Some Things Never Change
Humans have been around for hundreds of thousands of years. But some things, no matter how much time goes by, stay constant. Harper Lee 's “To kill a mockingbird” was written 55 years ago, and the lessons that can be learned from this novel can still be integrated into people 's everyday lives. Now, although the situations in this book may not be relevant in your life today, the morals behind these situations can still be applied. The most important morals that you can take away from “To kill a mockingbird” are that you shouldn’t judge a book by it 's cover, you shouldn’t kill a mockingbird, and that you should be courageous.
Boo Radley is a cat, squirrel, furniture, and finger eating six and a half foot tall monster;
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For the majority of the book, Scout and Jem are terrified of Boo due to the things that they’ve heard about him. But what they don’t know, is that he’s really quite a nice guy who just wants to have a relationship with them. For example, when Jem is running out of Boo’s backyard he has to jump a fence, and in the process he tears his pants and they come off him. When he goes back to retrieve his pants, he finds them folded neatly over the fence with the tears sewed up. Now, you may be asking yourself “How do I know Boo was the one to sew and fold the pants?” The book indicates that Boo was the one to fix up the pants because Jem states “When I went back, they were folded across the fence... and somethin’ else… they 'd been sewed up. Not like a lady sewed ‘em, like somethin’ I’d try to do. All crooked…” Also, at the beginning of the novel Scout and Jem find items placed inside a knot in a tree. They are placed there by Boo, because he wants to have a relationship with the children. Among those items are a watch, a pack of gum, a ball of grey twine, scrubbed and polished pennies, a spelling bee medal, 2 pieces of chewing gum, and …show more content…
Well, interestingly enough, the lesson that you shouldn’t kill a mockingbird happens to be one of the biggest lessons you can take away from this novel. Among others, Atticus, Scout, Jem, and Helen Robinson could all be considered mockingbirds. You might be asking yourself why any person would be considered a mockingbird. A metaphorical mockingbird is someone who is innocent, and who contributes to society. "Atticus said to Jem one day, 'I 'd rather you shot at tin cans in the back yard, but I know you 'll go after birds. Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it 's a sin to kill a mockingbird. '"That was the only time I ever heard Atticus say it was a sin to do something, and I asked Miss Maudie about it." 'Your father 's right, ' she said. '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’(74, 75).” You could consider Atticus to be a mockingbird, because he was helping an innocent man who got accused of something he didn’t do, and as a result had a lot of people turn against him. Scout and Jem could be considered mockingbirds, because they had nothing to do with Tom Robinson or his trial, yet they got attacked by Bob Ewell because their father was defending a black man. Helen Robinson could also be considered
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...
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.
Among the many plots within the story, many of them surround Boo Radley or attempting to have Boo Radley come out of his house. In these stories show Jem, Scout, and Dill are terrified of the Radley house and what be inside. However, they are mistaken, for Boo Radley wants to do the exact opposite of scaring the children. For example, Boo tries to show friendship to Scout and Jem by leaving them gifts in the tree outside of his house. These gifts include dolls, gum, a knife, a watch, etc. Boo also is thought to have wrapped Scout in a blanket during the chapter in which Miss Maudie’s house had burned down. Boo Radley is thought to have done it because Atticus says “Boo Radley. You were so busy looking at the fire you didn’t know it when he put the blanket around you.” (Lee 96) supporting the fact that Boo Radley was looking out for Scout. Lastly, Boo Radley saved Scout and Jem when they were attacked by Bob Ewell. This heroic effort was not only full of care, but also, full of
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...
As the story progresses, Boo becomes more of a symbol of kindness and bravery than that of the "town freak" which he is made out to be. Boo leaves presents for the children in the hollow trunk of an old tree, as well as covers Scout with a blanket during Miss Maudie's fire. However, it is not until he saves Jem and Scout's life from the hands of the deranged Mr. Ewell, that Boo shows his true heroic character. Even though Boo is a physically weaker man, he shows no fear when it comes to protecting Jem and Scout's life.
The next sign of Boo is when he put things in the knothole for Jem and Scout. Jem and Scout didn't know who it was putting the little items for them in the knothole. Boo put rather strange things in the knothole for example a pocket watch, medal and chewing gum but the weirdest was 2 human-like carvings made from soap. Jem and Scout realised that the figures were figures of them. They thought that Boo was watching them. After the finding of the soap figures, Mr Nathan Radley filled the knothole with cement so that Boo couldn't leave any more items for them.
