How Does Lee Use Empathy In To Kill A Mockingbird

Improved Essays
Using Empathy in Everyday Life
In Harper Lee’s book “To Kill a Mockingbird”, two children and their father (a lawyer) in a small town defending an innocent black man in court. The narrator's perspective of the town and the people changed throughout the story by the experiences she had. People will understand how you feel after something has happened in your life once it happens in theirs. The kids go to Mrs. Dubose’s house when their dad tells them to go read to her. The kids perspective of the trial differs from the townspeople, in which they believe he is innocent. Scout, the story teller, looks at the town from the perspective of Boo Radley, a recluse, and his differing view. Scout began to learn the difference between right and wrong and feeling empathy towards others, after reading to Mrs. Dubose.
Scout and Jem were told to read to Mrs. Dubose by their father for
…show more content…
Dubose, all had an impact on what scout thinks of situations and how others feel throughout the book. As events unfold in the town of Maycomb, Scout starts to feel empathetic for others. Empathy is important in our lives because without it, we will never understand what others are going through at the moment and never understand how hard decisions must be for others. We also would never understand which decision is the correct one for a greater group and the difference between our own without morality. You would never understand how others were feeling after something happened in their lives. Scout began to learn the concept of morality after she had understood how others felt after experiences in their life. Boo felt empathy towards Jem and Scout when they were attacked by Bob, just as Scout and Jem felt empathy and helplessness towards tom Empathy was important in the novel by showing that the two kids could be able to know how others were feeling at times in the book when others were in hard

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    In this portion of the story, Scout also begins to experience the ideologies of the world first hand due to exposure of the Tom Robinson case. When Scout witnesses how the townspeople treat Tom because of his race, she begins to understand the extent of prejudice in Maycomb County. Over time, Atticus’s influence and this early exposure to prejudice helps teach Scout to accept people as they are, and to not judge others for their…

    • 1111 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Atticus Finch Stereotypes

    • 611 Words
    • 3 Pages

    In the small town of Maycomb, Mississippi, the issues of racism, prejudice, and stereotypes are prominent in the lives of many characters in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird. The main characters Scout and Jem are the children of Atticus Finch a well esteemed lawyer with an admirable heart, unlike most of the unjust white men in the story. Jem, Scout, and their close friend Dill are full of curiosity, vigor, and credulity; they are often found scouting out the Radley Place in search of the Boo Radley, who is quite vicious and psychotic, according to local stories and stereotypes. During the summer, the children try leaving notes, attempt to sneak a peek into the Radley place, and even create a game based off of the manic stories of Boo, but each attempt is to no avail and results in chiding from Atticus for…

    • 611 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Boo Radley Maturity

    • 692 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The novel To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, is about a young girl, Scout, her brother, Jem, and their friend, Dill living in Maycomb County during the early 1930s. The three children hear stories about their neighbor, Arthur “Boo” Radley, and decide they want to try to get him out of his house. A few unsuccessful summers later, Scout’s father, Atticus, is a lawyer that has been assigned a colored man’s case. The man, Tom Robinson, was accused of raping a white woman. As the children know this isn’t true, they don’t understand why he was found guilty.…

    • 692 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Walter's Empathy Quotes

    • 548 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Scout's use of empathy expresses her sympathy and compassion for…

    • 548 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    To Kill A Mockingbird To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee shows empathy in many different ways. Atticus shows empathy toward blacks and the town recluse. He upholds the law and looks out for his clients' best interests, even when it hurts his reputation. His willingness to put himself in others' shoes is most evident when he agrees to defend Tom, a black man falsely accused rape, without considering how his actions might affect others, including his family. Atticus identifies with Tom's plight and shows empathy by standing against racial inequalities and prejudices without concern for his own wellbeing.…

    • 293 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The teaching of empathy The music artist Tom Finn once said, “We have to teach empathy as we do literacy”. Atticus and his son Jem, in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, demonstrate the meaning of these words in how Atticus teaches Jem to be empathetic. Atticus, a hard working man with great morals, wants to teach his children the importance of empathy. His son, Jem, learns from different experiences that if he wants to understand what is happening in his community, he must step into their shoes.…

