The Importance Of Scout In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee

Superior Essays
In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses Jean Louise (Scout) Finch as the narrator. Scout is now an adult and reflects on three very crucial summers during her childhood days. When Scout is first described in the novel, she is prone to violence, labels people based on class, denigrates people, uses racist language, and is prejudice (Seidel 1). All of these things show that she is childish at the beginning of the novel. A mature character would not pick a fight or label people based on their money; however, by the end of the novel, Scout sees that these things are wrong. She begins to see that all people are equal and should be treated the same. The reader sees Scout growing up through her change in actions, speech, and morals. First, Scout …show more content…
In the beginning of the novel, Scout says things that shows her immaturity. On the first day of school, Miss Caroline was trying to give Walter Cunningham a quarter to buy something for lunch. Walter refused to take the quarter. Scout speaks up and says, “Miss Caroline, he’s a Cunningham” (Lee 26). This shows that Scout did not take into consideration how this statement would make Walter feel. Children do not realize that these types of statements hurt others feelings. This disrespect shows that Scout is childish and immature when she makes this statement about Walter. A few days later, Scout was fighting Walter Cunningham when Jem came by and told Scout to stop. After Scout stopped, Jem apologized for her and invited Walter to come eat with them. Walter decides to come home and eat with them but Scout continued to be rude. Scout told Calpurnia, “He ain’t company, Cal, he’s just a Cunningham” (Lee 33). Scout is still being disrespectful and not thinking about Walter’s feelings or situation. She does not realize that Walter cannot help the economic situation he was born into like a mature person would. Instead she just makes fun of him and treats him badly. Later in the book, Scout tells Jem, “There’s just one kind of folks. Folks” (Lee 304). This realization that all people are the same shows that Scout is maturing. Before this realization, she would have agreed with Jem that there were different classes of people (Moss and Wilson 393). Then, we see Scout maturing and wanting to protect Boo Radley. Harding LeMay states, “When Atticus and the sheriff decide not to expose Boo’s deed to the town, Scout agrees, reasoning that it would be ‘like shootin’ a mockingbird’” (LeMay 240). What she means is that all Boo did is save her and Jem just like all mockingbirds do is sing. Boo expects nothing in return for what he did like a mockingbird. Scout sees that if the town

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    But Scout at her age is taught rules and the Maycomb ways. So it gives you the opportunities to understand how it is for her and what she is experiencing. But in the book she thinks she is an older girl and she can do more things but people would say she is still young. She learns that there some people that are racist and judgmental. Her family teaches her plenty of things and also on how to be a good person.…

    • 1649 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    real well I’ll just take you to the porch sir.” (364) Scout shows maturity here because she is being kind to Boo Radley even though there are many rumors that he isn’t a good man and is an outcast. . She looks past these rumors because he was nice to her when he gave Jem and her presents in the tree. Scout shows empathy to a man that has been secluded for most of his life, and she shows her compassionate side and her growth by going out of her way to be thoughtful and helpful with…

    • 822 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Miss Caroline in chapters 2 and 3 is disappointed when she finds out that Scout is already educated. In the book it tells of how she doesn’t like how she was treated like that. She doesn't want to be with her…

    • 649 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    She now respects Calpurnia and even wants to go see how Cal lives when she is not with the Finches. She is now more socially mature, in the sense that she knows how to treat Calpurnia. Later at Aunt Alexandra’s club meeting, Scout goes over to help Calpurnia, since“[she admires] the ease and grace with which [Cal] handles heavy loads” (305).This is something she has never done before, but something she may do more in the future, since she is now socially mature. Scout is no longer disrespectful or ungrateful to Calpurnia in fact she now admires Cal, for all…

    • 1087 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Scout was explaining to her teach why Walter would refuse to take her money for lunch. Because of the explanation she gave, her teacher hit her with a ruler. This made Scout very angry and she took her angry out on Walter Cunningham. Scout narrates, “Catching Walter Cunningham in the schoolyard gave me some pleasure, but when I was rubbing his nose in the dirt Jem came by and told me to stop.” (Lee,30).…

    • 870 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout Finch completes the hero’s journey, beginning with her mundane world in Maycomb County. Unlike Nick Carraway, her ordinary world does not hold much significance considering Scout wasn’t prepared for her call to adventure, nor was it voluntary. Her life changes when her father, Atticus, takes on a case to defend Tom Robinson, a black man accused of rape. Moreover, this is a pivotal moment in Scout’s life, she will begin to understand the society she lives in and separate from the life she is comfortable with. As she continues on this journey, she will learn about the tendencies of humanity and the unethical side of her town.…

