Mockingbird

Harper Lee, an American novelist widely known for To Kill a Mockingbird, was born in 1926 and passed away in 2016. The youngest of four children, she grew up as a tomboy in a small town. Similar to Atticus Finch, her father was a lawyer, a member of the Alabama state legislature, and also owned part of the local newspaper. For most of Lee's life, her mother suffered from mental illness, rarely leaving the house. Atticus, the father of Jem and Scout, is one of the only white people in all of…

In the book “To Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, it is controversial if Mayella Ewell is powerful or not. Accusing a black man for sexual assault, Mayella’s gender and race makes her considerably powerful to most people. Since the book was based in the 1960’s, being a white female gave Mayella power regardless of her mistakes or social classification. Power may be defined as how much you have or how much you control. Is a white female classified as white trash in society powerful? Power may…

"I think there's just one kind of folks. Folks" (Lee). In the fictional novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee explains racism in the eyes of a young girl and how racism has affected society. This takes place in the 1900s in a small town in Alabama called Maycomb County. In chapter 7 when the knot-hole in the tree gets filled up, Jem learns from Mr. Nathan Radley’s excuse of the tree dying that people can manipulate the way they think. During the talk between Jem and Mr. Radley, Jem…

“Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy . . . but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.”(To Kill a Mockingbird, page 119) To Kill a Mockingbird is narrated by a child named Jean Louise “Scout” Finch who matures quickly by having to handle difficult situations. While learning to live in a world with racism, injustice, and criticism, Scout finds courage being presented by many of her role models. This reader reasons that the small few…

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee focuses mainly on innocence throughout the novel, the mockingbird came to represent the idea of innocence. Killing a mockingbird means a loss of innocence I the eyes of the reader. Throughout the book many of the characters can be identified as mockingbirds. Jem, Scout, Dill, and Boo all lost their innocence as they grew up in a town such as Maycomb. Tom Robinson is another example of a mockingbird in this book because of the injustices he faces being a…

“Mockingbirds don’t do one thing except make music for us to enjoy… they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us.” (Lee, 119) With an abundance of events in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird it is clear to see who our beloved characters really are. Specifically, who can be considered mockingbirds. By analyzing Atticus Finch's clear conscience, Tom Robinson's frank kindness, and Arthur "Boo" Radley's hidden affection, it is clear the three can be considered "mockingbirds" by the…

By using the ignorant individuals of Maycomb, Harper Lee applied the concept of symbolism in To Kill a Mockingbird which enable us to comprehend the impact of each individual’s behavior on Maycomb. Add intro “That was the one thing that made me think, well, this may be the shadow of a beginning.” Atticus says “the shadow of a beginning” to Jem, early in the chapter of the trial, Atticus put Walter Cunningham Sr. on the jury because Atticus knows that the Mr. Cunningham will be honest member of…

During the 1930s in the American South, racial disparity intensified with the growth of racist attitudes and segregation. Harper Lee’s 1960 classic literary novel “To Kill a Mockingbird” was successful in delicately portraying this racial segregation. Just two years later, Robert Mulligan directed the Oscar winning, 1962 film adaptation, taking the novel’s challenged tropes to the big screen, much to the appeal of fans. The novel and film adaptation had displayed similarities and differences…

Hearing about banning of To KIll A Mockingbird caused some rebuttals. Harper Lee reacted to Hanover county disregarding the novel by giving them her insight personally. She sent a letter simply saying To Kill A Mockingbird is the best novel for teaching the lessons it presents. Such as not judging a person at first glance, get a perspective from somebody else’s point of view, follow your own moral code, and etc.. Harper Lee decided to tell the Hanover County school officials that they obviously…

everything they know while also emphasizing how they are perceived by others. Furthermore, perception can bring people to wrongly judge what they see in the world. In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses the perception of a child in a town full of rumors to fully affirm Arthur “Boo” Radley as the true mockingbird. Considering that the perspective of the novel is told from a child, it can be hard to see Boo Radley as anything more than a menace in the beginning. At the end of the…