From Miss Maudie’s near perfect garden to Mayella’s vibrant red geraniums among a landfill of trash, flowers are a large symbolic presence throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird. Some might think that the flowers are merely a coincidence to the plot, but I believe that there’s a further significance to them. In particular, Ms. Maudie, Mayella, and Mrs. Dubose all are characterized in part by the flowers that they grow. The flowers unite these characters in the fact that they all highlight feminine qualities of their personalities. Some may say the flowers are nothing more then a plot device, but the flowers throughout the book showcase aspects of femininity in each character they’re associated with.
The novel To Kill a Mockingbird is so titled because there are several characters in the story which could be consisted mockingbirds. Tom Robinson and Boo Radley do not cause any harm, they go about their business without interfering in the lives of others, and however both of them are in turn harmed by the citizens of Maycomb. Harper Lee’s novel examines the dark side of human nature and explores the ramifications of prejudice, racism and bigotry in a time when people were openly hostile to anyone they considered different and inferior. Lee tells her story to highlight the injustices of the South during a time of inequality, discrimination, where the innocent are unfairly punished.
On the surface Maycomb County might seem like quiet, nice place to live, but deeper into the town hidden identities are discovered, courage is needed, and the maturation of characters is crucial to unearthing the truth about life in the 1930s. In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, readers learn about a small town named Maycomb County and the struggles that occur within it. During the Great Depression and a peak of Southern racism, readers met the main character Scout. Scout, a girl ages six to nine, narrates this story for years and the happenings in the town. Years pass and different incidents arise including a court case about rape, a mean old neighbor, and the mysterious man next door. As these events take place, themes pop up throughout the book. While there are multiple possible lessons and themes hidden in To Kill a Mockingbird, three significant themes that are included are hidden identities, courage and Jem’s maturation.
“I want you to understand that courage isn’t a man with a gun in his hand,” (Lee 112). This is a quote spoken from a courageous man who put himself in other people’s positions and did not believe he was superior to African Americans like many in that time period. Atticus Finch is a lawyer, and also the father of Jem and Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. The finches live in a small town called Maycomb during 1933, also known as the Great Depression era. Throughout the book, the town faces many racial discrimination issues, especially when an African American man named Tom Robinson is falsely accused of rape of a white female. Atticus courageously decides to take Tom Robinson’s case, therefore, going against the prejudice portrayed in the town. Malala Yousafzai was a teenager who lived in a city in Pakistan that was under control of a Taliban. The Taliban highly restricted girls from going to school because of their gender. Malala believed that everyone had the right to get an education, so she fought for what she believed in and went against the Taliban. Both of these heroes stuck up and fought for what they believed in no matter the consequences. Atticus Finch and Malala Yousafzai both portrayed courage throughout their lifetimes by having extraordinary bravery and went on to become many people’s heroes to this day.
In To Kill a Mockingbird, Mrs. Dubose has a bush of camellias in her yard. These flowers represent racism and prejudice towards black people in Macomb County. She refers to her flowers as “Snow-on-the-Mountain” that have white petals. The white petals show favoritism towards the white people in Maycomb County. In Chapter 11, Jem cuts down all the flowers with Scout’s baton. This shows how simple he thinks racism can be effaced. However, Mrs. Dubose says, “Thought you could kill my Snow-on-the-Mountains, did you? Well Jessie says the tops are growing back out.” (Lee 146). This quote means that racism cannot be easily gone. If you try to get rid of convincing people to change their views of racism, it will only go away for a while. After a while,
In Harper Lee’s American classic, To Kill A Mockingbird (1962), dirty is used as a symbol of shame in the society of Maycomb, Alabama. When Jem ruins Mrs. Dubose’s yard he is punished by having to read to Mrs. Dubose for a month. When he is forced to do this, Scout joins him; however, Scout is not as gladly welcomed as Jem is into Mrs. Dubose’s home. Mrs. Dubose’s first words to Jem are, ‘“So you brought that dirty little sister of yours, did you?’ was her greeting” (Lee ).When Mrs. Dubose says “that dirty little sister,” she is referring to Scout. Dirty is used to describe something that is tarnished, unclean, and poor. Therefore, when Mrs. Dubose uses the word “dirty” she is claiming that Scout portrays these qualities. Getting this accusation
In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, some people do not recognize that someone wants to help them. The people mentioned had been given or received kindness from someone but they do not know that they are trying to help. The types of kindness that will be shown is kindness within the Finch family, kindness shown through neighbours, and kindness of acquaintances. It is shown that kindness is taken for granted.