No matter where or who a person is, they are always learning something, either about themselves or about the environment around them. In Harper Lee's heartwarming novel titled To Kill A Mockingbird, the main characters Jem and Scout grow and mature throughout the story as they learn both more about themselves and the world around them. As the story progresses, they learn many life lessons including those about prejudice, people and how they have been categorized and judged, and, last but not least, gender issues.
Scout’s ideas of him reflect her maturity as she grows throughout the novel. At the beginning of the novel, he is imagined as six and a half feet tall with bloodstained hands from the animals he caught before eating raw. He also had a jagged scar that ran across his face, the few teeth he had were rotten, and his eyes popped. Then, after trials and triumphs, tears and laughter, Scout sees him as he really is; a gaunt, timid figure; the complete opposite of the monster she had imagined. Her mental picture of Boo shows how she develops throughout the course of the
As Scout grows, she starts to see Boo as a person, as apposed to some sort of an evil creature. By stopping her games, and the tormenting of Boo, she shows respect for him and shows dignity in herself.
The novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, takes place during a racially intense time in history. Harper Lee’s novel was intended to bring a harsh sense of reality to the real world, and demonstrate how it really was during this time in history. This novel is set in Maycomb, Alabama, somewhere during the time period of 1925-1935. Times were hard for the citizens of Maycomb during this period, because of the depression. There are many fictional events in this novel related to non-fictional racial events in history.
Boo is later found out to be nothing more than what he really is; an innocent man who is afraid of facing the evils of society. For example, he enjoyed playing with Jem and Scout, which is proved early in the book when he leaves gums and two pieces of indian head coins in the oak tree. Boo also protected Jem and Scout when the time came. Although he was afraid, he defended Scout and Jem, and made sure they got home safe. Boo Radley represents a misjudged innocent man in Harper Lee’s To Kill A
In Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird" shows and teaches many lessons throughout the passage. Some characters that learn lessons in this passage are Scout, Jem, and Dill. Scout and Jems father Atticus, is taking a case that affects their lives in so many ways. They all learn new things throughout the story and it impacts their lives greatly. There are lots of things including the trial mostly that change the perspective of the world they live in. The kids are living in the Great Depression and it shows just how bad things really where. Scout, Jem, and Dill have experiences that force them to mature and gain new insight.
He states, “Scout, you never really understand people until you consider things from their point of view- until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” (39). This means how sometimes unless you are someone you can’t fully understand them and how they feeling and behaving. Atticus explains to Scout that caring about others will help Scout understand them more. It will help Scout further understand why something may be happening. Also, Miss Maudie also explains how the Mockingbirds in the trees help further understand life lessons. Miss Maudie states, “Mockingbirds don’t do nothing but make music for us to enjoy… they don’t do one thing but sing our hearts out for us” (119). This means how in life, people shouldn’t naturally hate someone or something. People need to be able to care and have empathy for others. People in the book become the characteristic of mockingbirds. For example, Boo Radley. Boo doesn’t do anything to annoy or harm people, but the children decide to
The knot-holed tree housing the pocket watch and the ball of yarn portrayed on the cover is another signifier for the child's world. The tree is on the edge of the Radley property and the pocket watch and ball of yarn within it were placed there by Boo Radley. Boo is an instrumental character to the make believe child's world because of the great ambiguity and elusiveness that he represents. Neither Scout, Jem nor Dill has ever seen Boo Radley; all they know about him are the stories they have heard from Miss Stephanie Crawford, their neighbor and potentially reliable source.
...hildren: he left them toys in the knothole and put a blanket around Scout’s shoulders when she was outside in the cold. Though they probably were unaware, Boo looked out for them. If Boo had not stopped Bob Ewell from getting to the children on their way home from the Halloween pageant, he probably would have killed them. Added to these things, Boo’s madness played an important part in Scout’s growing up and maturing. Meeting Boo, talking to him, and standing on his porch looking at the neighborhood through his eyes really enabled Scout to learn to stand in someone else’s shoes and look at things from others’ points of view.