What Are The Similarities Between Jasper Jones And To Kill A Mockingbird

To What Extent Are Life Values and Lessons Reflected Throughout The Novel To Kill A Mockingbird and Jasper Jones.

By Eloise Cotter (9 English 1)

Powerful morals and truths are revealed throughout the novels To Kill A Mockingbird and Jasper Jones. These texts focus upon a series of relevant themes including prejudice and growing up. Both these novels present these themes through the eyes of the protagonists and their childlike innocence as extraordinary sequences of events change their lives and views forever. With both authors’ use of various literary techniques, the audience is truly capable of understanding the themes of prejudice and growth and recognising the various life lessons that are taught throughout.

The classic novel To Kill A

The storyline centres around 13-year-old Charlie Bucktin, who is taken by surprise to find Jasper Jones at his window. He is taken to discover the body of a dead girl and it immediately becomes a whodunnit situation, with the town outcasts at the top of the suspect list. The audience watches as the town starts to spiral into madness and the citizens start to blame and resent each other. Likewise, with To Kill A Mockingbird, the characters who obtain a difference in race and appearance experience the largest forms of prejudice. The external struggle of the Vietnam War stirs conflict within Corrigan, particularly against Charlie’s Vietnamese neighbours, the Lu family. Throughout this period of war, the Lu’s experience racial abuse, both verbally and physically. Their son Jeffrey is frequently bullied by the members of his cricket team, only accepting him when he succeeds. “His teammates. In unison those belligerent bastards, yelling, “Shot, Cong!” across the field, at once turning an insult into a nickname” (Pg 240). Jeffrey’s family are also viciously attacked by a group of men from the town. “I see four men destroying An Lu’s garden, headlit by their own ute” (Pg 266). The town’s cruel citizens do not only target the racially different, but the different in general. Mad Jack Lionel is considered the town misfit, being blamed immediately for Laura Wishart’s death. Craig Silvey’s use of characterisation sculpts an idea of what Mad Jack’s personality is like. “Of course, the extent and nature of his crimes have grown worse over time, which only adds more hay to the stack and buries the pin ever deeper. But as the myth grows in girth, so too does our fear of the mad killer hidden in his home” (Pg 5). The readers interpret this description and associate it with the supposed murder due to his character outline. It is only when