To Kill A Mockingbird How Does Jem Change Essay

In the book To Kill, a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Jem, the older of the two Finch children undergoes a radical change. Throughout the course of the novel, not only does he mature, but he also realizes what moral integrity is.
At the start of the writing, Jem is still childish and he does not understand things as well. For example, in the beginning, when the kids are trying to get Boo Radley out of his house so they can look at him, Jem says, “It’s sort of like making a turtle come out…” How’s that ?” asked Dill “Strike a match under him.” I told Jem if he set fire to the Radley house I was going to tell Atticus on him. Dill said striking a match under a turtle was hateful. “Ain’t hateful, it just persuades him-’s not like you’d chuck him in

the fire,” Jem growled, “How do know a match don’t hurt him?” “Turtles can’t feel stupid,” said Jem.”(17-18) Due to Jem’s immaturity, he does not think ahead or think about the consequences of his actions. Luckily, Jem does not set the Radley house on fire because that would not be good for Jem and Scout later when Bob Ewell attacks them because Boo is the one that comes to the rescue and saves them. Jem also acts childish when he is angry with Scout. Instead of calming himself down, he takes out his anger on Scout. “Until it happened I did not realize that Jem was offended by my contradicting him on the Hot Steams and that he was patently awaiting an opportunity to reward me. He did, by pushing the tire down the sidewalk with all of the force in his body...The tire bumped on gravel, scattered across the road, crashed into a barrier and popped me like a cork onto the pavement.” (49-50) Being immature and inexperienced, Jem does not think of what the consequences could be of his actions. Scout could have been severely injured or, at least, have a cut or bruise, but she was lucky enough to walk away from the event without a scratch.
Throughout the course of the story, Jem takes significant steps toward maturity. His journey starts when he loses his temper when Mrs. Dubose’s making fun of Atticus and calling him names. “Jem snatched up my baton and ran flailing wildly up the steps into Mrs. Dubose's front yard, forgetting everything Atticus had said, forgetting that she packed a pistol under her shawls, forgetting that if Mrs. Dubose missed, her girl Jesse probably wouldn’t. He did not begin to calm down until he had cut the tops off of every camellia bush Mrs. DuBose owned until the ground was littered with green buds and leaves. He bent my baton against his knee, snapped it in two and threw it down. By that time, I was shrieking. Jem yanked my hair and said he didn't care.” (137) Because of this incident, Atticus makes Jem go and apologize and Mrs. Dubose makes a plan for him read to her every afternoon. Jem follows through, but the time which he reads to her seems to be increasing (the first times that he would go read to her an alarm clock would go off, to get Mrs. Dubose to take her medicine, but the clock was going off later and later) then they would be dismissed later every day. Jem and Scout grumble and complain about this but are overall curious why this occurs. Finally, Atticus breaks it to them. “ Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict,” said Atticus “she took it as a painkiller 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...She meant to break herself of it before she died, and that’s what she did.”(147-148) “I wanted you to see something about her - I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. Its when you know you’re licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do. Mrs. Dubose won all 98 pounds of her. According to her views, she died beholden to nothing and nobody. She was the bravest person I ever knew” (149) After this event, Jem truly starts to take steps towards maturity. As Scout described “He was difficult to live with, inconsistent, moody. His appetite was appalling, he told me so many times to stop pestering him....Jem had acquired an alien set of values and was trying to impose them on me.” (153) As Jem matures, he starts to change and become a different person. This is the start of many changes happening with Jem.
Jem’s maturity process is close to completion after the trial.

After the trial when they find out that Atticus lost the case, Jem is very frustrated and he does not understand why they lost. “It was Jem’s turn to cry. His face was streaked with angry tears, as we made us through the cheerful crowd. ‘It ain't right,’ he muttered all the way to the corner of the square where we found Atticus waiting. Atticus was standing under the streetlight looking as if nothing had happened. His vest was buttoned, his collar and tie neatly in place, his watch-chain glistened, he was his impassive self again.” It ain't right Atticus,” said Jem “No son, it's not.” At the time, Jem has no idea why they lost, but after a bit of time, he figures it out. “Atticus had used every available tool to free men to save Tom Robinson, but in the secret courts of men's hearts, Atticus had no case. Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed.”(323) Jem figures this out faster than Scout, which clouds how he sees the world. He realizes there is a lot of prejudice in the world. He shows that he is truly matured when Scout asks him about Miss Gates “‘Well, coming out of the courthouse that night Miss gates was-she was going down the steps in the front of us, you must not have seen her-she was talking with Miss Stephanie Crawford. I heard her say, ‘It's about time somebody taught them a lesson, they were getting way above themselves, and the next thing they think they can do is to marry us.’ Jem, how can you hate Hitler so bad and then turn around and be ugly about folks right at home?’ Jem was suddenly furious. He leaped off the bed, grabbed me by the collar and shook me. I never want to hear about that courthouse again, ever, ever, you hear me? You hear me? Don't you ever say one word to me about it again you here? Now go on now!’”(331) Jem proves that he is still sour about Atticus losing the trial and he also proves that he is mad that the world is not as plain

and perfect as he once thought and Scout still does. Jem clearly understands now that the world is complicated and there is tons of prejudice in the world, but he still tries to convince himself that it is not true. When Scout reminds him of this fact, he freaks out.
In conclusion, Jem has clearly changed a lot. He went from having simple and limited views to being able to see the world for what it is and understand all of the prejudice’s in it[the world].