To Kill a Mockingbird Timothy Johnson Samarah Pagan

General Information:Author: Harper Lee (April 28, 1926 – February 19, 2016)

Genre: Coming-of-age Story, Social Drama

Published: 1960

Narrator: Scout- narrated by an older Scout from the perspective of her as a child.

Setting (Time): Early 1930s

Setting (Place): Maycomb, Alabama [Fictional Southern Town]

Protagonist: Scout Finch

Major Conflict: Scout has to come to terms with the adult world, losing her innocence

Background Information (Author)Harper Lee Her father was a lawyer:Born in Monroeville,

Alabama:• Based the setting of the novel off of her

experiences in her hometown.

• Atticus (Protagonist’s Father) is a lawyer as well and is the most morally sound character.

During her childhood, nine African-American men were accused of raping two white women in a nearby city, most of whom were sentenced to jail:

• The climax of the story deals with a similar case.

Background Information (Historical Context)To Kill A Mockingbird was published in 1960, just before the height of the Civil Rights Movement:

– Heavily controversial at the time of its release

– Racial tension and the issue of racism started to become a mainstream discussion

– As a result of such controversy, the novel became an enormous success and inspired an Oscar-winning film adaptation.

Synopsis The novel takes place in a small, southern town comprised of three

main communities: the white upper class, the white lower class, and the black community. It centers around the character of Scout during 3 pivotal years in her childhood.

Early in the novel, Scout, Jem (Scout’s older brother), and Dill (Scout’s childhood friend) live blissfully ignorant to the circumstances of the adult world or society. They pay games, create fantasies, and even dare each other to approach the local haunted house, the Radley Place. Rumors say that Boo Radley (the house’s occupant) is a lunatic, therefore he is outcast from town. Scout also begins school and is frustrated by the flaws in the education system. An attachment towards and sympathy for Boo also develops in Scout as she learns more of his past.

Synopsis Cont.Soon, however, the story shifts its main plot focus, which revolves around a

controversial, racially charged court case. Tom Robinson, an honest black man, is accused of sexually assaulting a local white girl by her father, Bob Ewell. Atticus (Scout’s father) agrees to represent Tom in court despite the fact that the racism of the jury makes the ultimate decision inevitable. While Tom is innocent, the prejudice of the southern jury sentences him to prison. He is later killed trying to escape. The results of the trial greatly affect the children.

After being humiliated by Atticus in court (despite his victory), Bob Ewell decides to lash out against Scout and Jem while they walk from home from a school event. Boo saves the two children from Ewell’s viciousness, killing him in the process. It is at this point when Boo’s humanity is restored and Scout “sees” him for the first time.

Characters

Jean Louise (Scout) FinchProtagonist and Narrator

9-12 years old in the story:

Childish. Innocent outlook on life

Intelligent for her age (can read and write before entering into formal education).

Tomboy (often plays with brother and neighbor)

In the end, she is still hopeful

Atticus FinchFather of Jem and Scout

Lawyer (Defending Tom)

Role Model for both children

Possesses strong morals (often teaches the kids lessons on morality)

Seen as “hero” for the story

Represents the good in humanity: used to show the children how to act both morally

sound and ethical.

Jeremy Atticus (Jem) FinchScout’s older brother (four years older)

“Like father, like son”

Perception of the world changes significantly after the trial:

Enters into adulthood

Now sees the world for all of its cruelty and prejudice: loses childhood innocence

Alexandra HancockAtticus’ sister, Scout’s and Jem’s aunt

Elitist

Traditional

Believes in the importance of family and loyalty

Provides the reader with the roles and expectations of women during the time period:

Attempts to teach Scout to be more “ladylike”

One of Scout’s maternal figures (Mrs. Finch died when she was 2)

Arthur (Boo) Radley Socially Reclusive (seen as outsider)

Mysterious (has many stories regarding his background and considered as a monster)

Youngest of the Radley family

Left presents for the Finch children by leaving them in the tree by the house

Aids Jem and Scout at the end of the story when they are in a troubling situation.

