To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee, shows the growth and maturity of brother and sister Jem and Scout. Jem, being the older and more responsible sibling, changes and adapts much faster than Scout. Jem starts off as a playful, naive 10 year old boy, and under the good parenting of Atticus, re-emerges at the end as a mature and responsible young man. One aspect Jem changes is his view on bravery, starting off with a childish concept of courage, and evolving to having a different form of bravery: moral courage. Jem also grasps the concept of Boo Radley’s loneliness as he matures through the story. His ridiculous perceptions of Boo Radley are evident in the games he lead in the earlier part of his childhood. However, Jem later realizes what Boo is going
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One final lesson Jem picks up is regarding racism, which he learns from his experiences from the Tom Robinson case. Before the case, Jem’s view of Maycomb’s folks consists of them being “the best folks in the world” (288), but after the case, he realizes that is not true. As Jem grows up during the story, he changes his view on courage, judgement, and racism from a childish and naive perspective to that of a responsible young man following in the steps of his father.
Before Jem shows signs of maturity, his view on bravery consists of never backing down on dares, but as he grows up, Jem realizes that one shows true courage when the odds are against you. His concept of bravery stems from committing childish dares, for “in all his life, Jem [has] never declined a dare” (16). When Dill challenges Jem to run up and touch the side of the Radley house, Jem makes it clear to Dill that “he [isn’t]
One final lesson Jem picks up is regarding racism, which he learns from his experiences from the Tom Robinson case. Before the case, Jem’s view of Maycomb’s folks consists of them being “the best folks in the world” (288), but after the case, he realizes that is not true. As Jem grows up during the story, he changes his view on courage, judgement, and racism from a childish and naive perspective to that of a responsible young man following in the steps of his father.
Before Jem shows signs of maturity, his view on bravery consists of never backing down on dares, but as he grows up, Jem realizes that one shows true courage when the odds are against you. His concept of bravery stems from committing childish dares, for “in all his life, Jem [has] never declined a dare” (16). When Dill challenges Jem to run up and touch the side of the Radley house, Jem makes it clear to Dill that “he [isn’t]