To Kill a Mockingbird A Discussion of Major Themes Within the Text

The novel To Kill a Mockingbird is a rich text consisting of themes that were the harsh reality of the novel’s setting; rural Alabama during the 1930’s. Racism, discrimination, prejudice, and hatred are all among the issues that author Harper Lee deals with. In addition to these weighty and unsettling topics in the novel, Miss Lee revolves her plot around the life of a young girl named Scout Finch.

Scout is telling the reader the story in retrospect when the novel begins. We learn she is six years old and has an older brother named Jem. Central to the plot is the children’s innocence. Their relative naivete can be observed through the simple ways in which they play and pass the time. Jem and Scout are fascinated with the mysterious “Boo” Radley, a recluse who, according to Jem, comes out only at night to eat cats and squirrels in addition to looking through people’s bedroom windows. The scare each other with ghosts stories and Scout gets into fights almost daily. When the novel concludes, she looks back at the events that have transpired throughout the length of the story and we reali

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They harbor no prejudice or discriminatory feelings towards anyone, no doubt because of their upbringing by their morally inclined father, Atticus Finch. During a point in the plot of the story, the author reveals how disappointed Jem and Scout were that their father was not like the father’s of other children. He is, we later learn, referring to Jem and Scout. It is particularly exhibited by Jem and Scout’s Aunt Alexandra. While there are many people who are appreciative of his kindness, in particular the Negro population of Maycomb and Tom’s family, others are not so delighted by his efforts.

The title of Miss Lee’s novel is in fact a reference to something that the wiser-than-his-years Atticus Finch tells his children. He is accosted by a mob late one night while standing guard outside Tom’s jail cell. Not much later they learn from Sheriff Tate himself that Atticus is the best shot in all of Maycomb County. The judge knew how good a man and a lawyer Atticus was and that justice needed to be served. And his shoulders jerk as if each guilty is a separate stab between them”. ze to what extent both her and Jem’s characters have grown. After Bob Ewell attacks Jem and Scout coming home from the Halloween pageant, Boo in turn assaults him; stabbing him in the ribs and killing him. Jem and Scout learn from Miss Maudie just how exceptional their father is during a particular point in the novel concerning Tom’s trial. When the verdict returned is in fact the exact opposite, Jem is astonished.

Approximate Word count = 1235
Approximate Pages = 5 (250 words per page double spaced)

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