Premium Essay

To Kill A Mockingbird Society

Submitted By
Words 303
Pages 2
The most important theme of To Kill a Mockingbird concerns the conflict between the individual and society. The novel, which was written by Harper Lee in 1960, deals with some of the characters' confrontations with the world around them. The main characters of the story; 6 year old Scout Finch, her father Atticus and older brother Jam, face the complexity of human society, each in his own way. They experience the bad and good sides of life and learn how to look at things from other people's perspective.
Throughout the book's 31 chapters, the reader is introduced with the people of Maycomb, a small town in Alabama. Many of them are somehow different from what is considered normal in their white dominated southern society. The majority of Maycomb

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

To Kill A Mockingbird Impact On Society

...Molly Pincince Mrs. Kimmerlein AP English 11 04 June 2018 The Persistence of Discrimination in Modern Society Throughout history, humankind has been plagued by the vice that is racism. Fitting into a crowd is comfortable and familiar, and people who stand out are often ridiculed. The sense of safety that people feel when they are in a group allows them to do things that they wouldn’t normally do. This mob mentality has led to a long history of discrimination in the United States. Harper Lee’s book, To Kill A Mockingbird, speaks of a small town called Maycomb, where young Scout Finch lives. Scout’s father, Atticus, bears a striking resemblance to Harper Lee’s father. This is just one of the many parallels between Monroeville, where Lee grew...

Words: 1694 - Pages: 7

Premium Essay

To Kill A Mockingbird Effect On Society

...Society plays a huge role in Atticus, Scout, Warren Buffett and the Jew’s Lives, positively or negatively, in the three books, the main aspect is racism. Racism plays an enormous role in society. Racism can affect where someone sits on the bus, and how you are treated. In the first paragraph, Atticus and Scout have a hard time because of liking black people. Warren Buffett will have to face his fear of public speaking, overcoming with the thought of racism. In the plague strikes, the Jews have to deal with getting blamed for causing the diseases just because they have a different religion. In To Kill a Mockingbird, racism was negative towards people in society. Mr. Ewell is an example of the racism in the book. He accused an innocent black man of raping his daughter. Due to the negativity in society, everyone had believed he had done it, simply because the color of his skin. Another example in the book is when they made fun of Atticus and Scout for liking black people. Mr. Dubose and Francis affected Atticus and Scout negatively because of how they like black people. Due to the racism in society, innocent black people live in fear of getting killed,beat up, or put in jail, just because the color of their skin, and or sothey are affected negatively. Racism was negative...

Words: 647 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Impact Of Society In To Kill A Mockingbird

...Society’s Impact On Growth And Understanding In her novel To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee demonstrates how society shapes our understandings of others, but that this can be mitigated by strong role models. Scout Finch is strongly impacted by the “old traditions of the south” during her growth into womanhood and when she pushes against the stereotypes placed on her as a southerner and a young lady to find her gender identity. The beliefs of Atticus Finch and his involvement in the courtroom have had a big impact on Scout’s growth. Atticus’ beliefs were different than the beliefs of most people of Maycomb and he “bestowed a benevolent order on the Finch household by his example” which slowly shifted Scout’s views on their society’s division....

Words: 1080 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

To Kill A Mockingbird Influence On Society

...(C. JoyBell C).” Society has been around for the longest of times, ever since the first person was on Earth. New people join society everyday, and it changes constantly. the unrealistic standards set by society are what cause the issues people face. In To Kill A Mockingbird, society is the main villain of the characters in the novel, a villain they struggled to overcome. It has a grasp on the characters that they fight to release from their mind. Opinions are altered due to the negative effect society has on the characters. They are blinded by society and influences their views to believe what is correct or incorrect. Society has a role in everyone’s life,...

