Scout
Characterization of Scout
Symbols in the story
Thematic Concepts
Education
Maturity
Racism
"When we were small, Jem and I confined our activities to the southern neighboorhood, but when I was well into the second grade at school and tormenting Boo Radley became passe, the business section of Maycomb drew us frequently up the street past the real property of Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose. " (Lee 114)
The Mad Dog
The Mockingbird
The Blanket used by Boo Radley
"Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." (Lee 103)
"Boo Radley. You were so busy looking at the fire you didn't knnow it when he put the blanket around you."(Lee 82)
"I thought mad dogs foamed at the mouth, galloped, leaped and lunged at throats, and I thought they did it in August.. Had Tim Johnson behaved thus, I would have been less frightened." (Lee 108)
Thematic Statement
As one becomes more mature overall, so will their lifestyle.
Thematic Statement
"I began a letter to Dill. Miss Caroline caught me writing and told me to tell my father to stop teaching me. "Besides," she said. "We don't write in the first grade, we print. You won't learn to write until you're in the first grade." (Lee 21)
Thematic Statement
The mere intention of imposing injustice to anyone in any form itself is injustice.
The denial of knowledge is detrimental to the progress of the individual and his/her society.
By the use of the words "sin" in this specific quote, Atticus shows that Mockingbirds are "innocent" compared to bluejays. Therefore, in relation to the story, the mockingbird represents the innocent people of maycomb whereas the bluejays represents the racist people in the society.
The mad dog represents the anger Atticus faced when he experienced the injustice in society while trying to defend Tom Robinson. The actions that describe the mad dog in this quote such as "leaped" and "lunged at throats". are figuratively similar to the actions that Atticus perform in the court scene. Therefore, that's why the mad dog represents the anger of Atticus.
The blanket used by Boo represents his protective nature over Scout and Jem.
Curious
Impatient
"Atticus had promised me he would wear me out if he ever heard of me fighting any more; I was far too old and too big for such childish things, and the sooner I learned to hold in, the better off everybody would be."(Lee 85)
In this quote, Scout is told to supposedly "learn to hold in". which goes to show that she is very impatient
Courageous
This quote shows how drastic the lifestyle of one changes when they become more matured.
" I wanted to be her 'company,' to see how she lived, who her friends were. I might as well have wanted to see the other side of the moon. This time the tactics were different, but Aunt Alexandra’s aim was the same. " (Lee 256)
"Don't you touch him! I kicked the man swiftly. Barefooted, I was suprised to see him fall back in real pain." (Lee 173)
Despite Scout knowing the consequences he may face, he still beat the man up. This shows the courageous personality of Scout.
Because of Scout's desire to know about the life of Aunt Alexandra, one can conclude that Scout has a very curious nature.
"As you grow older you'll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don't you forget it--- whenever a white man does that to a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that white man is trash." (Lee 256)
These statements from Atticus to Scout shows the acknowledgement of injustice in their society and this quote helps elaborate the thematic conept of racism by providing clear evidence that racism exists from the words of Atticus himself.
When Scout began writing, the teacher told her to stop. Scout was unable to practice her writing. This is one of the reasons Scout and Atticus dislike the current education system. Therefore, education is a very important thematic concept, as the importance of it and the flaws of the current education system was mentioned several times throughout the story.
Setting
Radley Place
"Rain-rotted shingles dropped over the eaves of the veranda; oak trees kept the sun away. The remains of a picket drunkenly guarded the front yard---a "swept"" yard that was never swept--- where the johnson grass and rabbit tobacco grew in abundance." (Lee 9)
These specific words such as "drunkenly" and "rain-rotted" are used to create a negative view of the house in the readers mind. The author Harper Lee wanted to create this point of view in order to create a negative perspective on the owner of the house Mr. Nathan Radley.
Finch House
""We lived on the main residential street in town." (Lee 6), "behind car-house" (Lee 7), "day's play in the backyard. We went to the wire fence" (Lee 7)
The descriptions were mainly used as location pointers so that the reader can visualize how parts of the house are.