Harper Lee's Childhood

Courage is not strength or skill, it’s simply standing up for what you believe in and what is right. This is the theme that was enrolled after Jem destroys Mrs.Dubose’s camellias and after she died in chapter 11. This passage also reveals Jem’s coming of age moment. After using conflict, symbolism, and point of view, Harper Lee was able to connect the theme with Jems coming of age moment.

In the book To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, there are many similarities between the narrator, Scout, and the author, Harper Lee. For instance, both grew up in the time of the great depression with little money to do extra things; therefore, they relied on their imaginations to entertain them for hours (Haggerty) . Comparatively, both were tomboys in their youths and grew up in small towns where girls were expected to wear dresses and act like a lady. Also, both Harper Lee and Scout both grew up with their fathers being lawyers for their town and would often hear of cases that they worked on (“Harper Lee”) . Similarly, when writing her book a “mad dog warning” was released, no doubt giving the idea for the episode of the mad dog Tim Robinson.

Jem starts to mature the most after the case. His [Jem’s] face was streaked with angry tears as we make our way through the cheerful crowd. “It ain't’ right," he muttered all the way to the corner of the square where we found Atticus waiting… “It ain’t right, Atticus,” said Jem. No son, it’s not right.” We walked home. Jems opinion on life changes a lot through the Tom Robinson case. He learns that people aren't treated equally just by the color of their skin. From this quote it shows just how much Jem cares about people's equality and how he's maturing. After the case and Tom Robinson's death Jem doesn't do anything to anybody or anything that doesn't deserve it. Like this incident in the story, A rolly polly has crawled in the house by Scouts bed she was going to smash it but then Jem says, “Don't do that, Scout. Set him on the back steps (Lee 319). After Jem says that Scout asks him why he didn't want her to smash it and Jem says, “Because they don’t bother you, Jem answered in the darkness. He had turned out his reading light.” (Lee 320). These quotes are showing that after the case Jem realizes that you shouldn't hurt things that haven't done anything to

Innocence is a word used to describe someone 's purity. Children are prime examples of innocence, as they don’t have judgments and don’t understand mature topics. In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the reader can interpret innocence as the growing up of the children. Specifically, Jem Finch showed a loss of innocence as he grew up. He showed his loss of innocence by not playing games, his more mature use of words and body language, and his different view of the world around him. In the novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, Jem Finch goes through change and his innocence of the world is lost as the book progresses.

Throughout the story Jem shows a huge amount of maturation. The book starts when Jem is about ten years of age and still acts like a young boy. He loves to play with his toys, make up games to play with Scout and Dill, go on adventures, and many more. As the story develops so does Jem. With each day that passes Jem seems to becoming more and more like his father. “ JEM WAS TWELVE. He was difficult to live with, inconsistent moody. His appetite was appalling, and he told me so many times to stop pestering him I consulted Atticus: ‘Reckon he’s got tapeworm?’ Atticus said no, Jem was growing” (pg 153). As Jem is dealing with more complicated issues, one being puberty, he is starting to grow up and develop a more

After Tom Robinson’s verdict was guilty, Jem started to throw a fit because he knew that everyone knew Tom was innocent but didn’t understand that white men basically always won in court. He realized with his age that everyone says people are equal but that’s false. Through Jem’s life lesson, he loses his innocence by him seeing the world for how it truly is and not a perfect as he thought it was when he was a kid. This loss of innocence shows coming of age as Jem is now aware of the world around.

Throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Jem and Scout 's perception of courage drastically changes their behavior as they mature. They learn a lot about courage throughout the novel from their father Atticus and what they learn from him influences their choices and opinions. Although Jem is older than Scout, they both experience change in their behavior. At the beginning of the novel, Jem is still a young boy. He is defiant towards Atticus, he plays all the usual childhood games with Scout and Dill, and he engages in the younger children’s obsession with Boo Radley. As the novel progresses, Jem becomes less defiant and more understanding of adults. Jem witnesses the physical and moral courage of his father before and during the trial of

Being the older sibling, Jem realizes the long-held values of Maycomb, but only as he matures does he understand what it means to have moral integrity. There are many times in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee in which the reader can see Jem’s maturity and his moral values. The first time Jem starts to understand moral integrity is when he is forced to read to Mrs. Dubose. After her death, Atticus explains just how much she was going through, and this information had a great impact on Jem. Jem furthers his knowledge of moral integrity during the trial. Jem believes that Atticus and Tom Robinson have won because he knows that the evidence was strong. Atticus ends up losing, which causes Jem to realize how much men will overlook evidence and the truth just to go against an African American. Lastly, Jem understands moral integrity while watching and learning from Atticus. Atticus firmly believes in ideas such as Tom Robinson’s innocence. He never gave up or fell to other men’s beliefs during the time of the trial, before it, or after it.

The best teacher is always experience. Throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Jem, one of the main characters, undergoes many significant personality changes. Jem’s character changes through several experiences, the most prevalent of those being when Jem turns twelve, when he destroys Mrs.Dubose’s flower bed, and when he learns of the town’s racial bias.

Harper Lee uses direct and indirect characterization to demonstrate the three facets of Jem’s maturity. At the beginning of the passage, Lee directly characterizes Jem as physically being stronger and more manly. On page 300, Scout notices that Jem is “growing taller”. Jem also grows hair under his arms and on his chest. Next, Lee indirectly characterizes Jem as being empathic. Specifically, when

In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee demonstrates that social inequality breaks down a society through the use of conflict, symbolism and irony. Social inequality plays a pivotal role in the novel because the whole conflict between Bob and Tom is wrapped in it. From the first accusation to the final conviction inequality is intertwined in every paragraph, every word. To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel that stands the test of time because while our society has made improvements, inequality will never truly go away. This novel displays characters you relate to, ones you despise, and all that you fall in love with. People love this book for a plethora of reasons, but the main reason I come to find is the wisdom laced into every theme, and quotes that will send you deep

Jem, a young and smart boy develops and matures through many unique situations in the novel. Jem is exposed to the harsh belief, judgement and circumstances of the court at a very young age. Following his father, Jem involves himself in the trial between Tom Robinson and Mayella Ewell yet takes Tom’s side due to his father's involvement. Jem slowly loses faith in the justice system and is faced with a loss of innocence as explained by Scout“It was Jem’s turn to cry. His face was streaked with angry tears as we made our way through the cheerful crowd. ‘It ain’t right’ he muttered” (212). Jem begins to take his anger out on Scout and uses what he deems maturity against Scout’s lack of as “He slapped me and I tried another left, but a punch in the stomach sent me sprawling on the floor” (138). Jem is a mockingbird because in his attempt to civilize situations and maturely fight for justice, he loses his

To Kill a Mockingbird is an important text worthy of all the recognition it received in the time following its original publication.

In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee presents a large social atmosphere that includes many different cultures and extremes. The story takes place in the southern town of Maycomb, Alabama during the Great Depression. This novel illustrates how the southerners perceived different ideas about each other and social norms. It is told through the eyes of a young girl, Scout Finch, as she is growing up and becoming influenced by societal attitudes. Throughout the course of this book Scout learns many lessons including: how a society functions, why there is conflict between different cultures, and what makes cultures different from each other. Harper Lee utilizes functionalism, conflict theory, and symbolic interactionism to convey how

Through To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee teaches us the righteousness of empathy. Harper Lee 's technique of writing and coinciding Christian beliefs weaved through emphasizes the importance of the story 's moral and themes. It is through Scout, the young dynamic and protagonist, that Lee opens the reader 's eyes to a realistic world of prejudice and inequality during the 1930s. Though introducing many characters throughout the novel, it is through Lee 's wise father character, Atticus Finch, that she further helps teach her readers life lessons, one being empathy. While narrating in first person, Lee further details her novel with the setting and use of style and diction.