The Boo Radley Story
The Boo Radley Story Boo Radley is a character that Harper Lee steers away from as far as information is concerned between the start and the end. We first hear of him in the second paragraph of the first chapter and over the next few chapters we are given pieces of stories about him to build up a picture of what him and what his mysterious life is like. Then through the second part of the book Boo is hardly ever mentioned until the very end. According to Jem, Dill was the one who had came up with the idea to make Boo come out. At this point in the book the children's minds are very quick to make assumptions about Boo and why he stays in his house. It is clear to see that when one story starts about the Radleys it gets exaggerated every time it gets told to another person (not helped by Miss Stephanie Crawford). So the amount of stories the children have heard with all these variations has led them to them believe that Boo is a crazy murderer who would cut your throat if he got the chance; and all this because of the one incident where he stuck scissors in his fathers leg. We find out that Boo then got in trouble with a gang and was to be sent to a strict school by the court but Mr Radley wouldn't have it and made Boo stay inside the house for the guts of the book. This obviously made Boo very bored and in chapter four is when he starts trying to communicate with the
To Kill a Mockingbird - Injustice
To Kill a Mockingbird Justice One of the themes in ' To Kill a Mockingbird' is injustice. I am going to show how other characters apart from Tom Robinson are affected by injustice. Two of the characters affected in this way are Boo Radley and Mayella Ewell. Boo got into the wrong group of friends and one night they stole a car and locked Mr. Conner in the courthouse out house. The judge decided to send them to a state industrial school but Mr. Radley thought this was a disgrace. He promised the judge that Boo would cause no further trouble and he would take care of it. The judge trusting Mr. Radley agreed and let him punish his son. His whole life is affected by the injustice he suffered when he was a child. Boo Radley is not seen to the end of the book and we are going on speculation and gossip. From the beginning we are told that Mayella lives behind a dump, which signifies her place in society. She has had a lot of responsibility from an early age. She has no friends and her father is an alcoholic. As with Boo Radleys relationship with his father, Mayella's with her father can be blamed to a certain extent for the situation she finds herself in. In both cases the fathers control them. People make unfair gossip about Boo e.g. 'Miss Stephanie claims that she once woke up to see Boo at her window'. This cannot be proven the writer uses 'claims' to show that it has not
Why did Lee take the title from this quote: "I'd rather you shoot at tin cans in the backyard, but I know you'll go after birds. Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember its a sin to kill a mockingbird?"
Why did Lee take the title from this quote: "I'd rather you shoot at tin cans in the backyard, but I know you'll go after birds. Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember its a sin to kill a mockingbird?" It may seem strange that the title of the book can come from a quote from Atticus regarding the children's handling of their air rifles, but the implications of this quote is profound. According to Miss Maudie, "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." Essentially, to kill a mockingbird is a sin because they don't affect us in anyway, and in many ways, the mockingbird brings pleasure to our lives by singing. Ultimately, the mockingbird mainly represents two characters in To Kill a Mockingbird. The first and more obvious character is Tom Robinson. Tom Robinson is a good and respectable man, and this impression comes through very strong from the few moments he appears in the book. He is extremely tactful, as can be seen from how he says that Mayella Ewell was "mistaken in her mind", careful not to offend the jury by saying that a white woman lied. Tom Robinson also tried "to help out" Mayella Ewell, and he did all this for "not one penny". Tom Robinson tries to
Crime and Punishment in the American South - Compare Tom Robinson's Punishment with that of Boo Radley.
Crime and Punishment in the American South: Compare Tom Robinson's Punishment with that of Boo Radley. In the era in which "To Kill a Mocking Bird" was set (1933-35) there was great prejudice in the American South. According to the Chambers dictionary "prejudice" is: "an opinion formed without careful thought: an unreasonable or unfair feeling (in favour of or against, something): injury, harm (e.g. to the prejudice of his own interests). To bias the mind of: to damage, spoil (e.g. This rash act prejudiced his chances of success)". In "To Kill a Mockingbird" the main prejudice is against black people but is also evident in white society with regard to status in the community. Tom Robinson was a black man accused of the rape of a white women - Mayella Ewell. The Ewell's were known as "White Trash"(a prime example of prejudice in white society). The children of the family were unruly and uneducated as they did not attend school and Mr Ewell was an unemployed citizen of Maycomb who let his eldest children look after the family. Mayella, the daughter of Mr Ewell, was in desperate need of some attention. Tom Robinson often did small jobs to help Mayella and her family. Tom was very considerate and did not mind helping others. Mayella lacked love and affection, which later on led her to ask Tom Robinson to kiss her, although Tom was a married man and a father of three. Tom
Many characters in the novel like Arthur Radley and Mayella Ewell suffer because of their fathers. Write about Atticus as a father and compare him to other fathers.
