Examples Of The End Of Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

537 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Loss of innocence as a theme in to kill a mockingbird

The End of Innocence in To Kill a Mockingbird There are many themes throughout the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, and the one that will be addressed is the End of Innocence. In the novel, Scout and her older brother Jem, experiences these moments of some sort of loss of innocence. Scout experiences this theme during the Tom Robinson case, from meeting Boo Radley and from being criticized by others for being a tomboy during her childhood. Scout encounters the of end of innocence when her father, Atticus, decides to defend Tom Robinson. Many people in Maycomb did not like the fact that Atticus was going to defend a black man. Ever since Atticus made that decision, Scout hears people criticize her father, especially during Chapter 9, when she fights Cecil Jacobs because he announced that her father “defends ni**ers” and also attacks her cousin Francis, when he says “it ain't your fault if Uncle Atticus is a ni**er lover besides” . This also opened her eyes when she watched the trial and although Atticus made valid points, he still never won. As a result, this taught Scout that society can be grim and is not always fair. …show more content…

Throughout the novel she was scared yet curious about Boo Radley. Hearing rumors about him in chapter 1, about how he had a long scar across his face, yellow teeth and his eyes popped. Scout also heard other rumors about Arthur, for example in chapter 1, “He dined on raw squirrels and any cat he could catch”. Towards the end of the book, Scout has an epiphany once she met him and she finally realized that he is the one who would leave little gifts for her into the tree. Scout learned that she cannot judge someone without getting to know

Show More
Related

  • Examples Of Evil In To Kill A Mockingbird

    822 Words  | 2 Pages

    Throughout the book, To Kill A Mockingbird, Scout Finch learns a variety of concepts about the way the world really is. However the main concept that Scout discovers is the evil that surrounds her and her hometown of Maycomb. Scout discovers the evil in the world through her experiences in Maycomb and these are the events that help her grow and mature into who she is. Mainly, the trial of Tom Robinson opened Scout’s eyes to the evil and wrongdoings in the county, as well as in the courtroom. The trial gives way to the prejudice remarks about the Finch family’s involvement in the case. The trial of Tom Robinson, the county’s comments on Atticus’s involvement in the trial, and getting attacked at the end of the story

    Read More

  • Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

    2031 Words  | 5 Pages

    Innocence is defined as the state of being not guilty of a crime or other wrong act. The definition does not have any exceptions depending on race, age, gender or other physical characteristics. Yet in the south, the innocence of a guilty white man, is more important than the innocence of an innocent black man. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, is about a young girl named Scout who lives in Maycomb County, Alabama. The novel is separated into two parts, the first part is about the adventures of Boo Radley. While the second part is about the trial of Tom Robinson. In the first part of the novel, Scout along with her brother Jem and her friend Dill investigate the mysterious life of their neighbor, Boo Radley. Boo has not left

    Read More

  • Loss Of Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

    648 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Racism in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mocking Bird

    646 Words  | 2 Pages

    Atticus's battle for justice causes more problems for Scout. She is continually defending him but the racist remarks do not stop. These remarks just show how cruel children can be to other children. She feels the need to defend her father to Francis, her cousin. He was also taunting her with accusations: "At a safe distance her called, `He's nothin' but a nigger-lover'." The benign force of racism has disrupted their lives, especially Scouts, through the old fashioned and discriminative opinions of the younger residents of Maycomb.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

    1298 Words  | 3 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

    836 Words  | 2 Pages

    Scout learned a number of things in the book, but most of them all refer back to a statement that Atticus and Calpurnia said, which goes, “It’s a sin to kill a mockingbird because all they do is sing their hearts our for us.” (Lee, pg. 90). Scout learned that about people, too. She learned that some people don’t do anything to you, so it would be a sin to do something mean in return. Over the course of the story Scout becomes more mature and learns the most important facts of life. She was living through a very difficult time and most of that helped her get through.

