“To Kill a Mockingbird” is a life changing book. Harper Lee has a lot of lessons that are weaved throughout the entire story. The message in the story is universal meaning it can be related to everyone. The symbolism highlights the key messages. Prejudice, in a sense, casts a shadow of two particular characters: Boo Radley, Tom Robinson, and the Cunningham’s and Elwell families. Boo Radley is portrayed as a villain when no one really understands him. In retrospect, Miss Maudie was indifferent to the bias, “I remember when Arthur Radley when he was boy. He always spoke nicely to me, no matter what his folks said he did” (Lee 46). Miss Maudie, unlike the other characters in the story, is sympathetic towards Boo and understands he’s a good person. There’s a lot of prejudice and judgement inflicted towards Boo Radley, but no one really understands him. In the movie Jem’s pants were stuck to the fence so he left them, yet when he came back they were hung on the fence. This shows that Boo Radley isn’t really that ill-hearted man everyone depicts him as. I think this event was a turning po...
The theme of Harper Lee's To Kill a Mocking Bird is the existence of racism and prejudice in the 1930 – 40's. Harper Lee succeeds in presenting the topic in a manner that is not overly simplistic and thus achieves the task of allowing the reader to fully appreciate the complex nature of unjust discrimination. Harper Lee's inclusion of characters such as Tom Robinson, Boo Radley, Dolphus Raymond and many others, aid the reader to grasp the concept of racism and its central role in the town of Maycomb.
The novel addresses the themes of race relations, justice, the loss of innocence, and small town life. Tom Robinson and Boo Radley are viewed as mockingbird characters because they are subjected to suffering yet they are harmless and innocent.
In the beginning of the novel, many falsehoods by the townspeople portray Boo Radley as a villain. These misleading opinions, very apparent in the adult community, are well illustrated by Miss Stephanie Crawford. She helps skew the children's impressions. Since Atticus, although often interrogated, does not want to create a breach of etiquette, he refuses to speak about the Radleys. Therefore, Jem receives most of his information from Miss Stephanie Crawford, a neighborhood scold, who insists she knows the whole truth about the Radleys. It is from Crawford that the children learn of Radley's scissor attack on his father and other such interesting rumors. Thus, Arthur Radley is labeled as a "hant", a possibly insane and dangerous man, and the "malevolent phantom” (Lee, pg. #). The latter comes from the fact that Radley had not been seen for many years, and was beli...
It teaches them to not be prejudice and get to know a person before making a judgement. Arthur ‘Boo’ Radley, was frowned upon by many people in the Maycomb community. He was rumoured to have been locked in the basement by his father and older brother after an incident involving scissors. Though never seen stepping outside his house, he intrigues yet also frightens Scout, Jem and their friend Dill. After different events in the novel, the children come to find that Boo Radley is not intimidating, but a man who due to his father, is emotionally damaged. Miss Maudie, a neighbour of the Finch’s, explains to Scout that "Mockingbirds don 't do one thing but make music for us to enjoy. They don 't eat up people 's gardens, don 't nest in corncribs, they don 't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That 's why it 's a sin to kill a mockingbird.” The mockingbird is a symbol for innocent people, who are judged for no reason. Like the mockingbird, Boo Radley has people prejudiced against him when he is an innocent man. By using this metaphor, the reader is able to understand the link between Boo Radley and the innocence and morality. As well as the mockingbird, he also symbolises goodness. By secretly watching over Scout and Jem, he protects them from later being attacked by Bob Ewell, a symbol of evil. When Jem and Scout begin to trust Boo, they are paying the highest tribute they could pay him.
The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is set in Alabama in the 1930s, and concerns itself primarily with the interrelated themes of prejudice and empathy. These themes are explored as the story follows Scout Finch as she learns lessons in empathy, ultimately rejecting prejudice. While all characters in Lee’s novel learn from their experiences, not all are able to grow in the same manner as Scout. The idea of a positive role model, typified by the character of Atticus Finch, and the ramifications of its absence, is a concept that Lee places much emphasis on. The isolated setting is also pivotal in the development of characters. Lee uses the contrast between characters that learn lessons in empathy and compassion, and characters that cling to the ideals of a small town, to explore factors that nurture or diminish prejudice.
