Essay on To Kill A Mockingbird

Her widowed father, Atticus Finch, is a lawyer who also raises Scout’s older brother Jem — Jeremy Finch. Jem, Scout, and their friend Dill Harris are curious about the life of Arthur “Boo” Radley, who lives nearby and never leaves his house.

Atticus Finch is ambitious to fight for innocent, Tom Robinson and remains persistent in his efforts. He revolts against society and follows his own principles to fight against inequality. Atticus’s ambition grows so strong that he faces the wrath and anger of Maycomb, a place, where he is once respected and admired.

To Kill A Mockingbird Courage Theme

Bob feels anger from the trial because Atticus ruined any credibility he had. Thankfully, Arthur Radley intervenes and saves Jem and Scout. Although no one knows what happened to Bob, in the end, everyone assumes he ‘fell on his knife’ and are happy for the outcome. The story ends with Atticus and the children safe and the evil doer Bob, dead.

The author’s depiction of such a community structure is symbolic of the social hierarchy, which defines the standards of living for each social class. The social hierarchy also influences the dispensation of public goods such as justice and opportunities, where often the systems in place work in favor of the rich while compromising on the good of the poor. The novel is also about the maturation of kids in an adult world and their protest against bias. Jem and Scout Finch take the road from innocence and blind faith in the community norms to knowledge and their own believes through valuable life lessons. Firstly, they judged people trusting communal bias towards people. Later, as they face the harsh realities of life, they change their minds. As Bob Ewell attempted to kill kids with the knife, Boo Radley, the person they thought was a monster, protected them from the assault.

The Coexistence of Good and Evil

The story, told by the six-year-old Jean Louise Finch, takes place during three years (1933–35) of the Great Depression in the fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama, the seat of Maycomb County. Nicknamed Scout, she lives with her older brother Jeremy, nicknamed Jem, and their widowed father Atticus, a middle-aged lawyer. They also have a black cook, Calpurnia, who has been with the family for many years and helped Atticus raise the two children. ‘Theme’ is a universal idea presented in a literary piece of work.

She portrays the problems of individual characters as universal underlying issues in every society. To Kill a Mockingbird is a Pulitzer Prize winning novel created in 1960 by Harper Lee. It is based on a true story and was witnessed by the author when she was a little girl. It also showcases how children caught up in these issues have their own morals, show courage, and resist social and racial injustices. Children play with each other, look for adventures just outside their houses, grow up, and take care of each other. The treatment of prejudice in To Kill a Mockingbird is not only simplistic in terms of morality, but also in terms of perspective.

A Comparison of Justice in Harper Lees To Kill A Mockingbird and Charles Dickens Great ExpectationsAnonymoush Grade

He gives a speech at the Christmas celebration held at a black church Calpurnia also attends. He says that he will defend Tom despite the city’s repulsion.

• The novel was nonetheless enormously popular with contemporary audiences.
• Jones writes, “he real mad dog in Maycomb is the racism that denies the humanity of Tom Robinson … When Atticus makes his summation to the jury, he literally bares himself to the jury’s and the town’s anger.”
• The novel was praised for its sensitive treatment of a child’s awakening to racism and prejudice in the American South.
• Years ago, Boo got into trouble with the law, and his father forbid him to leave the house.

I decided to reread the trial from To Kill a Mockingbird and compare it to the trial in A Lesson Before Dying. The obvious connection is that black men are to kill a mockingbird theme essays convicted of crimes that they evidently did not commit. However, since the men live in racist communities, they are essentially guilty until proven…

Jem and Gender, Calpurnia and Race: Challenging and Defying Stereotypes in To Kill a MockingbirdAnonymoush Grade

No seat is available on the main floor, but the Rev. Sykes, the pastor of Calpurnia’s church, invites Jem, Scout and Dill to watch from the colored balcony. It is revealed that Mayella made sexual advances toward Tom, resulting in her being beaten by her father.

Justice and its relationship with prejudice is the central theme of the timeless 1960 novel, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. Its focal point is the trial of Tom Robinson, an African-American erroneously charged with the rape of a white girl, Mayella Ewell. As a youthful and curious child, the small town that Scout Finch lived in seemed like the what is the first step to creating an informative essay world. Since the book To Kill a Mockingbird was set in the south during the course of the 1930s, where she lived included a lot of prejudice and… As a story based on The Great Depression, the time period shapes many aspects of life that contrast widely to that of today’s society. The 1930’s in the south was an era of inequality in many ways.

Analysis of Kids Protest Against Social Pressure

The film, on the other hand, is a courtroom drama that happens to include something about the lead attorney’s home life. In its film version, To Kill a Mockingbird only touches on the issues of femininity. The movie never gets into Maycomb’s caste system, so viewers don’t necessarily know that the Ewells are considered to be “trash.” Film also often introduces new characters to help develop the story line. In the film, Scout and Jem have a conversation about their deceased mother which brings her alive for the viewers; the book devotes a single paragraph to her. His father isn’t mentioned in the book, and his children receive only a brief mention. A film has less time to tell its story and therefore often concentrates the events of a story into fewer characters; when a book makes the transition to film, characters and their actions are often combined.

• Because so many lived through economic hardship during this era, many carried their anger and rage with them, expressing it in ways that would hurt themselves or others.
• The justification for sin, in this case, is that the birds are of value to humanity on account of their hearty singing.
• Atticus has always been the children’s main influence, however as they start school they begin to have more experiences outside of the home and their family life.
• Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, is a realistic story that deeply discusses issues involved with the 1930’s that still resonate today.

Tom Robinson is avenged, although that does not help his wife or children. The Finch children are wiser, and perhaps sadder, but alive to tell the tale and change the world for the better. African-Americans are not any farther along, but there is some recognition of their worth as people (Shuman, 2002, p. 551). Also, Harper Lee portrays Scout as a tomboy rather than a “proper Southern lady.” She is outraged by the attempts to alter her behavior to fit the social norms. They had to be graceful and delicate, and that’s precisely what Scout abhors. The girl loves to run around, jump, and play with boys rather than with girls. She often gets into fights and shows no interest in dolls, dresses, and other girlish things.

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The second incident of racism involves Atticus and his defense of Tom. He decides to stand with Tom because he believes his innocence. In chapter nine, scout’s classmate, Cecil Jacob, announces that Scout’s father is defending a ‘negro’ which causes a brawl between Scout and Cecil. Racism has poisoned the atmosphere so much that Scout forgets her promise and loses her temper. The association of this incident becomes prominent for supporting an innocent. Throughout the novel, Scout is portrayed as an innocent, naive child who is learning about the harsh realities of the world. The novel shows the importance of maintaining one’s innocence in the face of injustice and prejudice.

Calpurnia was the mother figure, however, Aunt Alexandra’s arrival marked a change, especially for Scout. Unlike Calpurnia, who allows Scout to be a tomboy and express herself how she wants, Aunt Alexandra wants Scout to be more feminine and adhere to the expectations of society. It is an unfortunate part of American history, but it is one that Harper Lee wanted to include and emphasize in her story. The law is not there to protect everyone and to see justice be served. The American government has chosen to be act cruelly towards people of color for centuries, allowing slavery, institutionalized racism, and segregation.

FAQs on To kill a MockingbirdTKAM Essay

The end of the novel shows that Atticus was able to survive the odds and regain his lost dignity and respect. Hence, the theme proves that being ambitious for the right cause will lead anyone to victory. The Finch family through the introduction of Aunt Alexandra sees support and comfort brought in during and after the Robinson trial to serve as a means of grounding for Atticus and his two children. While Calpurnia acted as the mother for Jem and Scout, Aunt Alexandra came in around the middle of the story and left her husband and the Finch family homestead to live with her brother and two children. When the trial commences, it is her testimony that allows for the all-white jury to condemn Robinson even with all the mounting evidence in his favor. It is here one sees the bond of family experienced by the Ewells and carried over to the Finch family.

Scholars believe that Robinson’s difficulties reflect the notorious case of the Scottsboro Boys, in which nine black men were convicted of raping two white women on negligible evidence. However, in 2005, Lee stated that she had in mind something less sensational, although the Scottsboro case served “the same purpose” to display Southern prejudices. The benefit of film is that viewers get to see the characters. And characters can say things with facial expressions, hand gestures, and posture that an author must describe to readers. Many people enjoy the advantage of being able to visualize a character; however, viewers can be thrown out of the story if the actor playing the part doesn’t fit the reader’s vision of the character. For instance, the actress who plays Miss Maudie is thin, much younger, and more conventional than Scout describes in the book, which takes some of the bite out of the character.