    • 525 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    To Kill a Mockingbird and Inherit the Wind are two vastly different forms of literature, focusing on different topics, characters, and morals. Yet there is a similar theme within these stories that they share. Through various characters and traits, Jerome Lawrence, Robert E. Lee and Harper Lee each demonstrate the necessity, as well as, the importance of change and growth through their characters. Scout, only a child throughout the To Kill a Mockingbird, doesn’t change but grows into her character.…

    • 1193 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    After Scout has the misunderstanding with Miss Caroline because of Walter she runs into Walter. “Catching Walter Cunningham in the school gave me some pleasure, but when I was rubbing his nose in the dirt Jem came by and told me to stop.” (Lee, 25) Scout would’ve continued to beat Walter if it weren’t for Jem. Later…

    • 798 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Walter's Empathy Quotes

    • 548 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Calpurnia was enraged at Scout's dislike of Walter's actions and educated Scout that not everyone eats as well as her family. After viewing the situation from Walter's point of view, Scout better understood Walter's actions. Atticus teaches his children to be compassionate because judging a person before thinking about what you would have done in their situation makes it hard to have sympathy for someone. In order to be a compassionate and sympathetic person you must put yourself in others' shoes.…

    • 548 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Prejudging the Mockingbirds The book To Kill a Mockingbird we see situations of injustice to specific communities. In the early nineteen thirties, which is when the book takes place, it is not uncommon to see many cases of racial and prejudice acts. Harper Lee uses a little girl named Jean Louise Finch or better known as Scout to narrate her story and to help readers better understand all of the wrongdoings happening in the lower class white community and the African American community in Maycomb. Not only does Lee use Scout to help the readers see the persecution these groups face, but also as Hovet, Theodore R. and Grace-Ann Hovet state in Fine Fancy Gentlemen and Yappy Folk…

    • 1419 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Moreover, Scout not only grows up through her development into womanhood, but also in her change in viewpoint on the controversial character Boo Radley. At the beginning Scout views Boo Radley as some sort of fantasy, like a mythical creature almost. She does not have a very mature viewpoint on Boo, and is terrified by him, simply because of the stories and tales she had been told by Jem and the people of Maycomb. Her immaturity is highlighted when she says; " Every scratch of feet on gravel was Boo Radley seeking revenge…insects splashing against the screen were Boo Radley’s insane fingers picking the wire to pieces” (Lee, Pg 61) Overtime though, the events taking place around Maycomb seem to change Scout’s ideas of Boo, for example the Tom Robinson trial, where she begins to understand the whole Boo Radley situation more maturely.…

    • 1188 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    There is a famous saying that maturity is not defined by age. In other words, maturity is an attitude built by experiences. In the novel of To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the main character and narrator, Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, matures through her own experiences from a young child to become a compassionate young lady. During the 1930s the town of Maycomb, Alabama deals with many social issues that involve the class system, racial segregation, cult of domesticity, and educational equality. With this said, in the novel, the main character, Scout, loses her childish innocence and matures by learning from her elders, discovering the true identity of Arthur “Boo” Radley and experiencing the unfair Tom Robinson Trial as the story progresses…

    • 1650 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a classic tale that gives an accurate depiction of southern Alabama during the early 1930s. It capitalizes on the racism and sexism that runs rampant throughout America within the time period, and retells the stories of the citizens in a sleepy, fictional town named Maycomb. Amongst them, a young tomboy named Scout recalls her life surrounding the events of the Tom Robinson case, and how she changed throughout those four years. Throughout the story of To Kill a Mockingbird, it is clear that Scout is a dynamic, round character that progressively matures from the beginning of To Kill a Mockingbird, during events such as Tom Robinson’s trial, and ends with better developed qualities at the novel’s conclusion.…

    • 1111 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    “A life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood” These words of Thomas Carlyle impeccably describes scout as she is living in order to understand the life in Maycomb. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the author explores the concept of moral development of Scout for a little innocent girl growing up into an intelligent adulthood, Jean Louise. As she struggles through her life with the people around her. She starts to mature and realize the truth behind Maycomb as she faces discrimination, comprehends Atticus’s wisdom, and the effect and inspiration of Boo Radley on her life.…

    • 1476 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Scout (An explanation of why Scout Finch is the very best character in this novel) To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, is considered one of the most outstanding pieces of literature ever written by many. Lee creates many brilliant ideas that convey messages which have been studied by hundreds of teachers and students. Funny and entertaining, this novel not only captures the reader from beginning to end, but it portrays insightful messages that causes readers to take some concepts a little bit deeper. The time period that this book was written in was during times of hardship, discrimination, and many important events in history on the verge of taking place. Harper Lee takes these ideas of discrimination and racism and clearly shows her…

    • 1028 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays