In this essay I will be exploring Jem and Scout's journey to maturity throughout the novel; To Kill a Mockingbird
How effectively does Harper Lee present the children and growing up in To Kill A Mockingbird? In this essay I will be exploring Jem and Scout's journey to maturity throughout the novel; To Kill a Mockingbird. I will look at the techniques Harper Lee use and how well they work in portraying their growth to maturity. I will also explore influences on the children and the tree main themes in this novel: education, bravery and prejudice. The main them is prejudice which will be looked at in more detail. Jem and Scout represent a typical youth, naivety and innocence. In the first chapter, page 8, Scout says: 'Thereafter the summer passed in routine contentment. Routine contentment was: improving our treehouse that rested between giant twin chinaberry trees in the backyard, fussing, running through our list of dramas based on the works of Oliver Optic, Victor Appleton and Edgar Rice Burroughs' They have no worries through the summer and have fun. The phrase 'routine contentment' is repeated in the passage which gives the effect that this is what they usually do in the summer and were satisfied with the events they do. These are all things people generally do in their childhood and in summer. Some of the things they do seem to be menial such as 'fussing' which also seems quite childish. The atmosphere of summer is created by what they do. In summer it is a time for relaxing; with
Discuss Harper Lee's portrayal of the black community in To Kill A Mockingbird
Discuss Harper Lee's portrayal of the black community in To Kill A Mockingbird To Kill A Mockingbird is set in the nineteen thirties, a time when racism was very common and, in America, the Ku Klux Klan were operating, having been reactivated in nineteen fifteen. At that time, despite their loss of the civil war and acceptance (though unwilling) of the Thirteenth Amendment, the Southern states were continuing to practice racism. Many Southern landowners were determined to keep cheap black labour. However, they were not the worst off, as the Southern whites, who were at the bottom of the heap, were threatened by the rising place of black people and became the least respected of people. In the novel, the black community is portrayed very positively, as they are shown as reacting in an absolutely non-violent way to the racist abuse that they suffer, behaving passively and even still helping white people. In this way, they are portrayed as 'heroes'. Despite some dispute over just how realistic this view was, this was undoubtedly Harper Lee's intention as to what we are meant to think of the black community. The novel is about a white man defending a black man in court, something considered "wrong" at the time and something that would have made the lawyer a public enemy. It is narrated by a little girl and this gives the novel an interesting take on racism, as she does not
To Kill a Mocking Bird Essay. In the book, To kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee highlights the meaning of the narrative using novel standpoint, structure and irony. Harper Lee investigates the absurd attitudes of adults towards race and status
EN3UO Mr. Miller June 16, 2009 To Kill a Mockingbird An innocent child is unaware of the realities of the world until they witness through experiences and teachings, ethics and morals. A book, in the same way, consists of characters, whose experiences, feelings and thoughts convey a subtle theme or message that is usually ethically accurate. The theme represents the controlling idea of the book and the central purpose for which the author decided to write the novel. The theme of the book is usually what the author wants the reader to take away from the book. As a crucial element of a novel, the way in which the author generates the meaning of the book is significant. The author can express the theme effectively not only through the characters present in the novel but also through specific writing styles, the focus being form and text. In the book, "To kill a Mockingbird", Harper Lee highlights the meaning of the narrative using novel standpoint, structure and irony. Harper Lee investigates the absurd attitudes of adults towards race and status in the Deep South in the 1930s through the eyes of Scout Finch. The novel illustrates the conscience of a town that is suffused in prejudice, violence and hypocrisy, which is understood through a black man's struggle for justice. Harper Lee mainly emphasizes the irrationality of prejudice thoughts of a town, along with other themes
To Kill a Mocking Bird. In this essay, I will explore the ways in which family relationships are presented, specifically within the Cunningham, the Radley and Ewell families and will refer to the language devices and techniques used to explore theses rela
Set in the 1930's, Harper Lee's "To Kill a Mockingbird" features four main families that are text book examples of the adversities within the moral and social ladder in the "tired old town" of Maycomb Alabama. These differences within their backgrounds has an effect on their use of language and the ways in which they interact with one another and their surrounding society. Harper Lee's clever use of language serves as a means of revealing the differences between families, creating atmosphere giving the reader a sense of authenticity and a way of enhancing and supporting key themes such as racial injustice and inequality. In this essay, I will explore the ways in which family relationships are presented, specifically within the Cunningham, the Radley and Ewell families and will refer to the language devices and techniques used to explore theses relationships. The evidently troubled Ewell family "lived as guests of the county in prosperity as well as in the depths of a depression" as a result of the Wall Street crash in 1929. They are illustrated to be severely disadvantaged - mentally and physically- by their "congenital defects" and suffer at the hands of "the diseases indigenous to filthy surroundings" as established by Scout's humorous and ironic first person narrative. This morbid description of the Ewells allows the reader to sympathise with the family as they must
Youth is just a biological stage" evaluate this claim
“Youth is just a biological stage- evaluate this claim” Youth is a period that is between childhood and adulthood. It is a term that people define in different ways and also apply to different age groups and many people argue that youth is a biological stage due to the changes going on in a child’s body and mind during puberty. However, many argue that youth is social constructed, due to influences on children such as the media and peer pressure from their friends. Youth can be defined as a biological stage for many reasons. One of the reasons is that biologically all youth go through hormonal changes at puberty. During this time young people will experience changes in their behaviour, tending to have mood swings and sometimes having lots of different emotions going through their minds. Whether they have the influence of others or not their attitudes towards different things will change and they will start to see things in different ways as they get older. Many teenagers will also go through times of being unsure about themselves, questioning things about their looks and appearance and might be irritable about themselves. All these things tend to happen no matter their influences. However, youth is not just a biological stage and although children grow physically their minds also, nowadays it appears that youth may be more related to ‘transition’ and change.
Describe and Evaluate features of one approach to Psychopathology
Describe and Evaluate features of one approach to Psychopathology Psychopathology is the study of psychological disorders, their natures and causes. One approach to psychopathology is the psychodynamic approach; literally an approach that explains the dynamics of behaviour-what motivates a person. Freud suggested that unconscious forces and early experience are the prime motivators. There are some key features to this methodology, the first being that when you repress memories for too long and do not deal with them you can develop psychological disorders known as neurosis. These can manifest as panic attacks, hysterical behaviour, phobias, compulsive or obsessive behaviour. Repressing memories does not mean to make the issues go away; it means to bottle up any bad memories from the persons past and try to forget them. The memories continue to haunt and affect normal day to day behaviour, which becomes neurotic behaviour. According to Freud many of the repressed memories began in childhood and remain in frozen unconscious. Sigmund Freud believed that much of our behaviour is motivated by our unconscious desires. . Freud believed that the mind was made up of an id- unconscious mind, ego-conscious mind and the superego- imposes a moral standard to our thoughts. The id contains Eros and Thenatos. This is the life and death wish. Abnormal behaviour was seen as being caused by
A Person has the Choice to end their Life when they Wish - Discuss
'A person has the right to end their life when they wish' - Discuss By Luke Warner Throughout history, the act of committing suicide has been punished in almost every country in the world; however in modern society it is becoming more and more acceptable. According to the online dictionary, suicide is "Intentionally taking one's own life"1. While this definition is in almost all situations correct, many disagree with the ethics of suicide, and therefore it is a controversial topic. However an equally hot subject is the fact that in Britain, Suicide is legal under legislation, while euthanasia or assisting somebody else's suicide is not, and as a result fierce debating has raged on over these questionable laws 2. The following paragraphs will discuss various cases to do with suicide and euthanasia, present the arguments for and against suicide, and attempt to decide whether it is one's right to end their life whenever they want. As in the majority of nations, Euthanasia is illegal, and in this country punishable by 14 years imprisonment. Unlike suicide, Euthanasia is the act putting to death painlessly or allowing to die, as by withholding extreme medical measures, a person or animal suffering from an incurable, especially a painful disease, or condition3. However slightly bizarrely, suicide is not a criminal offence under the Suicide Act 1961. And even more unusually, it is
Freud's' psychodynamic approach attempts to explain what drives or motivates personality development
Freud's' psychodynamic approach attempts to explain what drives or motivates personality development. He suggested that an individual is driven to satisfy biological urges and theses motives cause us to interact with the environment, so that early experiences play an important role. Freud identified three different parts of the mind, which are based on our level of awareness; conscious, preconscious, and subconscious mind. The conscious mind is where we are currently in focus of attention at the moment. The preconscious consists of things which we are aware, but we are not paying our full attention. These thoughts can easily be brought into the conscious mind if chosen to do so. It is possible to control our awareness to a certain extent. The subconscious level consists of content that is out of direct reach of the conscious mind. The subconscious thinks and acts independently. One of Freud's key findings was that much behaviour is driven directly from the subconscious mind. This has the alarming consequence that we are largely unable to control our behaviour. Freud also went on to describe the human personality as being structured into three parts, the Id, Ego and Superego. He explained that an individual's feelings, thoughts, and behaviours are the result of the interaction of the id, the superego, and the ego. This creates conflict which in turn creates anxiety, which
Compare how the past reveals feelings about a place in Nothings Changed with the ways another poet reveals feelings about a place or places in one other poem.
Essay Question: Compare how the past reveals feelings about a place in "Nothing's Changed" with the ways another poet reveals feelings about a place or places in one other poem. Nobody can help have feelings- they are a part of everyone. We feel differently towards an issue as different things happen to us. Feelings do not change with time. What we feel as a child stays with us even when we are older. Feelings can be positive or negative. The poets Tatamkhula Afrika and Grace Nichols are both trying to deliver a similar message about feelings. In the poem Nothing's changed, the poet is feeling anger towards the white people even though the Apartheid had been finished. "District Six. No board say it.... And the hot, white, inward turning anger of my eyes." This shows that the poet is feeling ferocity towards the People in District Six. This can be said because "District Six" has been written as a short, expletive sentence, which is full of anger. "No board says it: but my feet know" This shows that even though Apartheid has ended and all the boards which differentiate the black community from the white community have been removed, the poet still feels secluded from the community. "And my hands, and the skin about my bones, and the soft labouring of my lungs, and the hot, white, inward turning anger of my eyes." This shows that as he is walking along, his anger is
Lord of the Flies, on the surface, may resemble any other children adventure story. Beyond its literal sense, however, it actually has a lot more to offer: it is an attempt to unfold the superficiality and fragility of civilization, a pessimistic an
"And in the middle of them, with filthy body, matted hair, and unwiped nose, Ralph wept for the end of innocence, the darkness of man's heart, and the fall through the air of the true, wise friend called Piggy..." Written in 1954, when the world was trapped in a state of utter confusion and disarray as a result of the aftermath left by World War Two as well as the unpredictable conditions brought by the Cold War, William Golding's "Lord of the Flies" is an allegorical novel that centers on the darkest depths of human souls. "Lord of the Flies", on the surface, may resemble any other children adventure story. Beyond its literal sense, however, it actually has a lot more to offer: it is an attempt to unfold the superficiality and fragility of civilization, a pessimistic and dark commentary on our innate human nature and a downright challenge to the deep-rooted societal belief that children, British children in particular, must be naturally virtuous. Such unprecedented thematic focus, together with the extraordinary degrees of political realism portrayed symbolically in the novel, make "Lord of the Flies" a truly brilliant, remarkable and ground-breaking classic of all time. The novel opens with a group of British schoolboys who find themselves stranded on an unidentified Pacific island after a serious plane crash. With no adult surviving the crash, the boys are left to fend