Calpurnia Cook for the Finches

Seen as mother figure for Jem and Scout

Double life (balances her behavior between the white and color folks)

Offers moral guidance for Scout

Tom RobinsonAtticus’ client

Accused of raping Mayella Ewells

Good natured, helped the Ewell family with small repairs

Found guilty of crime because he is black

Got shot trying to escape prison

Robert E. Lee (Bob) EwellHead of the Ewell family in the community:

Seen as the “disgrace of Maycomb for three generations”.

Poor, lacks ambition

Racist & Sexist

Allusion to Robert E. Lee, a general on the Confederacy during the Civil War

Falsely accuses Tom of raping his daughter when he is the true abuser.

Represents the evil within humanity: used to teach the children the darker side of the

adult world.

Themes

Loss of Innocence/Transition into Adulthood"If there's just one kind of folks, why can't they get along with each other? If they're all alike, why do they go out of their way to despise each other? Scout, I think I'm beginning to understand something. I think I'm beginning to understand why Boo Radley's stayed shut up in the house all this time. It's because he wants to stay inside."~ Jem (Chapter 23)

Jem realizes the harsh reality of the adult world, thus losing his childhood innocence. He no

longer views his surroundings with such an optimistic perspective. Instead, he sees people as

hateful and mean-spirited. This revelation comes at the heels of discerning that Boo chooses to

stay inside in order to keep such optimism.

This idea of transitioning into adulthood, thereby losing your childhood innocence is a common

theme throughout the novel. By focusing on the children’s point of view, Harper Lee is able to

show their maturity over time. For example, both Scout and Jem begin to experience real world

scenarios, such as racism and inequality despite being so young. Jem also solidifies his place as a

man by growing chest hair and discussing complex social issues with his father. Another example

is the motif of the mockingbird.

Empathy “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.” ~Atticus (Chapter 3)

Atticus encourages his children to understand the world from the perspective of others

throughout the novel. He recognises that good and bad qualities found in everybody

and tries to understand the reasons behind the actions of others.

Many cases of this is found including when Walter Cunningham is invited to Dinner

with the Finches. Later Atticus tells Jem and Scout not to fight back when others

ridicule Atticus for defending Tom. When Bob disrespects Atticus by spitting on him,

Atticus takes no action against Bob. At the end of the novel Scout show her

understanding of this when she agrees not to inform the public about Boo taking down

Bob, and tries to understand how Boo felt reserved in his house.

Prejudice “There’s four kinds of folks in the world. There’s the ordinary kind like us and the neighbors, there’s the kind like the Cunninghams out in the woods, the kind like the Ewells down at the dump, and the Negroes.”~ Jem (Chapter 23)

The novel displays the inequality that exist between different Social classes, Race, and

Gender.

Racial prejudice is first revealed as Scout observes the taunting Atticus faces for

defending Tom. The true colors of Maycomb is revealed as many look down on

Atticus, as they believe that he should not be willing to defend a black man. When

Tom transfers to the Jail in Maycomb a mob attempts to kill Tom, but disperses when

Scout convinces Mr.Cunningham to leave. Ultimately Tom is declared guilty despite

the obvious evidence that he is innocent unlike Bob Ewell. The jury was unable to

declare that a Black man was innocent when his word was against that of a white

man's.

Prejudice (Cont.)Social inequality is first shown at the beginning of the novel when background of the

Cunningham and Ewell family is revealed. This is later reinforced when Alexandria

moves in with the finches

The novel shows feminist qualities as Scout often behaves differently than other girls

and her behaviour is even encouraged by her father. This behavior is looked down

upon by other member of the family and the other Ladies in her neighborhood. When

Scout disagrees with her brother he claims that she is acting like a girl implying that

her opinions are unimportant and gives them a negative connotation. Later in the

novel Scout learns that women can not become members of the jury. Since Miss

Maudie supports Tom being innocent it suggest that he would have had a better

chance of getting set free if she were part of the jury.