Who are the blue jays and mockingbirds of To Kill A Mockingbird? Set in the early 1930’s of America, Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird is a coming-of-age book that tells the story of an innocent, naive child becoming an adult through the experience and intake of racism, discrimination, and social injustice throughout the book. Harper Lee’s development, usage and characterization of her characters throughout To Kill A Mockingbird help establish two of her most important themes of the book, which are the presence of social injustice and the coexistence of good and evil.
I think guilt can destroy both the victim and the seeker. In the scarlet letter Chillingsworth was seeking revenge against Dimmesdale for committing adultery with his wife. Chillingsworth spent his time trying to torture Dimmesdale with guilt and in doing so he was destroying himself. Dimmesdale felt guiltier as time
Revenge is getting even with someone who did you wrong in your own eyes. Revenge can drive someone crazy, just like how it drove Jimmy crazy for revenge on a hot summer night. Jeremy thought it would be funny if he slipped laxatives in Jimmy's drink after a long session of basketball at the outdoor basketball park. Jimmy was practicing his free throws as he slipped a quarter of the container into Jimmy’s soda. What Jeremy did not know is that Jimmy saw him when he carried out the cruel act. What do you think Jimmy would have done? Certainly not let it slide. In life many inhumane things, or crimes, are carried out through revenge. In these stories revenge is expressed through literary elements such as characterization, setting, tone, and mood.
To Kill a Mockingbird is a book mainly about the coexistence of good and evil. The book stresses and emphasizes on the exploration of moral nature in humans. There are many themes in this novel including courage, innocence, racism, femininity, etc. However the most prevalent theme in the book is innocence. Not just innocence in itself but the danger and harm evil poses to the innocent. You can see in the book as Jem and Scout go from a childish perspective, one that only sees good in people because they’ve never faced evil. To a more adult perspective who have confronted evil and learn to integrate it into their world.
The theme of “To kill a MockingBird” by Lee is Justice. Throughout the story most of the town think that every black person is guilty and by the end they think they’re innocent. The theme of justice is displayed throughout “To kill a MockingBird” by Lee such
Revenge lies within us all, Revenge is an instinctive human characteristic. These emotions and actions associated are neither preventable nor controllable. Everybody has felt and taken action on the emotion of revenge, whether it 's your sibling, friend, or enemy. Revenge can bring justice but as well bring pain to someone else. Vengeance is an extremely popular emotion in today 's life whether it is terrorism or a dispute between family and friends. Revenge can be a horrible emotion; it can sometimes lead people to do horrible things. By definition, Revenge means to get retribution for a wrongdoing done to you. In my opinion, revenge is mostly caused by fear and the overwhelming feeling of payback
To Kill a Mockingbird is a book that deals with many current events during the 1930’s. A major event was the death punishment. The death punishment was used to punish criminals who committed a terrible crime. Tom Robinson was going to have to be given the death punishment.
To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel which takes place during the Great Depression, and if that isn’t bad enough, what’s worse is the amount of prejudice and injustice the Finch family will endure. Through the courage of the father, Atticus, and the teachings of the nanny, Calpurnia, Jem and Scout are able to fight this prejudice and injustice. Yet Scout is actually very young, the amount of knowledge that she has obtained from people around her about the poverty and racial differences has matured her emotionally and mentally.