Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction

Explain the Theme of Courage in the Novel To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel written by Harper Lee, published in 1960, and winner of the Pulitzer Prize. To Kill a Mockingbird takes place in the 1930’s in the small town of Maycomb, Alabama. During this time, the Great Depression was in effect, which resulted in many people being poor and having to deal with poverty; many still showed courage to overcome this difficult time. Courage is one of the main themes in this novel and is portrayed in the…

“First of all, if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you’ll get along a lot better with all kinds of folks. You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view...until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” (39). What Atticus is doing is trying to convince Scout that Miss Caroline is doing what she believes is right and if she could see that, then she would get along with Miss Caroline better. Atticus says this early on in the book to Scout after she…

Books teach us how to see things through other point of views. To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee is labeled one of the most influential novels of all time. Perception is a thing a person can alter continuously throughout their lives. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee developed the theme of situation changed perception using the literary elements of characterization and conflicts. Harper Lee constructed her theme of situation molding perception through the literary device of…

“In all our lives, there is a fall from innocence. A time after which, we are never the same” Gordie LaChance. The more we scrutinize the actuality of the circumstances that surround us, one comes to realize that we are brimming with innocent points of view, understandings, and thoughts. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Lee uses anthropomorphism, tone, and character development to convey that understanding the reality of situations can result in a loss of innocence,…

In To Kill a Mockingbird, the author Harper Lee shows her astounding writing skills by using universal themes from which anybody can learn. Even more astounding, the themes she used in To Kill a Mockingbird can still be applied today. For example, one theme that still applies today is the problem with racism and how to deal with it. Even though it is not like it was in the 30s, people nowadays still deal with racism and even look down on others that are different. Another theme we can still…

To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee takes place in the 1930s in a fictional southern town in Alabama. Told through the eyes of 6 year old Scout Finch, you learn about her father, Atticus Finch, an attorney who tries to prove the innocence of a black man falsely accused of rape of a white girl; and about Boo Radley, a mysterious neighbor who saves Scout and her brother Jem from being killed. To Kill A Mockingbird includes themes such as racism, prejudice, and ____. Atticus Finch, Tom Robinson and…

To Kill A Mockingbird. Something I like to say at times is “Don't judge a book by its cover, Judge a book by whats on its pages.” throughout the book “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee The characters Scout and Jem learn some very valuable lessons. One of the things they learned about within the book and movie is people being prejudice towards the innocent. Scout and Jem also learned what it means to be courageous and to help others not only yourself. Scout and Jem become introduced to…

To Kill a Mockingbird can be a vague, confusing title for a book. However, this is just a metaphor for what the book is really about. “Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit ‘em,” said Atticus, “but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee, 90). The mockingbird, in this context, symbolizes innocence. It would be pointless and cruel to kill an innocent bird. They’re small creatures.They’re helpless and harmless, just like black people were in the sixties. This is what Harper Lee,…

A Search For Justice In To Kill a Mockingbird “Justice consists not in being neutral between right and wrong, but in finding out the right and upholding it, whenever found, against the wrong’’ - Teddy Roosevelt. This highlights the actions that Atticus and Mrs. Dubose take throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Atticus always does what he thinks is right and does not follow what the other citizens of Maycomb, Alabama do. Atticus, the father of Jem and Scout, who live in…

Imagine being a six year old child, and watching brutal racism and injustice growing up, while trying to hold on to your innocence and own opinions. That’s the struggle of Jean Louise Finch, who prefers to go by “Scout.” In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout, friend Dill, and brother Jem, must face friends and family turning on them, as father Atticus makes a life changing decision of defending a black man in court in the 1930’s, a time of racial injustice and segregation. Also…