    Read More

  • Loss of Innocence in To Kill a Mockingbird

    2420 Words  | 5 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Racism in To Kill A Mockingbird

    549 Words  | 2 Pages

    The hatred that the citizens of Maycomb felt towards the black community extended to anyone who became involved with them, especially the Finch family because Atticus was appointed to defend Tom Robinson. Scout and Jem suffered the most from this hatred because their peers were children, who are nearly always less candid than adults. Most of the people who were unhappy with Atticus would just try to keep away from him, which was bad enough. The children however, verbally abused Scout and Jem. Scout responded to this with physical violence, even though it was discouraged by her father. The sad thing is that they were mistreated even by members of their family, like Scout’s cousin Francis.

    Read More

  • Theme Of Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

    1191 Words  | 3 Pages

    Innocence and maturity comes with experiences and not with age. One’s childhood innocence is never lost, it simply plants the seed for the flower of maturity to bloom. It seems that almost every adult chooses to either forget or ignore this childhood vulnerability. But ironically, it was this quality that pushed them into adulthood in the first place. At the peak of their childhood, their post climactic innocence allows room for the foundation of maturity to to grow.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

    1307 Words  | 3 Pages

    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,

    Read More

  • The Significance of the Title of To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

    1068 Words  | 3 Pages

    I think that over the course of this novel Scout comes out to be quite clever and forever learning new morals and ways of life. By the end of the novel she has learnt one key lesson. That she must see thing's from other people's views. She shows this in the book in the last chapter when she is standing on Boo Radley's front porch. Here is the quote on what she said: "Atticus was right.

    Read More

  • To Kill A Mockingbird: Influences on Scout from Interactions w/ Others

    589 Words  | 2 Pages

    Scout learns that by yielding to prejudice, we often hurt and cause strife unto others. For example, Scout is harassed and becomes the target of insults when her father decides to defend Tom Robinson, a black man accused of raping a white woman. This is a plajurized essay. The hate felt towards black people by the majority of the Maycomb citizens causes them to bother and harass those who attempt to befriend the black people. Forgive me for stealing this essay. Scout realizes that the only reason she must undergo this torment is that her father is defending a black man, which has become taboo because of the corruption that racism has caused in many people. In addition, Scout watches Tom Robinson undergo unfair treatment and false accusations. Please dont tell my parents I stole this essay. Although Atticus provides the jury and the people of Maycomb with overwhelming evidence benefiting Tom, and ultimately proving him innocent, this is not enough to overcome the powers of hate and racism. Scout watches as the jury deliberates and convicts Tom Robinson of murder because he is a black man. This is a stolen essay. Although Scout witnesses a myriad of injustices occurring against black people, she also sees an exiguity of kind and compassionate movements towards black people.

    Read More

  • Examine the Themes of Innocence and Experience in To Kill a Mockingbird

    866 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Examples Of Life Lessons In To Kill A Mockingbird

    676 Words  | 2 Pages

    One way is when Atticus tells Scout not to judge Miss Caroline, her first grade teacher. Scout is very angry with Miss Caroline and thinks she is mean. Scout is told to walk around in Miss Caroline’s skin to see where she is coming from. Even though Scout doesn’t necessarily understand it, she realizes the meaning and is thoughtful with her judgment of new people.

    Read More

  • Life Lessons in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird

    778 Words  | 2 Pages

    A small city nestled in the state of Alabama, Maycomb has got its faults, just like any other place in the world, but one of its main faults or (pg.88) “Maycomb's usual disease,” as Atticus calls it in the book is prejudice. Jem and Scout learn a lot about prejudice when a black man named Tom Robinson is accused of raping a white woman named Mayella Ewell and their father, Atticus, is called on to be his lawyer. They realize the hate that people have buried deep within their heart when they see a black man accused of doing something only because of his color. On pg.241, Scout starts understanding this and thinks, “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.” As the case continues, up until the death of Tom Robinson, Jem and Scout learn more and more about prejudice and how the hate that people have towards others causes them to take wrong actions. They also see how unfair it is that a white man can get treated better and think of himself better than a black man only because he was born white. This prejudice and the trial cause Jem and Scout to get in argum...

    Read More

More about Examples Of The End Of Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

Open Document