Examples Of Empathy In To Kill A Mockingbird

Former President Barack Obama had stated, “It’s the lack of empathy that makes it very easy for us to plunge into wars.” Obama infers that when people lose empathy, they lose the ability to understand others, which is a key emotion that helps people interact. His message connects to Marxism, a literary theory involving an imbalance of power. In the story “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, the characters’ experiences prove the reader of the significance a lack of empathy causes to the balance of power. An application of Marxism reveals that an imbalance of authoritative power is caused by a lack of empathy.

In Harper Lee’s critically acclaimed magnum opus “To Kill A Mockingbird;” Lee emphasizes her view on the importance of empathy through how she depicts empathy in regards to the characters Scout, Tom Robinson, and Atticus. “To Kill A Mockingbird” is a novel shown from the view of Scout, a young girl living in the sleepy town of Maycomb, Alabama in the 1930’s, and her and her brothers escapades; mainly their captivation over an elusive local resident who doesn’t leave his house, and the drawn-out process of a court case against a black man, Tom Robinson, who is falsely accused of rape. Throughout the novel, Harper Lee emphasizes the importance of empathy to her through how she

Compassion is a theme that is demonstrated in many different ways throughout the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Compassion is represented by people who are looked down upon within a community in both the book and today. Jem shows compassion in the novel when he recognizes the unfairness of Tom Robinson’s verdict just because the color of his skin. Atticus expresses compassion for Mrs. Dubose who has a hard time controlling her actions because of her disability. Also, Scout demonstrates compassion for Boo Radley who is an outcast of society because of rumors spread about him.

The Finch Family is compassionate towards everyone in the entire book disregarding color, appearance, and even past mistakes. The lesson of the book "To Kill

Discrimination is shown throughout To Kill A Mockingbird in numerous ways. Racism and prejudice are shown when the jury makes the ruling to convict Tom Robinson as guilty, despite all of the evidence to prove his innocence; Scout is known for being a tomboy. The lessons about discrimination that Scout learns throughout the novel are applicable to all types of prejudice,

It is very important that writers are able to send a message to their reader with their book. Authors best do this by bringing about empathy. In order to send this message, authors often develop strong characters that go through various problems and struggles. The book, To Kill a Mockingbird, shows this very well with its characters Scout Finch and Tom Robinson. This book helps the readers learn from the character’s reactions to their problems. Also, the idea that authors build well developed characters to bring about a deeper understanding is shown through the poem Sympathy by Paul Laurence Dunbar. In this poem, the speaker explains of being trapped in the things that society says about him. Through these texts, it is evident that authors can best create empathy in their readers by developing great characters because when characters go through daily events that are challenging and troublesome, the readers are able to relate and understand what they are going through or we are able to learn from their experiences and influence us to adjust our lifestyles.

Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. To me the word empathy in “To Kill A Mockingbird” means “putting yourself in someone else’s shoes.” Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” suggests that empathy is a universal feeling, but everyone experiences it in different occasions and in different ways.

In the drenching hot heat of Maycomb county there is a stale feeling of resentment faced toward the African American people. Maycomb isn't the model city of Alabama, it has it problems and that problem is communication; the people are unwary of the African Americans and what they do because they fail to communicate their issues. To better understand the text Harper Lee includes several different themes to better recognize the importance of empathy. Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird uses several different themes including the coming of age of several characters, individuals versus society, and prejudice to portray the importance of empathy.

Empathy is shown in To Kill A Mockingbird by Atticus standing up for Tom Robinson, Jem realizing that Arthur Radley is not crazy; he is just antisocial, and Scout feeling remorse for tormenting Arthur throughout her childhood.

“‘... when they finally saw him, why he hadn’t done any of those things… Atticus, he was real nice….’ … ‘Most people are, Scout, when you finally see them.’”(376). Sometimes people’s true personalities are masked by the judgement of the viewer. In “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, two children learn how to “walk in other people’s shoes”. As they grow up, they come to understand other people’s views and emotions by learning about the prejudices that Maycomb County possesses. In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, Jem’s character development demonstrates how understanding the prejudices of society can develop empathy.

In the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the main character and narrator Scout recalls the events leading up to her brother Jem’s broken arm. Throughout the story, the two children come upon several mysterious acts of kindness. Little do they know that they are from the one person the childrenthey would least expect: Boo Radley. Boo is mentally challenged and stays away from the public. Though he scares many of his neighbors, he never does anything to cause other people harm. In that way he is like a Mockingbird. Harper Lee describes the extraordinary journey of young Scout through first person narrating, the use of symbolism, and figurative language to reach the goal of empathy towards characters.

Empathy, everyone gives empathy for someone eventually. However, Tom Robertson made the mistake of admitting this in the courtroom. In Chapter 19, Tom is being questioned in the courtroom and admits that he felt sorry for Miss Ewell. It was a mistake admitting this because it is not acceptable back then for a black man to feel sorry for a white woman. Harper Lee really gives the feeling of tension when the statement, “‘Yes, suh. I felt right sorry for her, she seemed to try more’n the rest of ‘em---”’ was made. (Harper Lee 264)

Going above and beyond for others can turn out great or not so great, but the satisfaction of helping others should be enough. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee demonstrates showing compassion through many different characters. It is told from a 10 year-old, Scout Finch’s point of view. The novel takes place in Maycomb, Alabama. The Finch family has many challenges to face, such as Atticus being assigned to Tom’s case, which he was accused of raping a white girl. No one likes it because Tom is black. At the end of the novel Scout and Jem get into a life or death situation, even though they had no clue it was coming, and Scout finally gets to meet Boo! Compassion is not about going above and beyond for someone like Jem, Boo, Scout, and Atticus

based on the belief that their own race is superior. They have also come to their own opinions or prejudices based on no reason or actual experience, but rather their individual preconceptions of a person. Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. To simplify, it means being able to put yourself into someone else’s shoes. Within the first part of To Kill A Mockingbird, quite a few instances of racism and prejudice arose. However, it is made very clear that the author is showing that empathy is the solution for racism and prejudice.

In “To Kill a Mockingbird”, Scout Eliminates tension between a lynch mob and Atticus, Jem, and herself using compassion and empathy. Another situation that she is in that she uses her compassion and sympathy in the story is when Dill ran away from home because his mother and new father does not pay attention to him as much, and decides to sleep under a bench during night. Scout tried to convince her father, Atticus, for Dill to stay with them because Scout did not want to see Dill be transported to the orphanage. Thanks for the use of her compassion and empathy, Dill is able to stay in Scout’s home, and avoids staying out in the streets and the orphanage.