To Kill A Mockingbird Critical Language Essay

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Recommended: Role of literature in education

In addition to providing students with the necessary skills required to enter the workforce, educational institutions also have the responsibility of equipping students with adequate social skills so that they can function effectively in society and contribute towards social change. The study of literature helps to achieve these goals, by creating critical language users, promoting empathy, and generating awareness towards social issues. It would therefore, be exceedingly advantageous for senior English students if Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird is included in the English Curriculum, as it possesses these qualities and addresses issues still relevant to senior students today. A thorough understanding of the novel’s aesthetic features, …show more content…

Additionally, a survey by the Australian Industry Group, carried out as part of their National Workforce Literacy Project in 2010 found that more that 75% of employers reported that their business was affected by low levels of literacy and numeracy. For grade twelve students, who will soon be entering the workforce, the possession of critical language skills will make them much more attractive to prospective employers and therefore, to the student’s …show more content…

A 2012 study conducted by researchers at the University of California revealed that adolescents undergo major expansions in cognitive growth. Assistant professor of psychology, Jennifer Pfeifer, explained that “brain regions that support social cognition, which helps us understand and interact with others successfully, continue to change dramatically during adolescence”. Research strongly suggests that people who develop affective and cognitive empathy form healthy relationships, and function more effectively in the workplace. Therefore, it is of great importance that senior students are encouraged to empathise with others during a time of crucial moral development, that will ultimately determine their success as participants of society, and To Kill a Mockingbird has the ability to provide this

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    The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is set in Alabama in the 1930s, and concerns itself primarily with the interrelated themes of prejudice and empathy. These themes are explored as the story follows Scout Finch as she learns lessons in empathy, ultimately rejecting prejudice. While all characters in Lee’s novel learn from their experiences, not all are able to grow in the same manner as Scout. The idea of a positive role model, typified by the character of Atticus Finch, and the ramifications of its absence, is a concept that Lee places much emphasis on. The isolated setting is also pivotal in the development of characters. Lee uses the contrast between characters that learn lessons in empathy and compassion, and characters that cling to the ideals of a small town, to explore factors that nurture or diminish prejudice.

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  • To Kill A Mockingbird Should Not Be Taught In Schools

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    Some people think that harper lee’s to kill a mockingbird should not be taught in schools for example malcolm gladwell a journalist says he wishes that the author had made finch(referring to atticus) a man sufficiently outraged by racial injustice to seek systemic change, rather

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  • To Kill A Mockingbird Rhetorical Analysis

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    What does it mean to be a good parent? The most common definition of a good parent is one who makes their children feel valued and loved, by teaching them the difference between right and wrong. At the end of the day, the most essential thing is to create a nurturing environment where your children feel like they can mature into confident, independent, and caring adults. Harper Lee’s novel To Kill A Mockingbird defines what a true parent really is thought hardships and struggles throughout the book. The story is set in the Depression era of a little town in southern Alabama that is struggling with thick prejudice on a colored rape case. The story is told through a character

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  • Teaching To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee

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    To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel written by Harper lee in 1960. The novel tells the story of Atticus Finch, a white lawyer, and Tom Robinson, a black servant, accused of raping a white female. Finch defends Robinson in court arguing lack of evidence as his main point. However, the judge and jury still believe the woman’s testimony and orders Robinson to be killed. The novel has been praised for its outstanding literature since its publication. However, it remains a banned book by the American Library Association for its use of racial slurs and profanity. Due to it being banned, many high schools have reconsidered the notion of teaching it to their students. Two prominent authors wrote articles pertaining to this piece of literature: Angela Shaw-Thornburg wrote an article on her re-reading of the novel and her opinions on it; while Malcom Gladwell wrote an article comparing Atticus Finch to a state governor liberalist, James Folsom, and the restraints of liberalism in the south. In addition, Rebecca Best contributes her thought on how the novel should be taught by introducing the idea of “the other.” Regardless of the modern day political arguments surrounding this piece of literature, this novel contains a large insight into the time period of the 1960s which is an influential topic that should be taught to young high school students.

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  • I Know Why The Caged Bird Cannot Read Analysis

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    In literature, schools often teach students the morals of a book rather than actual knowledge that they should acquire in the classroom such as literary devices or sentence structure. In Francine Prose’s, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Cannot Read,” she discusses how teaching students to only focus on the moral of a book instead of the many different literary elements it contains, effects their passion for reading. “A friend’s daughter’s English teacher informed a group of parents that the only reason to study Huckleberry Finn was to decide whether it was a racist text.” (94) This acknowledges that schools do not focus on important aspects of the books. The main point that Prose forms in her essay is that students are no longer required to read a piece of literature in depth, they only have to read to identify and learn the moral, when

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  • To Kill A Mockingbird Diction Analysis

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    Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee vividly illustrates two sides of humans. These two sides are their dark side, as well as the highlights, and all that is good, and noble. Harper Lee uses a sort of diction to explain this very clearly. She also clearly uses motifs to her advantage to show this. In To Kill a Mockingbird, this is clearly shown time and time again.

