Feminism In To Kill A Mockingbird

Women are strong, stronger than most men if you ask me, not necessarily physically, but emotionally, able to handle more pain. You don’t believe me? Here are a few examples: women carry around a baby for nine months, they work/walk in high heeled shoes for days on end, they are amazing multi taskers, struggling to live up to the standards that society has set up for them, how to look, how to act, who to marry, what job to have, and countless other representations. In the time period of To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Scout, our main character and narrator, combats with wanting to be who she wants, a “do what I want” tomboy, while society tries to make her a nice southern lady. Scout commonly wrestles with feminism throughout the story.
For as long as history goes back, to the time when people started wearing clothes, women were told how to dress. Sporting a dress was what was most common for women to be wearing until the mid twentieth century. From then on, jeans, shorts and other articles of clothing previously thought to be for men or inappropriate for women was somewhat socially acceptable. Scout Finch clashes with these social norms constantly, especially with her aunt, “Aunt Alexandra was fanatical on the subject of my attire. I could not possibly hope to be a lady if I wore breeches” (Lee 81). Women are still contesting with what to wear in the workplace. Finding the balance of professionalism and still being feminine is a hard one to come by. You don’t want your heels too high, skirt too short, top too low cut, but you also can’t just wear a suit like a man can. “A man has a uniform, he knows what to wear, when,” she said. “A woman has a disarray of clothing choices, so there is more of a chance that they won’t be able to project credibility through their image. Too little makeup, overdone makeup, long hair, an untidy looking bag, jangling jewelry, too much perfume — all of these things will take their credibility down a notch” (Chapman, New York Times). This quote is from Ms. Lynne Marks, the president of the London Image Institute, which helps women find their image and what is appropriate for them to wear
do not drink an alcoholic beverage in the company of a lady, open doors for a lady, pull out her chair, these are the specifications for men. On the flipside for women: always cross your legs when wearing a dress, skirt or otherwise, be polite to your man, do not curse in public, be sure your hair is immaculate, your makeup never smudged, to name a few. Over the course of To Kill A Mockingbird, Jean Louise is in a constant battle with these requirements to be a lady. AT one point in the story, Jean Louise picks up the habit of swearing. Her Uncle Jack does not think that is fit of a lady and tries to talk her out of it. “‘... you’ll get in trouble if you go around saying things like that. You want to grow up to be a lady, don’t you?’” (Lee 79). If following the standards set by society are what it means to be a woman, I can conclude with Scout, I don’t want to be one, I’d rather be