The reader acknowledges Jem Finch as Scout’s older brother from the start of this novel. He is brave and strong. “When he was nearly thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow. When it healed, and Jem’s fears of never being able to play football were assuaged, he was seldom self-conscious about his injury.” The reader understands Jem to be the older and wiser one of the two siblings, but also understands Jem to be brave and not confused by life. The reader expects him to understand the ways of life. When the trial took place, Jem is awakened by the fact Tom Robinson was persecuted only because he was black. Jem does not understand this even though he thought he was old enough to understand. The reader starts to realize Jem does not have life figured out and he is still a kid. Jem shows his bravery throughout the book with Cecil, Burris Ewell, Bob Ewell and even Mrs. Dubose. Jem matures throughout the book as well. The reader notices this while he is comforting Scout and when he is comforting to ...
Jem shows that he is growing up in many different ways. For example, he shows this when he goes back to the Radley house to retrieve his pants. “Atticus ain’t ever whipped me since I can remember. I wanta keep it that way.” (Jem 75) The fact that Jem went back to get his pants was a brave decision. This quote shows that he is maturing because he didn’t want Atticus to whip him, but not because he was afraid, because he didn’t want Atticus to go through the pain of having to whip his child. A quote that describes Jem at the moment is "We have not passed that subtle line between childhood and adulthood until we move from the passive voice to the active voice--that is, until we have stopped saying 'It got lost,' and say, 'I lost it.'"(Sydney J. Harris). In addition to Jem’s developing characteristics, he acquired a load of wisdom. Jem shows a loss of innocence, after his perfect view of the world is shattered right in front of his eyes. For example, “I always thought Maycomb folks were the best folks in the world, at least that’s what they seemed like.”(Jem 288) This is important because Jem realizes that Maycomb folks aren’t that great. This also shows that he saw the prejudice in the people, and how racist they were to African Americans. As Jem matures and starts developing a new eye for the world, he slowly starts to lose his childhood innocence and is exposed to the wrong doings of the
Although Jem initially was very childish, the events of the story caused him to have a change of attitude as he matured; by the end of the novel, he is a much matured young adult. This development would not have been possible without Bob Ewell trying to attack Jem and Scout or the Tom Robinson court case. Because Jem learns this lesson, it is clear that Harper Lee intended for her audience to understand what real courage is all
In conclusion Jem has changed a lot throughout the course of the novel. I think that when I started to read the book there was a sense of childness in him but when I closed the book I realized that he had changed a lot due to the experiences he had and the lessons he learnt from Atticus. I think Harper Lee gradually changes Jem in to a young man after each experience he encounters. The main person that had an affect on Jem was Atticus because he knew what was best for his children and thats who Jem learnt off from.
The most significant character development for Jem is bravery. This was mostly taught to him by his father, Atticus, when he tells Jem to read for Mrs. Dubose. Jem later found out Mrs. Dubose was struggling a morphine addiction, and was being very brave to beat it, although it caused her death. Atticus taught Jem that true bravery is “when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what” (112). I think Jem realized the importance of what Atticus was saying and really understood what he was talking about, although at first he was mostly just upset.
Throughout the novel, Jem is able to recognize the existence of evil within his own community; He realizes that people are always far more complex than they appear to be; and, finally, he develops compassion towards both people and things that are less fortunate than him. Jem is forced to leave his childhood naïveté behind and is exposed to the cruelty power of systematic racism and the injustice in everyday life. Ultimately, Jem learns to challenge common perception and develops his own personal values and morals that make him the unique character that To Kill a Mockingbird is loved and remembered
... Jem become more intuitive and gain insight into how to develop into more mature people. Jem and Scout gain exposure to the adult world and lose innocence through the Tom Robinson trial. In today’s society, as in To Kill a Mockingbird, children are often exposed to the adult world at an early age. Today, children are swimming in an endless stream of media, whether it is the 24 hour news cycle, or social networking, or conversing with friends. In today’s world, any child could walk into a room with a television and hear about murder or rape, unspeakable crimes. In the 1930’s it would be much harder for a child to hear about events the way we do today. Gaining maturity at a young age can either work out to be a positive influence in a child’s life or, it can be detrimental to them.
Children may start out simple-minded but shift into maturing young adults. Jem is proof of this in Harper Lee’s, To Kill a Mockingbird since he has many life experiences with the people who influence him most. Through this novel, Jem matures from an ignorant boy to a young and more to respectful young man due to learning loyalty and valor.
These differences are key in understanding each personality. Jem carries a more level headed approach on things while Scout is more impulsive. This is displayed in chapter 10 pages 89-99, a “mad dog” comes onto their street and Atticus, Scout and Jem’s father normally a pacifist like man, shoots the dog with precise accuracy. Scout has the urge to tell everybody the exciting news even though Atticus would rather people not know. Jem on the other hand comprehends that they should respect t...
When children grow up, they face difficult problems, and. they learn to cope and take responsibility. To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, is a flashback about two kids that spans over a few years. Jem ages from ten to thirteen over the course of the novel, and undergoes much change, as his sister describes him. Over the years, he is exposed to issues adults face, and eventually shows an understanding of racism and innocence. As Jem grows up, his view on courage also changes. Jem follows his father's footsteps, and gets much of his knowledge from him.
At the start of Part Two, Jem starts to grow to be a more mature person and develop a want for wisdom and knowledge. “In addition to Jem’s newly developed characteristics, he had acquired a maddening air of wisdom.” (116) In this quote, Calpurnia is speaking to Scout letting her know that the reason for Jem’s sudden changes is that he is growing up and is almost a young man. Jem is beginning to mature mentally. Jem wants to become more ...
In the novel "To Kill A Mockingbird" each of the main characters changed quite a bit. Through the experiences each character went through and the natural maturing that occurred in each of them, the characters were altered from the way they were at beginning of the book. The children, Scout and Jem, were the two most dramatically changed characters. However, Scout showed much more change than Jem did because of his mysterious hidden attitude. Scout matured from a helpless and naïve child into a much more experienced and grown-up young lady.
Jem Finch has come a long way since his humble beginnings as a naive ten year old child. He has come to understand the real meaning of courage, gone from playmate to protector for his sister and has grown enough to understand the workings of the real world, and see the negatives and positives of society. His maturity has been quick and the changes great, and over the years he has come to adhere, respect and carry out Atticus`s legacy and use his father`s ideals to shape his lifestyle. Due to the course of events, his adolescent changes and Atticus`s influence, Jem has matured from a reckless child into a young man capable of making his own decisions.
Jem is Scout's brother. He is a little older than Scout. He also becomes familiar with the prejudice of Maycomb County through the story. In addition, he grows up like most teenagers “He was difficult to live with, inconsistent, moody” “said Scout” (pg. #). That statement is made when Jem starts to grow up. He doesn’t want to play with Scout like a little kid anymore. He wants to be a man.
Jem is growing up all the time. This can be seen when he stops Scout