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Problems with racism in literature
Problems with racism in literature
Literary analysis to kill a mockingbird
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In the struggle of good against evil, the quality of innocence is often lost to stronger forces. The novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee demonstrates that innocence is a much weaker quality than in other towns. People in Maycomb will gather for a prosecution of a black man like it is a circus fair. Yet children, such as Jem, can still live in have fantasies that everything is fair. Yet the children’s innocence disappears when something such as racism in court makes itself apparent. The entire Jury voted Tom Robinson guilty when the Jury knew Tom was innocent. The only person who has not lost that innocence is Boo Radley. Boo is a man who has lived his adult years in his house, Having rumors spread about him due to Boo getting in trouble with a gang when he was younger. He hadn’t come out of his house since. Boo Radley is a mockingbird in disguise. Very subtly, he made a relationship with Jem and Scout. Arthur (Boo’s real name) spent time making any gift he could for the Finches. He also risked his own life to save Jem and Scout, and carried Jem home after Jem’s arm was broken. Boo watched Jem and Scout’s …show more content…
Although, Scout soon learned that Boo was extremely shy. As Mr. Tate and Atticus discuss what happened when Bob Ewell attacked Jem and Scout, Boo calmly stands in the corner, listening without objecting or making any assertion about what actually happened. As everyone discusses what happened, they move out onto their deck to accommodate for Boo’s pale skin. Once outside, Scout asks if Boo would like to sit in a, “nice and comfortable” (Lee 364) rocking chair because she knows Boo would be uncomfortable in the light. Boo kindly accepted the offer, sat down, listened to the conversation, and then walked home with Scout. Even after saving their lives, he does not treat her like she’s a ten year old girl and talk down to her. He treats her like an adult and does not act as a superior to
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.
But Boo tends to be a misunderstood character, just like the mockingbird. In chapter 28, when Jem and Scout were walking back home from school, they took the shortcut which happened to be pitch black. Jem heard a sound which alerted them. At first Jem thought it was Cecil Jacobs (a boy who liked to pull jokes on Jem and Scout), but then they realized it was someone else. They heard footsteps running after them to find that it was a grown man. Jem called out to Scout to run but she fell due to her costume.When Scout finally got back up to find Jem, the man squeezed her until she could barely breathe. Worriedly, Scout called out for Jem but didn’t get a response. She saw two men underneath the tree besides Jem and herself. She called out “Atticus?” but there was no answer once again. She noticed a man laying the ground that had the awful essence of booze, she got up and made her way over the road, and within the light of the street lamp Scout sees a man carrying Jem. The man headed towards the Finch house, where Atticus let him in. Scout eventually realized that “the man” was no other than Mr. Arthur or commonly referred to as Boo Radley. Mr. Arthur, despite his poor perception of
In the case of Scout and Jem, they believed that Boo Radley, who is an outcast of Maycomb, possesses a horrific appearance, and that he is a savage, "he dined on raw squirrels and any cats he could catch, that’s why his hands were bloodstained." However, as the story progresses, it is revealed that Boo is actually a kind-hearted person who has not done anybody wrong, but unfortunately, he was ruined by the hands of his family. Thus, Boo is an example of a mockingbird, as mentioned by Atticus. The disclosing of the character of Boo demonstrates Scout and Jem's loss of innocence. They can no longer see Boo as a mysterious threat in their life, instead they saw Boo as a person. "...he's crazy..but Atticus I swear to God he ain't ever harmed us, he coulda cut my throat...but he mend my pants instead..." In a way, Boo serves as a symbol of the transition of Scout and Jem's maturity, as the kids exhibit their ability to empathize with
In the book To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee tells the story of coming-of-age and the loss of innocence through the character Jem. Through recurring events, Jem is faced with the realization of society’s injustice, and is left questioning the world he lives in. During a time of rampant racial discrimination and prejudice in the south, Jem transforms from naivety to maturity.
Loss of Innocence is portrayed very well throughout the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. To Kill a Mockingbird demonstrates how the characters think they’re equal but eventually lose their innocence very quickly. To Kill a Mockingbird demonstrates how the son of Atticus and the brother of Scout, Jem witnesses the trail of the only black man, Tom Robinson. From then on out, Jem realizes that the world and his town isn’t anything what he thought it was. Jem also knew that people turned out to be nothing what he thought in the beginning. Jem thought everyone was good and innocent just like his father Atticus, but that slowly started to change. Atticus once said, “ You never really understand the person until you consider things from his point of view.” (31) Little did he know the theme, Loss of Innocence would hit in the town in Maycomb, which was supposed to be a wonderful place. Jem realizes that Tom is punished for something that he didn’t even do. It was also brave of Jem to side with a black man, because no one in Maycomb, Alabama sides with a black person or an African American. That...
Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird: The Significance of a Mockingbird In a society surrounded by corruption, racism, and cruelty it is rare to find purity. Innocence is constantly being destroyed. For this reason, the harmless citizens need to be treasured and protected. Harper Lee’s classic novel To Kill a Mockingbird portrays the injustices of the 1930’s that expose the innocent to the malice of the society’s intentions. Some characters in the novel are characterized as harmless and pure and are symbolized by mockingbirds.
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...
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, is a courageous tale of leadership and gallantry. This book voices the story of a young girl, Scout, and the town of Maycomb. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird there are numerous quotes to which you should bring to your attention. By far, the most important quote describes what Boo Radley experienced all those years he was locked away in his house, “A boy trotted down the sidewalk dragging a fishing pole beside him. A man stood waiting with his hands on his hips. Summertime, and his children played in the front yard with their friend, enacting a strange drama of their own invention.…. Fall, and his children trotted to and fro around the corner, the day’s woes and triumphs on their faces. They stopped at an oak tree, delighted, puzzled, and apprehensive. Winter, and his children shivered at the front gate, silhouetted against a blazing house…. Summer, and he watched his children’s heart break. Autumn again, and Boo’s children needed him. Atticus was right. One time he said you never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them. Just standing on the Radley porch was enough” (Lee 236-237). All those years he has watched as Scout and Jem grew up. All those years he imagined they were his own. Characterization is significant for the reason that Scout realized Boo Radley isn’t the irrational murderer, he is portrayed to be; he is pleasant and generally cares for the children.
More commonly know to Maycomb as “Boo” Radley, a thief, creep, look through your windows, kill your family type of guy. However, Boo was not that type of guy at all. Boo Radley is a mockingbird. Boo Radley is a mockingbird because he protects the Finch children, he isn’t a monster but is kind and innocent, and finally because he tries to better the community, almost like a guardian angel. Boo may have done his fair share of sketchy things; that doesn’t mean he was a bad guy, in fact, he did his best to look out for Jem and Scout Finch.
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...
Loss of Innocence in Killing a Mockingbird Maycomb was an old town, but it was a tired old town when I first knew it. In rainy weather, the streets turned red slop; grass grew on the sidewalks, the courthouse sagged in the square. " (Lee 9). This environment, as Scout Finch accurately describes, is not conducive to young children, loud noises, and games. But, the Finch children and Dill must occupy themselves in order to avoid boredom.
Boo Radley is a squirrel eater. Boo Radley is one of the important characters in the book To Kill a Mockingbird written by Harper Lee. Boo’s real name is Arthur Radley. People call him Boo because they rarely see him and they do not understand him. That being said they came up with a way to explain his mysterious ways of living by making up stories about him. Despite what people say about him, he shows that he is kind, reclusive, and courageous.
The illusion of innocence is deeply instilled in the outlook of children. Reality soon takes its grip as kids begin to grow and mature, and they lose their pure qualities that they have once possessed. Their father Atticus shelters Jem and Scout from the town’s disease, teaching them the act of sympathy and how to distinguish the good aspects over glaring at the imperfections of people. The loss of innocence portrayed in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is exposed as the lives of Jem, Scout, and Dill go through their racist and prejudice society, learning how the worlds dreamlike qualities is nothing more than just a childhood fable. The children’s judgment of people and society quickly sheds as Lee displays the harsh realities to Jem, Dill,
Examine the Themes of Innocence and Experience in To Kill a Mockingbird. Innocence is a time when a person has never done something; it is the first step in the journey from innocence to experience. The second step in this movement is experience and this is what is achieved after. a person has done something they have never done before or learns something they have never known before. This theme of growth from innocence to experience occurs many times in To Kill a Mockingbird and is one of the central themes in the first part of the novel, because it shows how Jem and Scout change and mature over a small period of time.
Atticus learns what had really happened from Scout?s explanation of what she had seen, and heard when Bob Ewell attacked them while walking back from the school play. He understood that Bob Radley killed Bob Ewell in order to save Jem?s life. Atticus does not want to send Boo to court for the fact that Boo saved his children?s life. When Scout and Jem got their BB guns they wanted to shoot the mockingbird, when Atticus said, ??Well, It?d be sort of like shootin? a mockingbird, wouldn?t it??? He explains that it is a sin to shoot mockingbirds because they do not harm us. Boo Radley is just like the mockingbird he stays inside and does not harm others, instead he saves Atticus children. Sending Boo to court would be like shooting a mockingbird. ??That is a sad house? he always spoke nicely to me, no matter what folks said he did.?? Miss Maudie Said. When Jem and Scout talks about the reasons Boo is...