Words: 1235 - Pages: 5

Premium Essay

Kill A Mockingbird Essays: The Role Of Racism In Society

...What if you were put under medication due to racism? Sound unimaginable right, also what if you were informed that racism is fixed within society? Racism is the act of hatred targeting a group due to their physical appear. Racism can vary; as a result, the act of discrimination can affect the group or person through trauma. Today’s time, the term racism cannot be labeled in a single category. The ideology behind shows that humans unconsciously subdivide themselves; submerging hatred or single aggression against another party. Under this social science study, racism can influence the health of America’s population. Society continues suppressing the issue pertaining to racism, rumor has it that minority groups having to be second to...

Words: 645 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

How Does Atticus Creates an Impact on Society in Maycomb in the Book "To Kill a Mockingbird" by Harper Lee

...The story “To Kill a Mockingbird” was written by Harper Lee. Its setting was in Maycomb County, Alabama during the Great Depression in the 1930’s. The story was narrated through the eyes of a child, Jean Louise Finch, who was nicknamed Scout throughout the book. The dominant themes in this story were justice, courage and racism. To Kill a Mockingbird was basically about the story about the lives of two children, Scout and Scout’s older brother Jeremy, nicknamed Jem in the story, who were both the children of Atticus Finch, and their progression of their mentality for childhood to adulthood. This was greatly influenced by their father, Atticus and the case of Tom Robinson in which Atticus was defending Tom. Atticus was a proud and dignified person in Maycomb. Everyone in Maycomb respects him and he also respects himself. When Atticus was given the case of Tom Robinson, because he always wants to do what he sees as being right, he has to take Tom’s case because he sees this as his duty. Although he knows this case was a lost one because of the racial society he lives in where a white person’s words always triumph over a black person’s words, he still tries his utmost best to defend Tom Robinson. “I’ve got to live with myself” is how he explains his determination to Scout. If he didn’t defend Tom, he “couldn’t hold up his head in town.” Because his would have proved that he was as just as racial as the Maycomb folks. Atticus was “the deadest shot in Maycomb County” and...

Words: 780 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Theme Of Juxtaposition In To Kill A Mockingbird

...To Kill A Mockingbird If there was a book that easily tackles topics and a must-read for young readers then To Kill A Mockingbird would fit it. Harper Lee created To Kill A Mockingbird in the 1960s, The book is set in the 1930s in the Great Depression through the eyes of a child. The book has a lot of themes throughout the story using literary elements but how the author uses these literary elements like juxtaposition, motifs, and imagery to prove themes like humbleness, innocent of people and how unjust the society is will be explained. Harper Lee is great using literary elements to make themes like using juxtaposition to build a theme of humbleness. In chapter 12, after Calpurnia brings them to her church she says how “folks don’t like to have somebody around known more than they do, It aggravates’em” (Lee 167). Even after the fact she one of four people in her church who are literate Calpurnia knows being modest is better than bragging about it. Someone who isn’t would be Aunt Alexandra. In chapter 13, it talks about Aunt Alexandra and how “she never let a chance escape...

Words: 730 - Pages: 3

Free Essay

False Judgement

...Independent Study Project Othello, the Invisible Wound, To Kill a Mockingbird July 30th 2014 By Eileen Harford Everyone has had a time in their life when they have misjudged a situation. Whether it was assuming someone took your pencil when it is actually in behind you ear, or assuming which character is the killer in our favorite movie, we all have misjudgements all the time in our lives. When was the last time you have mistaken a situation? The theme of false judgement demonstrated in the play “Othello” by Shakespeare, the short story “The Invisible Wound” by Karoly Kisfaludi, and the film “To Kill a Mockingbird”. In these three storylines, the author exhibits the theme of false judgment through a character of innocence that is poorly misjudged and ends tragically for them. Othello accuses his wife, Desdemona of adultery, while the unnamed protagonist in “The Invisible Wound” also inaccurately assumes his wife is cheating. In “To Kill a Mockingbird”, the jury accuses Tom Robinson of a crime that he did not commit all because of the colour of his skin. Given the above, it is clear that these three story lines hold the same theme of an error in judgement occurring. Throughout the play, “Othello” by William Shakespeare, a few of the characters are condemned on untruthful information. Desdemona and Cassio are victims of poor judgement. Accusations towards Desdemona seem to be the most prominent to any reader – which all begin when Othello falls to Iago’s manipulation that...