    • 731 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the community there is a court case held between a white man with a torn family and a black man named Tom. Atticus, the head of the family, is the lawyer for Tom and defends him. Throughout the book, empathy is used and proved to allow others to understand others. The first event that shows the characters in the novel used empathy to understand others was when Scout used it to influence others to have it also. (Lee 210) “‘ ... You children last night made Walter Cunningham stand in my shoes for a minute and that was enough.’ ”…

    • 618 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Our whole lives we are taught don't steal, don't cheat, don’t lie, don’t be ungraceful, keep your promises, and don't judge, for this reason one of the most important themes of To Kill a Mockingbird is the book’s moral nature of human beings. Whether people are evil or good is based on the morals we were taught when we were young. Scout and Jem’s perspective is of childhood innocence, in which they predict that all people are good because evil has never affected them. If the story were told from a more adult view, they have known about the evil of the world. As a result of the change from innocence to experience, one of the most important themes is the hatred between the races.…

    • 830 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    In many novels, the main character learns more about an issue faced in society. They are usually uninformed or uneducated in the beginning. Then as the events of the novel progress, they slowly learn more about the issue and how to combat it. Scout follows a similar pattern starting from the very beginning of the trial to meeting Boo Radley.…

    • 801 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Certain morals she has will either change or new morals will erupt, and she will use this as an external influence that will guide her. Another influence that Scout will have, is getting attacked the night that her and Jem were walking home. Scout now has a different opinion of Boo Radley, which allows her to discover things about herself, and the world in general. Another thing that affects Scouts morals is Aunt…

    • 502 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    If empathy was not a part of everyday life, many people would not be able to bare the cruelty and harshness that the world would behold. Empathy facilitates connections and interactions, which are essential in an environment. It is the identification with another as ourselves, and without this, more sexism, racism, ageism and judgment would result in more hatred, chaos, and violence on the planet. When imagining your life as someone else’s, you can almost feel their emotions and understand their perspective. Christopher, in the novel, “The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time”, he has trouble understanding others.…

    • 880 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Society often judges others based on looks, stereotypes, and assumptions instead of the unique traits that can be found when the layers of one’s personality are peeled back. In To Kill a Mockingbird, a classic novel by Harper Lee, many residents of Maycomb County are found to be much different than originally thought by the community. The town is undergoing changes, and citizens of Maycomb are beginning to question equality and racial injustice. Scout and Jem, two troublesome siblings growing up in the 1930s, tell ghost legends about Boo Radley, vindictive tales about Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose, and stories of the drunk and evil Mr. Dolphus Raymond. However, when Scout and Jem get a chance to understand the true nature and identity of their…

    • 1061 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    "To Kill A Mockingbird" Throughout the story of " To Kill A Mockingbird " Scout will learn how to use empathy and show compassion to solve disagreements between her and fellow residents of Maycomb. Being a ' Tom boy ' in Scouts society is not ideal for women. Aunt Alexandra would like for Scout to act more feminine despite Scout having no interest in doing so. Scouts new teacher, Miss Caroline, would like to control the rate in which Scout learns to read. This would include not letting Atticus read to scout every night like he usually does.…

    • 1168 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Scout, her brother Jem, and their friend Dill are all captivated and simultaneously afraid of their neighbor, Arthur “Boo” Radley who keeps to himself, creating an aura of mystery and many whispers among the townspeople. The children are fascinated with him and try to come up with ways to see the reclusive man, but despite his gestures…

    • 2009 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    Also, he is the man everyone trust and depends on in tough situations. Furthermore, he is teaching Scout generosity and helping her develop into a better person. Therefore, Scout is growing up and maturing with the help of Atticus’s wisdom as he teach her the valuable lessons to help…

    • 1476 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Great Essays

Related Topics