Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is a memorable and life-changing novel that presents important concerns relevant to today’s society. Set during the Great Depression of the 1930’s, Lee examines the issues pertaining the existence of social inequality and the coexistence of good and evil in America’s Ddeep Ssouth through the eyes of a young girl, Scout Finch. The novel remains relevant and didactic to readers’ in present time, by challenging the reader’s perceptions of race, family structure, education and social classes .
The central theme focus of the novel is how itan exploration of es the moral nature of human beings and the way society functions as a result of human actions. The novel approaches the question of whether people are morally …show more content…
The most evident example of racism is in the Tom Robinson case where whom Atticus Finch takes up the case,defends against the accusations of the Ewell’s, despite knowing that he will become a social outcast. Although he is taunted using derogatory language such as ‘nigger lover’ Atticus stays strong to his beliefs and states uses the metaphor, how that it is ‘a sin to kill a Mockingbird .’ This use of high modality is a reference to how strong racism was in the deep south of America at this time. From the case of Tom Robinson, the children learn about the injustices of society with Jem crying after the verdict, “How could they do it, how could they”. Atticus tries to provide minimum consolation for the children, albeit teaching them another moral, when he states the anaphoric phrase, “They have done it before and they did it tonight and they’ll do it again and when they do - it seems only the children weep” … “Life isn’t fair”. At this point of the novel, where this racist case is depicted, the reader can visualise the powerful grip racial prejudice have on people. This provokes the reader to think about the issue of …show more content…
In principle, the plot of the novel is the transition in the children from innocence to maturity through education. Since, the novel is explored through the perspective of a child, the education the children receive is essentially involved in the development of the novel. The overall setting of the story charts the moral education the children are given - basically how the children are educated and how they are trained to move from innocence to adulthood. This theme of education is explored most powerfully when examining the relationship between Atticus and the children. Atticus is presented as a character not only determined to stick by his morals, but to instil a powerful sense of morality within the children. Atticus is highly successful in teaching his children this morality, as he teaches lessons on ‘sympathy and understanding’ - the most important morals in the society portrayed in the novel. The story also explores the negative connotations of education, where the teachers are portrayed as frustratingly unsympathetic to children’s needs or morally ‘hypocrites’, when the teachers tell the students’ ‘father to stop teaching’ and follow the schools ironic ‘teaching techniques’. This controversial view on education and the teaching of morals makes readers’ think about their own
The central theme focus of the novel is how itan exploration of es the moral nature of human beings and the way society functions as a result of human actions. The novel approaches the question of whether people are morally …show more content…
The most evident example of racism is in the Tom Robinson case where whom Atticus Finch takes up the case,defends against the accusations of the Ewell’s, despite knowing that he will become a social outcast. Although he is taunted using derogatory language such as ‘nigger lover’ Atticus stays strong to his beliefs and states uses the metaphor, how that it is ‘a sin to kill a Mockingbird .’ This use of high modality is a reference to how strong racism was in the deep south of America at this time. From the case of Tom Robinson, the children learn about the injustices of society with Jem crying after the verdict, “How could they do it, how could they”. Atticus tries to provide minimum consolation for the children, albeit teaching them another moral, when he states the anaphoric phrase, “They have done it before and they did it tonight and they’ll do it again and when they do - it seems only the children weep” … “Life isn’t fair”. At this point of the novel, where this racist case is depicted, the reader can visualise the powerful grip racial prejudice have on people. This provokes the reader to think about the issue of …show more content…
In principle, the plot of the novel is the transition in the children from innocence to maturity through education. Since, the novel is explored through the perspective of a child, the education the children receive is essentially involved in the development of the novel. The overall setting of the story charts the moral education the children are given - basically how the children are educated and how they are trained to move from innocence to adulthood. This theme of education is explored most powerfully when examining the relationship between Atticus and the children. Atticus is presented as a character not only determined to stick by his morals, but to instil a powerful sense of morality within the children. Atticus is highly successful in teaching his children this morality, as he teaches lessons on ‘sympathy and understanding’ - the most important morals in the society portrayed in the novel. The story also explores the negative connotations of education, where the teachers are portrayed as frustratingly unsympathetic to children’s needs or morally ‘hypocrites’, when the teachers tell the students’ ‘father to stop teaching’ and follow the schools ironic ‘teaching techniques’. This controversial view on education and the teaching of morals makes readers’ think about their own