To Kill a Mockingbird: Bildungsroman
To Kill a Mockingbird is a prime example of a Bildungsroman. Harper Lee creates three characters to truly display a Bildungsroman: Jem, Scout, and Dill. In this novel, all three of those characters have different reactions to losing their innocence.
To Kill a Mockingbird is a Bildungsroman in many ways. The first sign of this book being a Bildungsroman is in chapter eight when Miss Maudie's house catches on fire. This fire symbolizes Jem, Scout, and Dill "lighting the match" to their supply of innocence. After the fire, they discover that someone put a blanket over Scout's shoulders. Atticus tells Scout and Jem that it is Boo Radley that put the blanket on her, and Jem goes crazy. Atticus then calms Jem
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This is seen after Tom Robinson is proven guilty as charged. "His face (Jem's face) was streaked with angry tears as we made our way through the the cheerful crowd" (Lee 242): This shows Jem growing up and realizing that everything does not work out perfect. After the trial, Jem, Scout, and Dill are all more grown up, but there is still some innocence left in Scout. This is seen when Scout partakes in Mrs. Grace Merriweather's pageant: "Mrs. Grace Merriweather had composed an original pageant entitled Maycomb County: Ad Astra Per Aspera, and I was to be a ham" (Lee 338). This is significant to the Bildungrsoman theme because the ham is silly, so it symbolizes innocence. However, that innocence is crushed, physically and literally, when Bob Ewell tries to kill Jem and Scout. At that point in the story, Jem, Scout, and Dill have one part of innocence left in them-Boo Radley-and it just so happens that that last bit of innocence is what saves them from Bob Ewell. By now all three of them think very little of Boo Radley, but they still have one curious thought left for him: "We would never see him. He probably did go out when the moon was down and gaze upon Miss Stephanie Crawford" ( Lee 278). Since Scout still sort …show more content…
Scout's reaction is quite unique. She is a combination of Atticus and Dolphus. Scout is a mixture of both of them because Atticus would never get in a fist fight, and Dolphus would never talk about what he did and what he should have done afterwards, but Atticus always does. Scout is faced with a lot of trouble in and out of school involving the trial. Almost all of her fights start with someone calling Atticus a n*****-lover. Scout gets in a fight with her cousin, Francis, because he says Atticus is a n*****-lover: "Francis looked at me carefully, concluded that I had been sufficiently subdued, and crooned softly, 'N*****-lover...' This time I split my knuckle to the bone on his front teeth" (Lee 96). If Atticus would of been in that situation, he would of talked to Francis about what that really means, and why he is defending Tom. Whereas if Scout is replaced with Dolphus, the scene would not be much different. One of the main things that makes Scout and Atticus alike is that they both can reflect afterwards on what should have happened and apply it to the next situation. This is effective because throughout the rest of the book Scout's fight rate goes down. After her fight with Francis, Uncle Jack tries to talk to her, but Scout is used to Atticus' method: "'Well, in first place you never stopped to gimme a chance to tell you my side of it- you just lit right into me. When Jem an' I fuss Atticus doesn't ever just listen
The novel utilises the bildungsroman format to explore how Scout grows from a perspective of childhood innocence to a more mature interpretation, in which she has to incorporate her experiences and knowledge into her perception of the world. In a similar fashion, Persepolis utilises the bildungsroman framework to also emphasise the moral and psychological development of Marjane as she grapples with rigid regulations of her milieu. Throughout the novel, Scout’s gradual development is guided by her patriarchal figure, Atticus’s lessons. Atticus serves as the novel’s raisonneur and the children’s role model, teaching Scout and Jem to adopt the values that will define them as adults. He teaches Scout “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view . . . until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." The use of metaphor in the 2nd statement simplifies the principle in order to allow Scout to understand, further demonstrating the beginning of her development. Scout’s mastery of the skill of empathy shown when she is able to understand Boo Radley's situation, is a key skill of adult life that many of the grownups in Maycomb have yet to master, highlighting her maturity and her developing sense of self and others around
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.