Words: 1945 - Pages: 8

Premium Essay

Mocking Bird

...To kill a Mockingbird essay is written to explore and analyze the message given out by novel To kill a Mocking Bird. This novel was written by Harper Lee and published in 1960. It portrays the time period of 1930's in Albama. It shows dominance of white people in the society during that period. The narrator of the story is Scout Flinch. Her father Atticus Finch is a lawyer who has high ethical values and respect for humanity. He is very optimistic. Atticus stood to his character when he defends Tom Robinson, a black man on trial for the rape of a white woman. He sets up example for society and his children to stand up by his values, even when he faces the roughest time of his life in the course of defending Tom. Mockingbird is a long-tailed gray-and-white songbird which does not harm anyone. Author tries to relate the trial of Tom with killing a mockingbird. Our company is equipped with a team of professional writers who are skilled in writing essays related to every field. This kind of work requires an in depth knowledge of literature and expert skills in essay writing. The writer must be able to comprehend the view of the author so that the readers of the essay can associate themselves. Our company ensures that the essay writers strictly follow all the standard guidelines of MLA essay format for the perfect presentation of the literary essays. "To kill a mockingbird" essay should necessarily cover the following points to get a good grade in essay rubric: - Social...

Words: 519 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

What Does Miss Maudie Symbolize In To Kill A Mockingbird

...Throughout Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird symbolism is present as a mockingbird, the multiple flowers mentioned, and a character himself, Boo Radley. Mockingbirds are a picture of innocence and beauty. The mockingbird is used as a symbol of innocence in the book. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus is telling Scout how it is a sin to kill a mockingbird. Scout later asks Miss Maudie and Miss Maudie agrees by saying “Your father’s right…Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy…but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird.” They say it is a sin to kill one because they do not do anything to harm others. The only thing they do is bring music to their ears. Not only for innocence in general,...

Words: 668 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

To Kill A Mockingbird And The Help Essay

...The Help and To Kill a Mockingbird both have many similarities in how prejudice and empathy were displayed throughout the story. Both of the stories were set in the time of segregation in the Southern United States. It also shows the similarity of African-Americans as caretakers or housekeepers – Calpurnia in To Kill a Mockingbird and Aibileen is only one of the examples in The Help. The settings were also similar, a part of a town was where whites lived and part of a town was where African-Americans lived, but there was a twenty-year difference of when the books took place. Prejudice was mainly shown throughout the storied by the way whites treated the African-Americans. In The Help, there were multiple examples of prejudice: African-Americans were not allowed to us the same bathroom as whites and how African-Americans could not use the same plates as whites. The acts of prejudice often stemmed from the fact that whites believed that African-Americans contained diseases, a statement that was supported by no facts. In To Kill a Mockingbird, the main example of prejudice was when Tom Robinson was convicted of raping a white girl when...

Words: 570 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Fjoiasdjkl

...THE GLENCOE LITERATURE LIBRARY Study Guide for To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee i Meet Harper Lee at the same university. In 1949, however, she withdrew and moved to New York City with the goal of becoming a writer. While working at other jobs, Lee submitted stories and essays to publishers. All were rejected. An agent, however, took an interest in one of her short stories and suggested she expand it into a novel. By 1957 she had finished a draft of To Kill a Mockingbird. A publisher to whom she sent the novel saw its potential but thought it needed reworking. With her editor, Lee spent two and a half more years revising the manuscript. By 1960 the novel was published. In a 1961 interview with Newsweek magazine, Lee commented: Writing is the hardest thing in the world, . . . but writing is the only thing that has made me completely happy. To Kill a Mockingbird was an immediate and widespread success. Within a year, the novel sold half a million copies and received the Pulitzer Prize for fiction. Within two years, it was turned into a highly acclaimed film. Readers admire the novel’s sensitive and probing treatment of race relations. But, equally, they enjoy its vivid account of childhood in a small rural town. Summing up the novel’s enduring impact in a 1974 review, R. A. Dave called To Kill a Mockingbird . . . a movingly human drama of the jostling worlds—of children and adults, of innocence and experience, of kindness and cruelty, of love and hatred, of humor...