Childhood is a continuous time of learning, and of seeing mistakes and using them to change your perspectives. In the book To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee illustrates how two children learn from people and their actions to respect everyone no matter what they might look like on the outside. To Kill A Mockingbird tells a story about two young kids named Scout and her older brother Jem Finch growing up in their small, racist town of Maycomb, Alabama. As the years go by they learn how their town and a lot of the people in it aren’t as perfect as they may have seemed before. When Jem and Scout’s father Atticus defends a black man in court, the town’s imperfections begin to show. A sour, little man named Bob Ewell even tries to kill Jem and Scout all because of the help Atticus gave to the black man named Tom Robinson. Throughout the novel, Harper Lee illustrates the central theme that it is wrong to judge someone by their appearance on the outside, or belittle someone because they are different.
Boo Radley is seen as an outcast. He is characterized by stereotypes and rumors. People assume that he is a bad guy, because of a mistake he made in the past. Rumors are passed on to children like Scout, Jem and Dill about Boo Radley that scare them to go near him. “Boo wasn't crazy, he was just high strung at times, it was alright to shut him up” (Lee 15). Mr.Radley said. Boo Radley did not act like everyone else but wasn't a crazy freak, so Mr.Radley thought it would be okay to sustain him in thehouse. Since his dad characterized him as high strung people just assume what he is like. Boo Radley never had a chance to show people what he was like he was portrayed as the bad guy by his dad, Boo is victimized by people because he can't stand up for himself so therefore he is considered the “bad guy”. Throughout the remainder of the book Boo shows his honest self when he leaves gifts for Scout and Jem, when he puts a blanket over Scout, and specially when he saves Scout and Jem from Mr.Ewell. It is obvious that he is a nice person and just wants to help, but of course his so...
Boo Radley is the next door neighbor of the Finch’s. He is an outsider of the community, because he does not leave the house. He got in some trouble as a teenager, so his father locked him up inside the house. After his father died, his brother moved in with him. While Boo was locked up inside is house, the people of Maycomb County made up stories about him. The legend of Boo Radley was well-known to the people of Maycomb. Jem describes Boo, “Boo was about six-and-a-half feet tall, judging from his tracks; he dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, that’s why his hands were bloodstained—if you ate an animal raw, you could never wash the blood off. There was a long jagged scar that ran across his face; what teeth he had were yellow and rotten; his eyes popped, and he drooled most of the time.” (Lee ). Boo is an innocent character because all he does stay inside his own house, and does not bother anybody. Yet the entire town believes that he could be a murderer. Harper Lee is showing that if you do not fit into southern society, they will make you into an outsider and a bad legend. Another example of Boo Radley being an innocent character is when he gives a blanket to Scout. Miss Maudie Atkinson, one of the Finch’s neighbors, had a house fire. Atticus (Scout and Jem’s father) woke up the kids and made them go outside, in case the fire spread to their house. While Scout was not looking someone gave her a blanket, “‘Someday, maybe, Scout can thank him for covering her up.’ ‘Thank who?’ I asked. ‘Boo Radley. You were so busy looking at the fire you didn’t know it when he put the blanket around you.’”(Lee ). Boo Radley is an innocent character because he helped warm up Scout in the cold, yet Scout was still scared that Boo had been near here. Harper Lee is showing us that Boo could do a nice thing, and yet Scout would still be scared because of his reputation. Finally, another
Harper Lee’s only book, To Kill a Mockingbird, is the stereotypical tale of childhood and innocence, yet it successfully incorporates mature themes, like the racism in the South at the time, to create a masterpiece of a work that has enraptured people’s minds and hearts for generations. According to esteemed novelist Wally Lamb, “It was the first time in my life that a book had sort of captured me. That was exciting; I didn’t realize that literature could do that” (111). Scout’s witty narration and brash actions make her the kind of heroine you can’t help but root for, and the events that take place in Maycomb County are small-scale versions of the dilemmas that face our world today. Mockingbird is a fantastically written novel that belongs on the shelves of classic literature that everyone should take the time to read and appreciate for its execution of style and the importance of its content.