To Kill a Mockingbird 3rd March 2001 Many characters in the novel like Arthur Radley and Mayella Ewell suffer because of their fathers. Write about Atticus as a father and compare him to other fathers. In the novel there are children whose fathers do their best for them, fathers who seem to not care about their children and fathers who need their children at home restricting their learning possibilities. Whereas Atticus Finch not be the best father in the world, he is definitely not the worst, or anywhere near it. Atticus cares deeply about his children and does all he can to make sure they understand everything going on around them. Bringing up Jem and Scout has been made more difficult for him by the fact that their mother died and the nearest person to being a motherly figure to the children has been Calpurnia, the Finch's cook. This is no bad thing though because the children love Calpurnia although Scout sometimes thinks Calpurnia doesn't like her and Atticus could not have managed without her, "I couldn't have gotten along without her all these years. She's a faithful member of this family and you'll simply have to accept things the way they are." Atticus' disciplinary ways do not involve striking his children in anyway as he does not believe in that form of punishment, instead he makes sure the children know they have done wrong and sets a suitable chore for
Analysis of To Kill A Mockingbird from the aspects of literary elements and devices and the relevance of the themes in todays society
Analysis of “To Kill A Mockingbird” from the aspects of literary elements and devices and the relevance of the themes in today’s society The beauty of writing a novel lies in the idea where the author has an ultimate freedom to depict his or her perspective and interpretation towards certain subjects in boundless imagination. In the same context, “To Kill A Mockingbird” is the example of how an author assimilates the autobiographical element into the imagination thus results in the production of a splendid novel. Harper Lee, who is the writer of the novel, delivers an intriguing account of her childhood life through the character of Jean Louise Finch or frequently referred as Scout and her timeless masterpiece centres around major themes that are still relevant in today’s society. A theme can be defined as the fundamental and often universal idea explored in a literary work (Ward, 2002). One of the pivotal themes in the novel is upholding the goodness. Initially, the readers must be wondering about the significance of the title “To Kill A Mockingbird” that shows little connection with the plot. The title is actually a symbolism used rather extensively in the novel. Mockingbird is a harmless bird which lives in tranquility and entertains people by singing beautifully. During Christmas, when Jem and Scout receive air guns as a present, Atticus warned his
Courage in "To Kill a Mockingbird"
Courage in "To Kill a Mockingbird" What is courage? How do YOU define courage? Hollywood, as usual, tends to get it wrong. Courage is not the bravado gun-slinging action hero type figure. A better definition of courage can be found in "To Kill a Mockingbird" through the actions of an old woman who overcomes her drug addiction, not because it is easy but because it is hard, an African American who helps out a young white woman, despite the dangers this presents in a southern town during the 1930's and by Atticus Finch, a lawyer who dares to defy the immoral standards of society when he truly defends an African American man on trial for rape. Mrs. Dubose was very courageous despite being a nasty, stubborn, mean-spirited old woman. She always stayed true to her beliefs, albeit they were old-fashioned and downright unpopular. Most courageous of her deeds was her sheer will to rid herself of her drug affliction. She inspired Atticus to call her "...the bravest person I ever knew." Atticus sees Dubose as a good person because she was willing to suffer so much to fight the good fight. Atticus says that courage is "...when you know your licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and you see it through, no matter what." Overall Mrs. Dubose was not a nice person but with her quality of courage, she was still a "good" individual in the end. Tom Robinson was courageous to help
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee How does Harper lee use literary techniques, such as characterization, to express the theme of the novel: prejudice? "It's a sin to kill a mockingbird." This is a quotation from the novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee. It is spoken by Atticus Finch and it expresses one of the main themes of the novel. A mockingbird is a harmless bird that makes the world more pleasant. In To Kill a Mockingbird, the mockingbird symbolizes both Boo Radley and Tom Robinson, who were both peaceful people who never caused any harm to anyone. Scouts father tells her and her brother Jem, killing or harming them would be wrong. The mockingbird comes to represent the idea of innocence and in the novel there are many ways in which we see innocence destroyed by evil. The story is narrated by Jean Louise Finch (Scout), who is the daughter of Atticus Finch. The story is set in an Alabama town in the 1930's. The reader learns that when Jem, Scout's brother, was 13 when his arm was badly broken at the elbow. Jem was assured that he could still play football and so his arm did not really bother him. Year's later Jem and his sister still talk about the accident and the events leading up to it. They finally agree that it had all started the summer that they tried to get Arthur "Boo" Radley to come out of his house. He was a mysterious, reclusive neighbor and
To Kill a Mockingbird Themes
Ahmed El Wakeel 1/1/2012 To Kill a Mockingbird Final Essay There are many controversial novels that have been written and published throughout time; most of those were captivating, insightful and breathe-taking. Such novels always touch on significant and important controversial factors such as the portrayal of certain group, or hate crimes. But, the peculiar combination in a novel is when a family novel touches and illustrates a numerous amount of controversial factors in society. Such controversial factors may exist to this day and others were long dead. The novel that includes this very combination is the respectable Pulitzer Prize winner To Kill a Mockingbird by the magnificent and extremely talented author Harper Lee. To Kill a Mockingbird does focus on symbolizing and illustrating many notorious things in society either contemporary or not. Disregarding the mesmerizing plot of the novel, we can state that the author, Harper Lee, mainly focuses on signifying culture and society at that time which explains the fact that the novel had been numerously challenged by organizations and others to be removed from libraries or other places where the novel is obtainable and available to the people. In my opinion, the elements of this very book that touch on
Who is Atticus Finch? What is his purpose in Maycomb? Carefully and thoroughly, Harper Lee illustrates Atticuss respectable character through describing his actions and words in his roles as a lawyer and a father
"Who am I?" "What is my purpose on this planet?" These are questions each individual encounters in the course of his or her life. As authors create characters and the fantasy worlds they live in, they must place themselves in the shoes of their characters and answer these questions. Only when these questions have been answered with careful consideration can an author create a round character that his or her readers can relate to. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee demonstrates this skill in her development of Atticus's character. In the novel, besides giving the most direct physical descriptions, she creates Atticus's character not only by showing Atticus's actions, words, and beliefs, but also by showing bystanders' views of his performance in the two most important roles Atticus serves: an impartial lawyer and a caring father which gives insight about his personality as a whole. In the small town of Maycomb, Atticus is as a nondiscriminatory and respectable lawyer, a respect which he rightfully earns through his efforts and beliefs. Because his job is a very important aspect of his life and his character, Harper Lee uses this role to develop Atticus's character. As a lawyer, Atticus has many strong beliefs about what is lawfully acceptable-most important of which are justice, truth, and equality. "The one place where a man ought to get a square deal is in a courtroom."