“I don't know, but they did it. They've done it before and they did it tonight and they'll do it again and when they do it-seems that only children weep.” (285) In To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, duality is used to exemplify good and evil coexisting with each other. The two main characters in the book, Scout and Jem, are siblings. They live in Maycomb County, a small town in which many people of dual personalities exist. These people show that good and evil do in fact coexist with one another. Scout and Jem change as they grow older. By the end of the book, Scout starts to learn that not everybody is innocent and good. On the other hand, Jem becomes more like his father, in understanding that wherever good exists, so does evil. The idea
Atticus continuously tells her that this is wrong and that she needs to learn to control her anger, “You might hear some ugly talk about it at school, but do one thing for me if you will: you just hold your head high and keep those fists down. No matter what anybody says to you, don’t you let ‘em get your goat? Try fighting with your head for a change” (Lee 101). The day after this discussion with Atticus, Scout is approached by a fellow student who had previously made a mean comment about her father. “I drew a bead on him, remembered what Atticus had said, then dropped my fists and walked away.it was the first time I ever walked away from a fight” (Lee 102).
Atticus helps scout with interacting and showing her how to socialize with others while getting to know them. Atticus tries to teach scout that not everyone is going to like her but, as Atticus states, "no matter what anybody says to you, don't let them get your goat", (Chapter 9 page 101). He explains how scout should not let what people say influence her to think otherwise about something. At the same time, Atticus explains how she neither can judge anyone either, as Atticus formally says, "you never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view" [...] (chapter 3 page 39). Atticus wants scout to know and understand that it is wrong to judge or assume something about somebody if you don't know the accurate reason as to why they do what they do. Being the kind, respectful man Atticus is, he also wants to teach scout the right from wrong,
Slowly throughout the book, Scouts’ matureness increases and one way you can see this is because she starts understanding the way people think and she puts herself in another's shoes. Atticus gives Scout some advice that she needs to use throughout her life and it changes how she reacts to
There are many books that are written as the point of view of a child, and all of them have a similar form of writing, called bildungsroman. Bildungsroman is a genre of writing that deals with the growth, change, and education of the protagonist. One common theme in these coming of age stories is the loss of innocence and the book To Kill A Mockingbird is no exception. In her novel, Harper Lee used an extensive amount of symbolism to foreshadow the events of some characters losing their innocence, three of them include the snowman, the fire in the neighborhood, and Atticus shooting the mad dog Tim Johnson.
Scout stands up for her beliefs and rights when Francis calls Atticus rude and offensive names. She gets tells Francis, “He is not!... I don’t know what you’re talkin’ about, but you better cut it out this red hot minute” (83). The argument had started when Francis called Atticus a “n*****-lover”. Scout became defensive and stood up for Atticus because she knew that Atticus was a fair man who didn’t believe in racism. He stood up for black people because he believed that everyone was equal regardless of race. Scout, along with her father believed that black people should be treated fairly as well so when Francis called Atticus rude names she stood up for him because she knew that Atticus was a fair and equal man. This shows that you do not need to be an adult to understand the world because most of the people in Maycomb were racist such as Bob Ewell. Despite her young age, Scout stood up for her father and her beliefs and knew that not all black people were bad people. Additionally, Jem stands up for his rights and his father when Mrs. Dubose says something rude about black people. Scout describes Jem’s attitude when she thinks, “Jem had probably stood as much gruff about Atticus lawing for n***** as much as I, and I took it for granted that he kept his temper” (102). This shows that although Jem had a pretty steady temper, he lost it when Mrs. Dubose said that Atticus was “no better than the n****** and trash he works for”. Jem, like his father didn’t discriminate against black people unlike the rest of the people in Maycomb. While he did get heated, it was because he stood up for Atticus and his beliefs which were to not judge black people. There was already so much prejudice in Maycomb and Jem regardless of his young age, stood up for what he thought was right and protected black people and his father. This lesson of standing up for what you think
