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Everyone, accept it or not, has to grow up and, thus lose the innocence they once possessed. The process of childhood to adulthood has many factors that take effect on the person they will grow up to become. For instance, the environment that a person grows up in has an enormous effect in their development . Throughout the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout’s Curiosity and innocence is challenged by Maycomb’s standards for race and gender, but with her father’s guidance that results in her maturing; losing her innocence, while retaining hope.
In the mid 1930’s the county of Maycomb, home of Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, have standards for race resulting in an amount of racism among the people of Maycomb. As Scout matures, she experiences racism
in Maycomb that assists in the loss of her innocence. During the Christmas dinner in chapter 9, Francis states “Grandma says it's bad enough he lets you all run wild, buts now he’s turned out a nigger-lover we’ll never be able to walk the streets of Maycomb again. He’s ruinin’ the family, that’s what he’s doin’. He’s nothin but a nigger lover!” ( Lee 110). Racism during this time has a big impact on the children of Maycomb as shown with Francis who is merely eight years old and sees people of color as bad people as well as the ones who defend them.
one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it is a sin to
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 Celia, A Slave, a slave named Celia was sent to court because she committed homicide. However, the murder was justified, because she was trying to defend herself from her slave owner, Robert Newsom, who was attempting to rape her once again. This time around, Celia attempted to protect herself by striking Newsom, just in order to daze him for a bit. She did not intend to kill the man, but simply keep him away from her. Unfortunately, in Missouri in 1850, the only person that would be protected by law would be the slave owner, when it came to the rape of a slave. The slave owner would be allowed to immediately punish a rapist for trespassing on their property, which in this case, would be the slave. Celia, A Slave is a story that
“We see the town of Maycomb in its worst light, willing to execute an innocent man for a crime he did not commit rather than question their belief in black inferiority and their social taboos about interracial relationships” (Felty 299). This quote may seem extreme, but it is completely accurate in Scout’s hometown of Maycomb, Alabama. In the town of Maycomb, prejudice and discrimination are a common theme in the lives of its citizens. This is shown in various ways. For example, African Americans are treated as lower class citizens because they are discriminated against by white people.
Sum up, the social relationship between these people here, this old town Maycomb is complicated and pretty tense. This novel has taught us so much, thanks to Harper Lee – one of the greatest writers of all time. It has opened our eyes wider about racism at that time and compared it to nowadays it has become so much better. People are equally, no matter what skin color you are, what religion you have, or where you’re from, what you’re appearance looks like, we are all equal, and we are all the same – human. So instead of treating badly to one another we should all united and make the world a better place.
It was her only piece of writing, and she wrote it when she was 34
One’s childhood innocence is never lost, it simply plants the seed for the flower of maturity to bloom. It seems that almost every adult chooses to either forget or ignore this childhood vulnerability. But ironically, it was this quality that pushed them into adulthood in the first place. At the peak of their childhood, their post climactic innocence allows room for the foundation of maturity to begin to grow. In the sleepy southern town of Maycomb this is exactly what happens to eight years old Jean Louise “Scout” Finch. In To Kill a Mockingbird the character Scout is forced to surround herself with a very adult situation, when a trial comes to the small town of Maycomb. The trial raises the question that shakes the entire town up, what prevails, racism, or the truth? And over the course of the novel the author shows how such events affect the way Scout grows over the course of the story. In the timeless novel To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee uses Scout’s incentives of purity and the quest for parental approval to stress the novel’s central thesis, the process of growing up.
A small city nestled in the state of Alabama, Maycomb has got its faults, just like any other place in the world, but one of its main faults or (pg.88) “Maycomb's usual disease,” as Atticus calls it in the book is prejudice. Jem and Scout learn a lot about prejudice when a black man named Tom Robinson is accused of raping a white woman named Mayella Ewell and their father, Atticus, is called on to be his lawyer. They realize the hate that people have buried deep within their heart when they see a black man accused of doing something only because of his color. On pg.241, Scout starts understanding this and thinks, “Atticus had used every tool available 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.” As the case continues, up until the death of Tom Robinson, Jem and Scout learn more and more about prejudice and how the hate that people have towards others causes them to take wrong actions. They also see how unfair it is that a white man can get treated better and think of himself better than a black man only because he was born white. This prejudice and the trial cause Jem and Scout to get in argum...
Few people are the same as they are on the street in their homes. Few people can treat others equally; no matter what colour their skin is. Atticus Finch is one of those precious few. Racism in the town of Maycomb is nothing but disguised by the polite smiles and ladies missionary meetings; although it is the strongest belief that each person of the town holds apart from some such as Atticus. Racism is an issue of great importance, yet to the eye of a visitor waltzing through, it's just a slight whisk of air.
Prejudice is defined as an opinion formed without taking the time and care to judge fairly. In the book 'To Kill a Mockingbird' by Harper Lee, there are several themes presented like bravery, prejudice, and growing up. The main theme in this novel though is prejudice. In the book, it is not just a case of black and white but the entire novel is about prejudice in many forms including class gender and racial prejudice. Throughout the story, we see all these events in a young girl’s eyes named Scout.
The novel To Kill a Mockingbird is an exquisite example of the impact of prejudice and discrimination on a small Southern town post-Depression. On Harper Lee's novel, Telgen states, "Comprising the main portion of the book's examination of racism and its effects are the underlying themes of prejudice vs. tolerance: how people feel about and respond to differences in others" (292). The motif of discrimination in this story is strongly supported by numerous examples, events, and seemingly unimportant anecdotes described throughout the novel. To Kill a Mockingbird expounds upon the ideas, thoughts, and interpretations of Jean Louise Finch (also known as Scout) and her older brother Jeremy "Jem" Finch. As the siblings live out many adventures and mature, both in years and in experience, they start to learn and recognize the prejudices occurring in their town. While they were brought up by Atticus Finch, their father- a man who strongly believes in the equality of all- others in the town of Maycomb do not have these same views. These differences lead to many problems throughout Scout's narration. This best-seller greatly expresses the repercussions of discrimination and prejudice of gender, race, and class.
Education has progressed positively since the 1930s. Some would argue education was better in the 1930s because we did not have all the technology that ‘fries our brains’ and the students could leave for harvesting time. However, I believe education is at its best now because there is no physical abuse and attendance is required.
DiPiero, Thomas. "University of Rochester." Rochester Review ::. N.p., Oct. 2010. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.
Two hundred and twenty two years ago, a democracy was born and its citizen has been guaranteed “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness.” Is this pledge fully adopted? The high almighty, arbitrary, rich, wealthy people surely have an advantage over the meager, poor lower class. The rich has money, and money can be a powerful source to silence evil deeds in which a pauper cannot do, but must suffer the consequences. In Harper Lee's novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, she portrays the weak, the vulnerable, and the innocent as mockingbirds. Setting the novel in Maycomb County, Alabama in the 1930s plays a crucial role in illustrating the mockingbirds of the society. The prejudiced South carried people like Arthur “Boo” Radley, Tom Robinson, and Mayella Ewell who have never had any intentions of harm, and only brought joy, but suffered greatly because of their position in a rigid, prejudiced society.
A mockingbird is a harmless songbird that is known for mimicking the calls and sounds of other birds. Since mockingbirds don’t intentionally harm others, its behavior simply represents innocence and peace. These birds also teach humans an important life lesson—to listen first before responding. For instance, To Kill a Mockingbird, a fiction novel by Harper Lee, tells the story of three children—Scout Finch, Jem Finch, and Charles “Dill” Baker Harris—and their adventures around Maycomb County. Throughout their journey, these children experience times of unfairness where individuals were innocently accused of certain actions, tying into the symbolic meaning of the mockingbird. The novel’s title, To Kill a Mockingbird, provides significance towards not drawing conclusions immediately and not blaming individuals, like Tom Robinson and Arthur “Boo” Radley, who don’t have a voice in society.