Courage “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. It's when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what.” ~ Atticus (Chapter 11)

One of the many lessons that Atticus teaches Jem and Scout involves courage. To

Atticus real courage is knowing the chance of success is low but to still preserve until

the end. An example of this comes from Atticus’ dedication to Tom’s case. While he

knows that the jury will not declare Tom innocent he still provides a strong argument

for Tom’s defence.

Another example shown involves Mrs. Dubose, a women who treated the Finches very

rudely and often insulted Atticus. After she died Atticus revealed that Mrs. Dubose

struggled with addiction, and was going through withdraw during the time the

children spent with her. To Atticus Mrs. Dubose showed real courage because she was

able to fight her addiction and dies free of drugs.

Motifs / Symbols

Gothic Gothic style refers to having supernatural occurrences and haunting settings. There are

a number of scence in To Kill a Mockingbird that fit this description. The Radley

house is referred to being a creepy gloomy place with myths around the residences.

During the winter the town receives snow as well as fire breaking loose. A rabid dog

enters the neighborhood and is killed by Atticus. The night Jem and Scout get attacked

it is extremely dark out. These unordinary scenes are spreaded throughout the plot and

add contrast to the normal nature of the town of Maycomb

Mockingbird It is said that killing a mockingbird is considered to be a sin, in the novel the

mockingbird represents innocence and it is wrong to kill something that causes no

harm.

Who is the Mockingbird?

Several characters could represent the mockingbird including Tom, Jem, and Boo.

Tom was innocent of his accusations, he did no wrong and even help Mayella for no

profit. Killing Tom was like killing a mockingbird, this comparison was stated in the

book in the by Mr .Underwood.

Jem also represents a mockingbird because of the innocence he possesses as a child. As

the story progresses Jem loses his child like naivety and thus his innocence. The harsh

reality that Jem has to face as he assimilates to adulthood is like killing a mockingbird.

Mockingbird (Cont.)Boo is also considered to be a mockingbird, while the kids regarded him as a monster

Boo turned out to be a sweet person who helped Jem and Scout. The first signs of his

innocence is shown when he leaves the kids gifts and later shows different gestures of

kindness. Boo is directly referred to as a mockingbird by Scout when she agrees that it

would be better let Boos heroics go unnoticed.

Article 1Anachronism: an act of attributing a custom, event, or object to a period to which it does not belong.

One article examines the historical accuracy of the novel, revealing that while the book takes place in the 1930’s, many of its events were influenced by things going on during its production in the 1950’s.

For example:

Emmett Till Trial (1955)- inspiration for the main court drama aspect of the plot with Emmett Till being a model for the character Tom.

Chura, Patrick. "Prolepsis and Anachronism: Emmet Till and the Historicity of To Kill a Mockingbird." The Southern Literary Journal 32.2 (2000): 1. Student Resources in Context. Web. 7 Apr. 2016.

Article 2Female Voice and Gender Roles:

This article has a feminist perspective. It emphasizes that the novel is told from a

young girl’s perspective who does not fit the social norm. Scout is tomboyish and very

well-read despite her femininity and age. However, gender roles still play a role in her

life due to the various maternal figures in her life. For example, Aunt Alexandra scolds

Scout for her behavior and asks her to be more “ladylike”.

The article also contrasts the novel from the film adaptation. In the movie variant, the

first-person narration is lost, meaning the audience does experience the full, equally

powerful message of transitioning into womanhood as in the novel.

Shackelford, Dean. "The Female Voice in To Kill a Mockingbird: narrative strategies in film and novel."The Mississippi Quarterly 50.1 (1996): 101+. Student Resources in Context. Web. 7 Apr. 2016.

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