In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, many themes are discussed throughout the story. The most significant theme is how over the course of the story, Jem and Scout slowly mature after specific events, and realize the reality of good and evil. Along the way, they meet Tom Robinson, a black man who is convicted of raping a white girl, who plays a major role in the story. Mrs. Dubose, a senile grumpy woman, shows what “real courage” is. Arthur Radley, known as Boo, is a recluse who is said to have tried to kill his father. As the events unfold, Jem and Scout are hit with the reality of racism and social inequality, but most of all, how good and evil play a role in people’s minds, and hearts.
To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee is an excellent story that gives a profound meaning to many essences in life. The story showcases many cases of great qualities such as fear and courage. Also this book contains characters with impressive personalities, but in contrast there are many characters with poor qualities and personalities. Back in the 30s, when a negro faced a white man in a courtroom, the white man will win whether he is lying or not. This would give many negros tons of fear. In addition to this book, there is a lot of mystery within the story. For example, there is a very mysterious character in the story. In the form of courage, there are many situations where characters defy odds and take huge chances for little reward. There will be 3 subjects about qualities or feelings of fear and courage. They are about the Radley family, Bob Ewell and Tom Robinson.
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a story of a young black man convicted of assault by a girl that he helped and her father who are white in Southern America. At that time racial prejudice was accepted in the modern society and no one opposed it. The story takes place in Maycomb, Alabama where Scout Finch and her brother Jem overcome many troublesome events and experience improbable situations. The children are exposed to the reality outside of their childhood, and they discovered the truth about their community and the lies that they tell the children. By brainwashing them with diabolical disinformation about black people and how they should be treated. They also witnessed how the community segregated and confined people like Boo Radley and Tom Robinson because of their colour and how they acted. It portrays that once people had an idea or a belief about a certain thing, they wouldn't second guess it and question if it's right or not.In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee develops the idea that prejudice is contagion, and that leads to more people following and believing in that an idea whether if it's true or not.
Boo Radley is thought to be a malevolent, soulless, deceitful person, but he proves to be a caring, good-natured person. In Chapter 1, Jem offers his perception of Boo Radley to Scout and Dill: " ‘Boo was about six-and-a-half feet tall, judging from his tracks; he dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, that’s why his hands were bloodstained—if you ate an animal raw, you could never wash the blood off. There was a long jagged scar that ran across his face; what teeth he had were yellow and rotten; his eyes popped, and he drooled most of the time’ " (16). Jem perceives Boo Radley as being a “monster” instead of being a man. Jem comes to this conclusion despite having never even seen Boo Radley in person. Jem’s understanding of Boo Radley is based on the rumors that he has heard about him. In Chapter 8, after the fire at Miss Maudie’s house, Scout notices that she was wrapped in a blanket that she did not have with she left the house. Scout asks Atticus who was the person that put the blanket around her. Atticus tells Scout, "Boo Radley. You were so busy watching the fire you didn't know it when he...
Boo Radley, also known as Arthur Radley, is the scary, evil creature that lives in the creepy old house down the street from Jem and Scout, and is misjudged at first. Jem and Scout, two main characters, first see Boo as some sort of scary monster. Jem described him in the first chapter as “...six-and-a-half feet tall, judging from his tracks...” and said “...he dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, that's why his hands were bloodstained- if you ate an animal raw, you could never wash the blood off...” Jem also mentioned Boo had a “...long jagged scar that ran across his face; what teeth he had were yellow and rotten; his eyes popped, and he drooled most of the time.” Scout and Jem also call Boo a “...malevolent phantom...” As if that isn't bad enough, the kids hear and tell horrible stories about Boo. One is of how he stabbed his dad with a pair of scissors; another tells how he was locked up in the courthouse basement. Even with such a grisly initial perception at the beginning of...
Think you know Boo Radley? Not many people do. Boo Radley is a shy, mysterious character from Harper Lee’s: To Kill a Mockingbird. Throughout the book, Boo is thought of as a monster within the book’s setting of Maycomb County. He’s also known to be mentally ill and violent due to many stories about his past. However, I believe he’s just misunderstood. Boo Radley is actually a caring and courageous human being. Examples that benefit this idea include: Boo Radley giving gifts to Scout and Jem and saving Scout and Jem from Bob Ewell. Furthermore, throughout To Kill a Mockingbird; Boo Radley is shown to be misunderstood, caring, and courageous.