When Aunt Alexandria is asked if Scout can have Walter Cunningham Jr. over for dinner again, Aunt Alexandra explains that since Walter is of lower status than them, he cannot come over. This makes Scout react in the following way: “I don’t know what I would’ve done, but Jem stopped me. He caught me by the shoulders, put his arm around me and led me sobbing in fury to his bedroom” (Lee 301). This kind of aggression shows Scout’s emotional confusion about societal discrimination, and she believes that she should be able to play with him regardless of societal status. Also, her physically aggressive reaction to discrimination shows that the only way she knows how to resolve problems is with physical aggression to things she does not understand. Additionally, Scout’s cousin Francis calls Atticus a “nigger-lover” multiple times. This causes Scout to react very aggressively as shown in the following passage: “This time, I split my knuckle to the bone on his front teeth. My left impaired, I sailed in with my right…” (112). Scout’s physical response reveals that when the honor of someone she loves is at stake, she will defend it as best as she can even though she does not fully understand the accusations in the first place. Also, her reaction displays that she believes in Atticus and therefore, she believes in what he does. She has been exposed to the Tom Robinson case enough to understand that it is defending a black man, and the fact that she defends her dad’s actions shows that she believes it is right as well. Scout’s aggressive reactions to the discrimination she faces in her town demonstrate her moral
At the beginning of the book, Scout was not a nice child. She had hard times controlling herself, and usually she was not able to. She knew Atticus wouldn't like it if he heard of her fighting, but still she fought a lot, like the time she got angry to Cecil Jacobs and fought him (pg. 99). She was also mean and rude, which can easily be seen as she got angry and protested it when Walter poured syrup all over his dinner (pg. 32). As she was young, she also was not able to look at things from other people's perspective. This could easily be seen in her first day of school, as she only saw things from her point of view, never caring about her teacher's perspective (pg. 26). Her youth also ...
Atticus treats everyone with fairness. He always hears both sides of the story. He does this after Scout has gotten into a fight with Francis Hancock. After a time Atticus hears Scout’s side of the story and realises that it wasn’t totally Scout’s fault. Scout also tells Uncle Jack that when she and Jem get into fights Atticus stops to hear both sides of the argument before placing the blame, if any.
In the beginning of the book, Scout is worrying about her teacher’s teaching methods. In addition, Scout is worried about getting in trouble. However, towards the end of the book, Scout is tackling serious world issues. She contemplates how not everyone has the same opportunities. Furthermore, she worries about African Americans being treated unjustly on a daily basis. After the Tom Robinson trial, the whole Finch family is upset, but they leave it to young Scout to showcase her maturity. Scout shows maturity when she states, “Atticus had used every tool available to free men to save Tom Robinson, but in the secret courts of men’s hearts Atticus had no case. Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed” (Lee 276). Scout saw the situation from Tom Robinson’s point of view and how he knew that he was a dead man because of the racist white jury. Earlier in the novel, she would not have been mature enough to think about the trial in that way and would not have understood such a challenging concept. After the trial, Scout starts thinking about others and what it would be like to walk a day in their shoes. This is showcased during a conversation with Jem when Scout says, “No, everybody’s gotta learn, nobody’s born knowin’. That Walter’s as smart as he can be, he just gets held back sometimes because he has to stay out
Chapter2: the Other in To Kill a Mockingbird I will refer to To Kill a Mockingbird by TKAM 2/1- Synopsis of the novel Ever since its publication in 1960, To Kill a Mockingbird has turned into one of the most widely-read novels in all of twentieth century American literature, and a noticeable work of social realism. Regardless of its universal plea, it is a novel set in a specific time and place. Though published in the 1960s at the elevation of the American Civil Rights Movement, the novel is set in the 1930s. The novel To Kill a Mockingbird principally revolves around a small family of three -- Atticus Finch, an attorney, and his two children, Scout and Jem.
Jems naïve views are soon corrupted as he goes through experiences like with Boo Radley, but Jem manages to grow in strength as he sheds his pure qualities and learns to have hope. Jem and Scouts childhood friend Dill represents another killing of a mockingbird, as his innocence is destroyed during his trial experience. Scouts childish views dissipates as she witnesses different events in her life, and she grows in experience and maturity as she encounters racial prejudice, making her learn how to maintain her pure conscience that Atticus has developed without losing hope or becoming cynical. Harper Lee’s novel explores human morality, as she weaves the path from childhood to a more adult perspective, illustrating the evils in a corrupt world how to understand them without losing
Despite cultures and conflicts, the fundamental bonds remain: We all belong to a common family. The book, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee is a timeless classic about coming of age in a small southern town in the 1930’s. The book follows Jem and Scout, two siblings, who must face the harsh realities of life. Hypocrisy and racism together make the two most important themes.