Analysis of To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

5023 Words11 Pages

Analysis of To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Born in Monroeville, Alabama, on April 28, 1926, Nelle Harper Lee is the youngest of three children of Amassa Coleman Lee and Francis Lee. Before his death, Miss Lee's father and her older sister, Alice, practiced law together in Monroeville. When one considers the theme of honor that runs throughout Miss Lee's novel, it is perhaps significant to note that her family is related to Confederate General Robert E. Lee, a man especially noted for his devotion to that virtue.

Miss Lee received her early education in the Monroeville public schools. Following this, she entered the University of Alabama to study law. She left there to spend a year in England as an exchange student. Returning to the university, she continued her studies, but left in 1950 without having completed the requirements for her law degree. She moved to New York and worked as an airline reservation clerk.

Character

It is said that Miss Lee personally resembles the tomboy she describes in the character of Scout. Her dark straight hair is worn cut in a short style. Her main interests, she says, are "collecting the memoirs of nineteenth century clergymen, golf, crime, and music." She is a Whig in political thought and believes in "Catholic emancipation and the repeal of the corn laws."

Sources Of To Kill A Mockingbird

Among the sources for Miss Lee's novel are the following:

(1) National events: This novel focuses on the role of the Negro in Southern life, a life with which Miss Lee has been intimately associated. Although it does not deal with civil rights as such - for example, the right to vote - it is greatly concerned with the problem of human dignity - dignity based on individual merit, not racial origin. The bigotry of the characters in this novel greatly resembles that of the people in the South today, where the fictional Maycomb County is located.

(2) Specific Persons: Atticus Finch is the principal character in this novel. He bears a close resemblance to Harper Lee's father, whose middle name was Finch. In addition to both being lawyers, they are similar in character and personality - humble, intelligent and hard-working.

(3) Personal Experience: Boo Radley's house has an aura of fantasy, superstition, and curiosity for the Finch children. There was a similar house in Harper Lee's childhood. Furthermore, Miss Lee grew up amid the Negro prejudice and violence in Alabama.

Critical Issues In To Kill A Mockingbird
897 Words | 2 Pages
To Kill a Mockingbird novel is a warm and humorous piece of writing though it deals with critical issues such as racial inequality and rape. The novel was published in 1960 by Harper Lee and it gained immediate popularity and success becoming a modern literature in American. The plot of the novel and characters are based on Harper’s perception of her neighbors and her immediate family. Also, it is based on her observation of events that took place near her home area in 1936 at the age of ten years. To Kill a Mockingbird symbolizes killing harmless and innocent people. Tom Robinson is an example of an innocent man falsely accused of raping a White girl known as Mayella Ewell (Lee 169). Another example is Boo who is misunderstood by the society
Read More
Robert E. Lee 's Life and Achievements
680 Words | 2 Pages
Lee was born in Stratford, Virginia. Lee was the fourth child of General Henry Lee III, Governor of Virginia, and his mother, Anne Hill Carter, Lee was raised by his mother who taught him about authority, tolerance, and order. Lee was exposed to Christianity at an early age and devoted his life to god. In 1825, Lee was accepted into West Point. There he learned about warfare and how to fight. In 1829, Lee graduated 2nd of 46 in his class, but even more surprising is that he didn’t get a single demerit while attending West Point. Afterward, Lee was appointed as Superintendent of West Point from 1852 to 1855. After he served his term, Lee left West Point to become a Lieutenant Colonel in the 2nd Cavalry of Texas.
Read More
Analysis of To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
1270 Words | 3 Pages
one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it is a sin to
Read More
Character Analysis Of To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee
1530 Words | 4 Pages
The novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, is an American classic, narrated by the young Scout Finch, the most engrossing character in the book. The novel is about the adventures of two siblings over the time of about three years. Jem and Jean Louise (Scout) Finch were two young siblings who one day met another young boy named Dill. Over time, Jem and Scout grow up under the careful watch of their father and friends, learning how to be adults. They play games, they sneak into a courthouse, and they learn a valuable life lesson. Scout was an intriguing character. As the narrator, you learn more about Scout’s feelings towards the events in the book and soon learn to love her. Let me introduce you to Scout Finch.
Read More
Self-Defense or Crime: A Study of 'Celia, A Slave'
1026 Words | 3 Pages
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
Read More
Short Summary and Quote Analysis in To Kill a Mockingbird
566 Words | 2 Pages
Scout Finch, the youngest child of Atticus Finch, narrates the story. It is summer and her cousin Dill and brother Jem are her companions and playmates. They play all summer long until Dill has to go back home to Maridian and Scout and her brother start school. The Atticus’ maid, a black woman by the name of Calpurnia, is like a mother to the children. While playing, Scout and Jem discover small trinkets in a knothole in an old oak tree on the Radley property. Summer rolls around again and Dill comes back to visit. A sence of discrimination develops towards the Radley’s because of their race. Scout forms a friendship with her neighbor Miss Maudie, whose house is later burnt down. She tells Scout to respect Boo Radley and treat him like a person. Treasures keep appearing in the knothole until it is filled with cement to prevent decay. As winter comes it snows for the first time in a century. Boo gives scout a blanket and she finally understands her father’s and Miss Maudie’s point of view and treats him respectfully. Scout and Jem receive air guns for Christmas, and promise Atticus never to shoot a mockingbird, for they are peaceful and don’t deserve to die in that manner. Atticus then takes a case defending a black man accused of rape. He knows that such a case will bring trouble for his family but he takes it anyways. This is the sense of courage he tries to instill in his son Jem.
Read More
Character Analysis Of 'To Kill A Mockingbird'
842 Words | 2 Pages
Keeping a mouth shut doesn't hold the world shut out, it opens up new doors to things that would never be expected. In To Kill A Mockingbird written by Harper Lee, there is are two character that is are an eternal mystery for the readers. Boo Radley, though the reader nor Scout and Jem know anything about the character all they want is to learn about him. Boo becomes a mysterious figure that many see as creepy, ghostly, but also reasonably wise. The one-time Boo appears the readers learn he is a sagacious, powerful man. Little do Scout and Jem know is that their father is also a rational being as well. The two crucial character in the story helps support the
Read More
To Kill A Mockingbird Analysis
1367 Words | 3 Pages
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is an emblem of racial jurisdiction. All throughout the book it shows how the law applies to blacks as opposed to whites. Lee shows how unjust the treatment of blacks is and the disregard for their human rights. Though through the actions of the characters in the book; it can be said that their actions show a glimmer of hope for this very prejudiced society.
Read More
To Kill A Mockingbird Essay: Gender Roles and Feminism
1326 Words | 3 Pages
When the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, was written by Harper Lee, the Southern United States was still clinging tightly to traditional values. Southern societies pressured men to behave as gentlemen, and women were expected to be polite and wear dresses. These stringent gender roles were adhered to in small southern towns because they were isolated from the more progressive attitudes in other areas of the United States. Harper Lee documents the life of one young girl growing up in the small town of Maycomb, Alabama. Jean Louise Finch, also known as "Scout," is a young girl searching for her identity. Scout, a young tomboy, is pressured by adults who insist she should conform to the traditional role of a southern lady. Harper Lee establishes and promotes Jean’s masculinity through the use of nicknames, fighting, and masculine clothing, while contrasting her with women that fit the stereotypical female model.
Read More
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
775 Words | 2 Pages
Scout Finch is the narrator in Lee’s work To Kill A Mockingbird, and the two share many similarities in real life. They both grew up in the 1930 in Alabama towns. Lee’s father was Amasa Lee “attorney who served in the state legislature in Alabama” (Johnson). Atticus Finch who is Scout’s father was also an attorney and served on the state legislature. They both had an older brother and a young neighbor playmate. Lee’s was Truman Capote and Scouts was Dill.
Read More
How Does Atticus Show Courage In To Kill A Mockingbird
802 Words | 2 Pages
In To Kill a Mockingbird, by author Harper Lee, several of the characters in the book share a similar character trait. Atticus Finch, Mrs. Dubose and Boo Radley all show courage throughout the book in their own individual ways. In different events, all three characters were faced with a challenge that they could either turn away from and accept or try to defeat. In Lee’s novel, a few of the main events that occur in the book include Atticus Finch defending a black man, Mrs. Dubose is challenged with overcoming an addiction, and Boo Radley must brave the outdoors to save the Radley children. Throughout the book, the characters change and one begins to understand what life in the small town of Maycomb is like, as the Finch family and friends grow and mature throughout the events happening while encountering social prejudice, courage, and the mockingbirds of life.
Read More
Similarities Between To Kill a Mocking Birds and the Scottsboro and Tom Robinson Trial
1056 Words | 3 Pages
Lee was born on April, 28th, 1926 and grew up in Monroeville, Alabama. Her father was a former newspaper editor, who had served as a state senator and studied law in Monroeville, Alabama. As a lawyer's daughter, Harper Lee certainly was aware of the cases that demonstrated the inequities of the South before the Civil Rights movement. Her Father was a part of these trials throughout her life, including the very famous Scottsboro Trial. Lee studied law at the University of Alabama for four years, and spent a year as an exchange student at Oxford University....
Read More
Perspective on Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird
1379 Words | 3 Pages
You know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and Vixen. You know Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen. But do you recall the most famous reindeer of all? Rudolph the red-nosed reindeer was misperceived at first. All of the other reindeer used to laugh and call him names, but after he led Santa’s sleigh, they loved him. Misperceptions like this happen all throughout Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. As you read the novel you see original judgments made about characters transform into new conceptions and new understandings. Some characters twist your views of them on purpose, others do it involuntarily. To Kill a Mockingbird shows this happening over and over again. All you have to do is look for it.
Read More
Racism in To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee
865 Words | 2 Pages
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.
Read More
To Kill a Mockingbird Essay
635 Words | 2 Pages
Harper Lee is most famous for her class, American-literature novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Lee created a story that reflects compassion, loss of innocence, and the courage to break barriers in the midst of adversity. By creating this novel, she built one of the most model, male figures in all works of writing: Atticus Finch. Today, Atticus Finch is seen as a literary hero, and a role model for many people. From his wise council, to his unprejudiced love and care for others, Atticus Finch lives up to the strong title of being a hero.
Read More

Open Document

Wait a second!

Analysis of To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

Critical Issues In To Kill A Mockingbird

Robert E. Lee 's Life and Achievements