As people grow in life, they mature and change in many different ways. Harper Lee is the author of To Kill a Mocking Bird. This book is about Scout Finch and her life in the 1930’s in Maycomb County, Alabama. Harpe, shows how Scout matures and progresses in this book along with many other things. For example Scout, the main character, realizes her town is racist after the Tom Robinson trial. Harper also informs the reader about things Scout does not understand throughout the book. One of the things she demonstrates is the reason why Jem, Scout’s brother, is acting different. She does not know what people act like at that age because she is a lot younger, so all of his behavior is new to her. One of the other examples Harper shows is the very unique relationship between Miss Caroline, Scout’s teacher, and Scout. They would like each other, but Miss Caroline’s teaching strategy is bad for Scout because she is able read.…
Prejudice in "To Kill A Mockingbird" Prejudice is a many faced demon which comes in many shapes and disguises. The point that it often goes ignored or unnoticed and shows up in the most unlikely places is what makes it an even more dangerous thing. This is extremely evident in the novel To Kill A Mockingbird'. The first sign of prejudice in the novel is shown by the Finch children regarding Arthur (Boo) Radley.…
To begin, the author of the story To Kill A Mockingbird tells the life of brother, Jeremy Finch and his sister, Scout who grew up in the era of racism and social inequality. Jeremy Finch, better known as Jem, is a typical young boy who grew up in a small Alabama town of Maycomb. He was described has someone who had an interest in sports, guns and being tough. The author, Harper Lee develops the character of Jem, who encounters many conflicts (internal and external) and shows how many of them were handled with using the theme of coming of age. With Jem’s voice and characterization, Lee shows how a young immature boy can grow into a mature, independent man.…
Outside, the greens and browns run past me like dogs chasing cats as the tracks flew by like little birds. The train nosily rattles underneath my seat, rumbling along with the rocks. I am on train from Maycomb County back to Meridian, Mississippi. This summer’s been good to me in Maycomb. When I first arrived in Maycomb, it was a disappointment, all I found was boredom. Although, I changed my mind the day I met a funny-named boy who had soft brown hair and his sister, who lived in breeches. They were called, Jem and Scout from the loving Finch Family. The Finches consist of the couple, Atticus and his dead wife, their children, Jem and Scout along with Calpurnia who works for them.…
In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, the author Harper Lee showed the hardships of growing up in the 30's. The characters Jem and Scout are thrown in the middle of difficult times when their father, Atticus, chooses to represent a black man. From this choice of their father, Jem and Scout come to understand that the world isn't fair and they learn how to deal with it. Through the interactions of the childhood world and the adult world, Jem and Scout's personalities and learning change. Jem starts to feel the effects of Atticus's choice to represent a black man when he has an encounter with an old lady, Mrs. Dubose. When Mrs. Dubose was rude to Jem, he got angry and ruined her flowers. Jm was young and didn't understand the effects of his actions. Atticus told Jem that he needs to just hold his head high "and be a gentleman"(133). Jem was just a boy and wasn't used tp dealing with cruelness, especially coming from an adult. His father made it clear…
All together, the events leading up to and after the Tom Robinson trial, and the trial itself, was a major part of Scout and Jem’s coming of age. They are presented a bitter truth of the world they live in, the truth that the justice system can be corrupted by…
Many things can influence a child’s life. Today a child may suffer from stress all the way to learning life lessons through a breakup. In “To Kill a Mockingbird”, two children, Scout and Jem had to deal with a less common stressor. They dealt with the trial and conviction of an innocent black man in their town and to make things worse, their own father Atticus was the appointed defense for Tom. Scout and Jem were six and ten at the beginning of the novel; throughout the next three years that it took place their maturity goes on to be influenced by many experiences and people. The two children learn valuable lessons from adults during events surrounding the trial such as empathy, courage, honestly, equality and justice. The main characters…
As you watch a movie, you can see a big difference between the movie and book. In the book and movie, “To kill a Mockingbird”, there is a difference between them. They are both different because the book has more details about situations that are happening. Also, because of the way you can picture what is going on. They are similar because in some parts in the movie, the characters say the same things as to when you read the book. In my opinion, the book gives you a better understanding of what the story is about because of the details it provides.…
