judge a book by its cover or a person by their looks . Boo Radley is one character in To kill a Mockingbird that gets judged everyday because he is mysterious and stays in his house most of the time, but really he is not what people think he is. Boo Radley is much more than a mysterious quiet man, all he wants in this world is to find love and friendship. The bird that the story talks about is the mockingbird, the mockingbird is not just any kind of a bird. This certain kind of bird has gentle qualities, all they want to do is sing their hearts with their beautiful sound and bring happiness to this society. Boo Radley has some
One of the first lessons taught in Mockingbird is the power of understanding other people’s perspectives. Initially, Scout has trouble empathizing with other people, especially her first Grade Teacher, Miss Caroline, whom Scout becomes frustrated at for not understanding Maycomb’s complex social structure. After hearing his daughter complain, Atticus tells Scout that she'll “get along a lot better with all kinds of folks [if she] considers things from [their] point of view” (39). After ‘standing in the shoes of another person’, it is much harder to be prejudiced towards that person. Indeed, this may be because a key tenet of prejudice is disregarding the views of whoever is being judged. Nevertheless, it proves difficult for Scout to grasp this relatively simple concept, who begins to hear rumors of Boo Radley, an enigma who has not been seen outside his home for over 30 years. Thus begins Jem and Scout’s quest to make Boo Radley come outs...
The author George Elliot once said “don’t judge a book by its cover.” Appearance can be very misleading, and you shouldn't prejudge the worth or value of something by its outward appearance alone. This philosophical idea has been included in many works of literature, including the timeless classic To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee. The novel takes place in the town of Maycomb, Alabama during the 1930s. Many citizens of Maycomb tend to make judgements based on outward appearances alone. In the novel, Lee uses minor characters such as Boo Radley, Mrs. Dubose, and Tom Robinson to convey the book’s theme of prejudice.
The novel of To Kill a Mockingbird is set in the timeline and era of the 1930s which was synonymous for the renowned Great Depression. A tragedy in which social and economic change was urgently required yet old traditional beliefs and racial hierarchies including the Jim Crow laws were kept firm in position. These beliefs along with other aspects including behavior are clearly represented in the novel which leads the reader to infer that the time and setting of To Kill a Mockingbird is the 1930s. There are various methods and pieces of evidence that we draw upon that leads to the conclusion that the setting of the novel takes place in the
People from all over Maycomb filled the courthouse to see a negro fight against a white man's word. During the trial Lee has Atticus insinuate that Tom Robinson did not touch Mayella and it was her father who took advantage of her. During Mr. Ewell’s testimony Atticus asks him to write his name, when Mr. Ewell did so Atticus pointed out he was left handed. Earlier in Mr. Tate’s testimony it was proven Mayella’s injuries were on the right side of her body, “Oh yes, that’d make it her right. It was her right eye, she was bunged up on that side of her face” (Lee 170). Atticus, simply proving that “If her right eye was blacked and she was beaten mostly on the right side of the face, it would tend to show that a left - handed person did it” (Lee 180). It was confirmed that when Bob Ewell wrote his name he used his left hand, but there was still Tom who could till easily be left handed. When Tom Robinson was getting sworn in he had trouble getting his left hand on the bible and keeping it there “he guided his arm to the Bible and his rubber-like left hand sought contact with the black binding”, “as he raised his right hand, the useless one slipped off the Bible and hit the clerk’s table” (Lee 193). The validation in this section of the novel is that Tom Robinson was not left - handed, his left hand could not even function, he was crippled
In society, people are wrongly judged by false impressions, social status and race as well as other factors that influence the self-image of an individual. This is highly significant in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird through the characters of Arthur Radley and Tom Robinson who are innocent victims of prejudice by the people of Maycomb. The first character who represents the conception of misjudgment is Arthur Radley, who is misunderstood by others and dubbed as an intimidating person. Through the rumors being about him, it shows that he is an innocent victim because he just chooses not to associate with society, and people do not respect his way of life because it differs from theirs. The other character who represents this conception of misjudgment is Tom Robinson who is looked hatefully upon by the majority of Maycomb’s people. Through the events of his condemnation from the white community, this demonstrates Tom being as an innocent victim; his skin color defines his destiny in court. But truly, these innocent victims are kind people. The people of Maycomb are too judgmental, not understanding that Arthur Radley and Tom Robinson are truly good people; completely disregarding their real personality.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is an emblem of racial jurisdiction. All throughout the book it shows how the law applies to blacks as opposed to whites. Lee shows how unjust the treatment of blacks is and the disregard for their human rights. Though through the actions of the characters in the book; it can be said that their actions show a glimmer of hope for this very prejudiced society.
Thus, Atticus Finch, Tom Robinson, and Arthur “Boo” Radley are all victims of rumour, humiliation, and prejudice. Firstly, Atticus is humiliated by his family and his neighbourhood because he has stood up to an African American man, and then, is nicknamed “nigger-lover” for his decision. By strong evidence, Tom Robinson is proven innocent of rapping a young white woman, but is still convicted, and then shot to death because he is black. Finally, Arthur Radley is greatly misunderstood because of his mysterious background and is forced to isolate from society to escape the awful and untruthful rumours about him in Maycomb. Through the storytelling of Atticus Finch, Tom Robinson, and Arthur “Boo” Radley, the reader understands how the mockingbird symbol is used to represent those who are innocent, and have good intentions at heart.
First impressions of people are often lasting impressions, especially in the minds of children. Many times these impressions, aided by misunderstanding and prejudgment, cause unjust discrimination against an individual. To kill a Mockingbird depicts the themes of misunderstanding and prejudice that portray Arthur (Boo) Radley as a villain. Through the progressive revelation of Radley's character, the children realize that their negative impressions and fear of him were unfounded. Through gradual stages of change, from total misunderstanding of Boo, to a realization of an error in judgment, to a reevaluation followed by a change of heart, to a growing trust and acceptance of Boo, and finally to an appreciation of his true character, Jem's, Scout's, and Dill's impressions of Radley are dramatically altered.
Keeping a mouth shut doesn't hold the world shut out, it opens up new doors to things that would never be expected. In To Kill A Mockingbird written by Harper Lee, there is are two character that is are an eternal mystery for the readers. Boo Radley, though the reader nor Scout and Jem know anything about the character all they want is to learn about him. Boo becomes a mysterious figure that many see as creepy, ghostly, but also reasonably wise. The one-time Boo appears the readers learn he is a sagacious, powerful man. Little do Scout and Jem know is that their father is also a rational being as well. The two crucial character in the story helps support the
These injustices have begun long before Tom’s trial, but it is his trial which epitomizes the problems with our society. The first witness was simply just a misguided fellow named Heck Tate who it seems didn’t have much to offer to the case. Next, Atticus Finch called Bob Ewell to the stand. When I saw Ewell take the stand such a fierce hatred rose within me that I began to shake and tremble. Ewell wrongfully accused Tom of raping his daughter Mayella, however, with the grace of God, Atticus Finch had shown that it was very possible that it was Bob Ewell who because he was a lefty could have beat Mayella. If it were not for great men like Atticus Finch I would have lost all hope for this world. As I watched Mayella take the stand I wondered how such a kind looking person could be someone of such poor character. Her words seemed to paint a picture of a sad life; one where a father neglects her and she has fallen under hard times. Atticus, after pointing out it was probably Bob who beat her, asked Mayella who it really was that beat her. Mayella made it clear it was Tom Robinson, upon which Atticus asked Tom to stand. To the astonishment of the court Tom was handicapped! Tom was then called to the stand where he laid open for all to see the truth, explaining that it was Mayella who came on to him (that treacherous woman!). Soon enough the trial ended and every one awaited the verdict of the jury. The next few hours were the most nerve wracking of my life.