The novel To Kill a Mockingbird revolves around a young woman named Jean Louise Finch who goes by the nickname “Scout.” Scout experiences different events in her life that dramatically change her. Scout and her brother Jem are being raised by their father, a lawyer named Atticus, and a housekeeper named Calpumia in a small southern town. At this time in the South, racism and discrimination against blacks were a big problem. The story begins when Scout is 6 years old and her brother is about to enter fifth grade. That summer, Scout and her brother meet a boy named Dill who comes from Mississippi to spend summers there. They become fascinated with a man named “Boo” Radley, a man in his thirties who has not been seen outside his home in years, mainly due to his repressed upbringing. They have the impression that Mr. Radley is a big, ugly and evil man. Then comes the judgment. Scout’s father becomes a defense attorney for a black man, Tom Robinson, falsely accused of raping a white woman. This has a great effect on Scout. During this trial, her friends tease her because her father was helping this black man. Scout begins to see the racism that exists. During the trial, Scout and her brother and close friend Dill witness the trial. Although they are young, they can see that Mr. Robinson is innocent. Despite the fact that Mr. Robinson’s innocence was clear even in the eyes of the children, Mr. Robinson was found guilty. Later, in an attempt to escape, Mr. Robinson is shot and killed. Scout is extremely disappointed by the verdict and even more so by the death of Mr. Robinson and realizes the injustice that exists. Later, in a cowardly attempt by the alleged rape victims’ father, he attempts to kill Scout and her brother to get revenge on their father for making him look back in court. This is when Mr. Radley makes an appearance again and stabs his attacker. Although Mr. Radley kills a man, he is not on trial for murder because he was defending the Scout and her brother. Finally some justice. This gives Scout some hope that she is an opportunity for improvement in this unfair world.
(Discussion of the main themes in To Kill A Mockingbird)
There are many different themes present in Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. The first topic I will discuss is “Prejudice.” The whole story revolved around the prejudiced opinions of this southern community. The only reason the trial was taking place was because of people’s views towards blacks in the south. Since the alleged rape victim’s father has such a prejudiced opinion towards black, he is ashamed that his daughter is flirting with a black man. To combat this, he falsely accuses the innocent Mr. Robinson of rape. If it weren’t for the bias point of view that existed in the South, the prosecution would never have been brought against Mr. Robinson. These prejudiced views in the South created a double standard of justice. With all the negatives that can be found in the story regarding prejudice, there was a bright spot when it came to the subject of prejudice. This “ray of light” came in the form of Atticus, Scout’s father. Atticus represented hope. I hope there are still good people. Even in a hateful society. Atticus represented the hope that one day things may change
The theme “Prejudice” also fits well with the title of the book “To Kill a Mockingbird”. In Chapter 10, Scout and Jem Finch get air rifles for Christmas. The scout’s father tells her and her brother that it is a sin to kill a nightingale because nightingales are harmless creatures that do nothing but sing for our enjoyment. In the story To Kill a Nightingale, Mr. Robinson is clearly the “nightingale.” He is a good man who has never hurt anyone and, figuratively and literally, he is fired upon by society because of his prejudices. The jurors sentence him to death not because he did something wrong, but because of prejudice. Later, he is shot for trying to escape this unjust sentence. Mr. Robinson, like a nightingale, is shot for no reason.
The second topic I will discuss is “coming of age”. The theme of “coming of age” basically involves a character evolving to a new level of self-awareness through his life experiences. This is clearly the case for Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird. An example of Scout’s “coming of age” can be seen when she meets her friend Dill. Dill comes from a broken home and lives somewhere beyond Alabama. Scout who comes from a good home wakes up to the different quality of life that exists and is able to come to the conclusion that life exists beyond the world he knows. Through these experiences, he becomes more tolerant of others, learning to “step into someone else’s shoes and walk with them.” On his first day of school, he discovers that, as with Dill, there are social and poor classes in society, some are respectable and some are not. He also learns that his father is an extraordinary man who fights for the rights of a black man in court. During Tom Robinson’s trial, Scout learns about equality and inequality and finally about racial prejudice. In the final chapters of the novel, Scout goes on to another “coming of age experience.” Learn that good people can still suffer injustice. She realizes this when she sees Tom Robinson suffer injustice even though they did nothing to deserve it. She discovers that the courts do not always result in justice. In the end, after all of Scout’s experiences and discoveries, we have the feeling that she will not follow the prejudiced views that her society defends. In the end, Scout had matured and grown more as a child than many adults in his life will.
The third and final topic I will discuss is “Justice.” In the story To Kill a Mockingbird I Feel, the author, Ms. Lee portrays true justice as best seen through the eyes of the innocent. In the story, Scout and her brother, being innocent, can clearly see the injustice committed against Mr. Robinson. Unlike Scout and her brother, other people in society, more specifically, older people in town, people who have had different experiences, go blind when it comes to true justice. Or maybe they are not blinded, but simply choose to ignore it. This is clearly seen when an innocent man is sentenced to death. This ignorance of justice can be attributed to the prejudiced views that are present and ultimately inculcated in southern society. So I feel like Harper Lee is connecting justice with innocence to some degree. In my opinion, Harper Lee describes justice as easy to spot. The reason I say this is even young justice. The problem is that society can instill beliefs that can act as a veil and blind people from justice. The only way to discover this veil is through people like Atticus, who can pass on their morality and nobility to the young and the “blind.”
(Would you recommend this book?)
I would definitely recommend people to read Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird book. I found it an interesting and powerful book. I feel like the book does a great job of portraying the extreme prejudice that existed in the South at the time. I think this book makes a powerful statement about how justice can be altered through racism. I also think that the themes found in the book are themes that can still be found in our society today and that makes it more interesting. You can even argue that prejudice still has an effect on our legal system today. So if you’re looking for a powerful book on “coming of age” and the battle for justice, I highly recommend To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee.