Feminism In To Kill A Mockingbird

What does it mean to be a “lady” in the American South during the 1930’s? Southern Literature is rife with stereotypes of the feminine ideal--a woman of genteel and refined “background” who is devoted and utterly subservient “to her man.” In To Kill a Mockingbird (1960), Harper Lee deconstructs that ideal by proposing an alternate version of womanhood. The story traces the experiences of her narrator, Scout as she learns to navigate the complexities of traditional norms, customs, and values. As a six year-old who is fond of fighting, swearing, and wearing overalls, she is finally expected to start acting like a lady; by eliminating those acts, and replacing them with that feminine ideal. Pushing through the pressure of unwanted advice about being more delicate, Scout’s family and neighbors are able to bring the maturity that follows with being a woman out of her. She learns how to empathize with her others living near her, all the while dealing with social problems occurring in her town on …show more content…
Scout Finch continuously pursues to be the dynamic person she is, even though much of the society around her is against it. To Kill a Mockingbird shows the cultural norms of the 1930’s, and how women were expected to act during this time. Society thought that females were only females if they looked presentable, and acted modest. Before Boo Radley was confined, Boo was in an alleged gang. In court the group of fifteen year-old boys got in trouble for “using abusive and profane language in the presence and hearing of a female… Mr.Conner said they cussed so loud he was sure every lady in Maycomb heard them” (12). Since females were presumed to be modest, Scout had many things she had to fix. Scout started to curse early in the book unlike other girls her age, whose mouth might not even know the curse words. This leaves Scout’s opposing figures in despair as they realize that Scout will not