Because the narration is not as straightforward in the film, the film seems to shift more to Jem's experiences. For example, Jem finds all the articles in the tree. Jem accompanies Atticus to tell Helen Robinson of her husband's death. Jem is left alone to watch his sister. Scout is still an important character, but the film expands on her brother's role.…
Over the course of the novel, Jem and Scout Finch learned just about every lesson essential in life. Although they are only nine and twelve when the story ends, they don’t have much left to learn in life. After living through a biased trial, a near-death experience, and prejudice these children understand a lot. If it wasn’t for people in their life like Atticus, Boo Radley, and Calpurnia, they wouldn’t be as compassionate and intelligent as they grow to be.…
In the beginning of To Kill A Mockingbird, Scout and Jem were terrible children. They were always pulling pranks and just aggravating people in general. But little by little they start maturing and taking things more seriously (Lee). By the end of the story, during Tom Robinson’s trial, they finally come to the point in their life where they change from being a child into being young adults. An example is when Scout and Jem see Dill crying and they say “He just doesn’t understand what’s happening.”…
The chapter opens with the introduction of the narrator, Scout (Jean Louise) Finch, her older brother Jem (Jeremy), and their friend and neighbor, Dill (Charles Baker Harris). Next, Lee provides an overview of Finch family history. Their ancestor, a Methodist named Simon Finch, fled British persecution and eventually settled in Alabama, where he trapped animals for fur and practiced medicine. Having bought several slaves, he established a largely self-sufficient homestead and farm, Finch's Landing, near Saint Stephens. The family lost its wealth in the Civil War. Scout's father, Atticus Finch, studied law in Montgomery while supporting his brother, John "Jack" Hale Finch, who was in medical school in Boston. Their sister Alexandra remained at Finch's Landing. Atticus began his law practice in Maycomb, the county seat of Maycomb County, where his "office in the courthouse contained little more than a hat rack, a spittoon, a checkerboard, and an unsullied Code of Alabama." His first case entailed defending two men who refused to plead guilty for second-degree murder. They instead pled not guilty for first-degree murder, and were hanged, marking "probably the beginning of my father's profound distaste for criminal law." Scout then describes Depression-era Maycomb, "an old tired town when I first knew it", summer heat and slow pace of life. She notes, "There was no hurry, for there was nowhere to go, nothing to buy and no money to buy it with, nothing to see outside the boundaries of Maycomb County". Scout describes as her father as entirely "satisfactory," and her family's black cook, Calpurnia, as strict and "tyrannical." Scout and Jem's mother died of a heart attack when Scout was two and she has no memories of her. However, Jem can remember his mother and Scout notices that he is occasionally nostalgic about her. The novel takes begins during the summer. Scout is almost six, and Jem is almost ten. Once this background picture is complete, the real…
Children’s experiences shape who they are as an adult. In Harper Lee’s work, To Kill A Mockingbird, Atticus, a lawyer of Maycomb, teaches his kids, Jem and Scout, about the judgmental society and the racism that is present in their everyday lives. Jem matures through experiences with Maycomb county and the trial of Tom Robinson, a black man accused of rape.…
“If you shouldn’t be defendin’ him, why are you doin’ it? To kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Atticus is a white attorney living in Alabama, who was appointed to defend Tom Robinson, a man accused of raping a white women. At the time there is inequality between whites and blacks. Despite Atticus's complexion, because he's an attorney & it’s his job is to fight justice, he is reasonable and determined to take a stand for Tom Robinson.…
Even though he is her brother, he is also her best friend, and they get along better than Scout does with any of the kids at school. As Susan McHale stated, “Like friends, siblings are a focus of free time activities in childhood, but they also share family-centered activities such as meals and outings” (McHale). Jem may be Scout’s brother, but he has just as big of an impact on her life and growth as any other person in or out of Maycomb. He can get annoyed with her presence, but he loves her greatly and enjoys how she looks up to him, even if he doesn’t show it that often. She is fascinated by his knowledge, though sometimes his attempts at being authoritative drive her crazy. She also enjoys being with him, and his presence is comforting to her when she is afraid. For example, she is excited the next year of school because, “The only thing good about the second grade was that this year I had to stay as late as Jem, and we usually walked home together at three o’clock” (Lee 77). She appreciated him near, and she also owes him her life. If it weren’t for Jem, then she may never have gotten the nerve up to go close to the Radley house or have been protected when Mr. Ewell attacked them. No matter the time or place, Jem has always been there for Scout and has made a massive impact on her life.…