Words: 4484 - Pages: 18

Premium Essay

To Kill a Mockingbird Essay

...It is true that Harper Lee’s novel ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ is more than just a simple story. Novels that challenge the reader’s way of thinking become distinct from others. Lee explores key ideas such as prejudice and courage and challenges readers to think about major moral issues experienced in society .The story at first seems like any other childish novel but Lee highlights key ideas making the novel evolve into something much greater. Lee shows the co-existence of Good and Evil and the moral nature of human beings in society. Readers re-evaluate their understanding of the world making the book much more significant. Ideas such as prejudice and courage are emphasized in To Kill a Mockingbird. Prejudice is the preconceived opinion that is not based on reason or actual experience. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee isolates characters and depicts ways prejudice is used. She demonstrates the evils of prejudice and the result can be quite confronting to readers. Lee reinforces the idea that all men and women are created equal and have the same rights. To Kill a Mockingbird exposes the dangers of stereotyping and prejudice. In the novel the idea of equality is lost even in the house of god. Prejudice appears in many forms in the novel. An early form of prejudice in the novel is the children’s obsession with Boo Radley which appears all throughout the novel. Local Gossip portrays Boo as a malevolent phantom. The children run by the Radley house out of fear acting as if the...

Words: 847 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Coming Of Age In Harper Lee's 'To Kill A Mockingbird'

...To Kill a Mockingbird Seminar Essay Guiding Question 2 In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee explains Scout’s coming of age story through a point of view lesson and a lesson about society. After Scout’s first day of school, Atticus justifies Miss Caroline’s extreme behavior regarding Scout’s early reading skills by claiming “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view(Lee 39)”. At this point in the novel, Scout thinks little of what Atticus says and refuses to believe any justification for how Miss Caroline treated her earlier in the day. However, Scout quickly becomes reminded of this lesson time and time again. At the climax of the novel, Atticus justifies Bob Ewell’s reaction of the court proceedings as “some kind of comeback(Lee 292)” when putting himself in Ewell’s shoes. Scout begins to relax, but is not reassured completely by Atticus’ explanation of Bob Ewell’s bland threats. Scout finally truly understands this coming of age lesson when putting herself in Boo Radley’s...

Words: 1354 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

How Does Harper Lee Show the Significance of the Title to Kill a Mockingbird

...Lee shows the significance of the title To Kill a Mockingbird The title of a novel is a significant asset for the writer to express his/her emotions and how they think the novel should be summed up. However Harper Lee’s “To Kill a Mockingbird” isn’t about “mockingbirds”. The word mockingbird is a metaphorical symbolization of the concept of innocence. This essay will be a critical analysis of the significance of the title “To Kill a Mockingbird”. Firstly Boo Radley is a character who exploits the true meaning of the title. Harper Lee presents Boo as a very controversial character due to him being locked in his house for 25 years, also because of his lack of speech and involvement throughout the whole novel. Through Lee’s vivid descriptions and Scouts narrations the reader firstly acknowledges Boo as a monster that is “six and a half feet tall”. Scout personifies Boo as a very intimidating individual through Lee’s vivid descriptions and linguistic imagery. The words “six and a half” are adjectives that describe the physical stature of Boo. The reader may feel Boo is the complete opposite of the titles reference however other readers may feel that Scout’s lack of education and maturity are the culprit of Boo’s false identifications. However throughout the novel the reader acknowledges the true qualities of Boo as does Scout as well. Lee establishes Boo as a peaceful individual whose love for children never stops. In modern society many individuals such as Boo are culprits...

Words: 787 - Pages: 4