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    Now with over 15 million copies in print translated into forty languages, “To Kill a Mockingbird” is highly regarded as a masterpiece of American literature. It stands strong beside bestsellers such as “The Joy Luck Club,” “The Catcher in the Rye,” and “Huckleberry Finn.” But what, one may ask, are the similarities between these chartbusters?

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  • To Kill A Mockingbird Essay: Southern Tradition Exposed

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    Southerners are known to be proud of their traditional beliefs. To Kill A Mockingbird allows its readers to question and consider those beliefs. Maycomb represents a typical old southern town. Not many people move into Maycomb and not many people who live there journey beyond its boundaries. As a result, the opinions held by many of the citizens of Maycomb are left to grow and foster in the same families for many generations. The circumstances in Maycomb are less than ideal for generating change and more prone to sustaining traditionally accepted codes. Two codes embedded within southern social beliefs are class and race.

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  • To Kill A Mockingbird Essay: Parallels and Differences

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    Jill McCorkle's Ferris Beach, a contemporary novel, shares numerous characteristics with Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird, a novel written in the 1960's. Like To Kill a Mockingbird, McCorkle's novel documents the life of a young girl in a small southern town. The two narrators, Kate Burns and Scout Finch, endure difficult encounters. A study of these main characters reveals the parallels and differences of the two novels. Jill McCorkle duplicates character similarities and rape from Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird to show the reader how young girls think and develop.

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  • To Kill A Mockingbird: A Dialectical Journal Entry

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    Entry 1: I feel as though the Lord only caters to white people. I’m really shaking and I just keep shaking but I am staying strong. There was an empty cell between me and all of the other prisoners. Ms. Emma came to see me but I was quiet and just starring at the ceiling. I didn’t care about anything, nothing mattered to me. I am going to die soon anyway so what’s the point. (“What it go’n feel like”(pg. 225).

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  • To Kill A Mockingbird Rhetorical Analysis

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    Imagine a trial where the evidence presents an obvious verdict, but the verdict ends up being based on racial discrimination. In the case of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, a black man, by the name of Tom Robinson, is accused of raping a white woman, Mayella Ewell. Atticus, Tom’s lawyer, presents solid evidence like the physical inability for Tom to rape Mayella, the contradicting witness’ testimonies, and a reminder to the jury that in America, Tom has the right to a fair and equal trial despite his race. Atticus used all of these persuasive techniques and other rhetorical strategies to present an obvious answer to the case.

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  • To Kill A Mockingbird Figurative Language Analysis

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    Harper Lee uses figurative language to intensify the mood of terror and suspense as Jem trespassed on the Radley property.

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  • To Kill A Mockingbird Rhetorical Analysis Essay

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    Harper Lee established the theme in the beginning of the novel to connect the lesson to more complicated events. Atticus Finch told Scout, his daughter, the theme as a simple lesson resulting from experiencing the new and different views of people attending her school. In school, Scout was dissuaded in advancing her reading skills by her teacher. As Scout discovered the struggle of having different perspectives imposed on her, Atticus lectured her on how to overcome the teacher’s prejudice, and how to counteract its effects;

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  • To Kill A Mockingbird Rhetorical Analysis

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    Multitudinous amounts of people, like small groups of ants within a colony gathered in many different cities in the United States. According to a New York Times article, fervent protests broke out in many urban areas such as, “New York, Boston, Chicago, Pittsburgh and Washington D.C” (Southall). A result of the outrageous outcome of the case that released a white police officer, Daniel Pantaleo, who choked a black man to death, Eric Garner, despite his innocence and desperate gasps of plea and aid was immense passion towards this course of action. In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee the myopic views of the people of Maycomb act as a concrete wall so solidified that it is almost impossible for Atticus a humble yet

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  • Literature Adds To Reality

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    “Literature adds to reality, it does not simply describe it. It enriches the necessary competencies that daily life requires and provides; and in this respect, it irrigates the deserts that our lives have already become,” said C.S. Lewis, noted author. This quote, to me, is the most appropriate description of the importance of literature in our lives. Literature reminds us of stories, epics, sacred scriptures and classical works of the ancient and modern times, in which the book To Kill a Mockingbird clearly does. Literature is defined as the body of written works of a language, period or culture, produced by scholars and researchers, specialized in a given field. Why is literature important? Well, let’s see as stated in the quotation by C.S. Lewis, literature not only describes reality but also adds to it. Yes, literature is not merely a depiction of reality; it is rather a value-addition. Literary works are portrayals of the thinking patterns and social norms prevalent in society. They are an illustration of the different facets of common man's life. Literary works serve as a food for thought and a tonic for imagination and creativity. Exposing an individual to good literary works, is equivalent to providing him/her with the finest of educational opportunities. On the other hand, the lack of exposure to literary works is equal to depriving an individual from an opportunity to grow as an individual. To Kill a Mockingbird provides its readers with the ‘finest of educational opportunities’ and that is why it is an important literary work. Harper Lee’s book is a powerful literary work because of the following literary devices employed: Setting, Allegory, and point of view. However before one can dissect the devices used, one must h...

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