Harper Lee’s semi-autobiographical novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” is cornerstone literature for all looking to get clear picture of the racial injustice experienced by African Americans in the southern United States during the Great Depression of the 1930s. It is told from the perspective of six year old Jean Louise...(“Scout”) Finch, the daughter of an Alabama lawyer attempting to defend Tom Robinson, an African American man, who has been accused of raping a white woman. Many papers already exist looking at “To Kill A Mockingbird”’s narration on the power of prejudice and the fight for justice. You can find samples of essays online to create an outline for an essay of your own, which should include an introduction, body, and conclusion.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee shows the reader a time of social injustice and racial discrimination in the American South. The book tells the life of a young girl, Jean Louis Finch, who observes this discrimination around her and even experiences some bullying...
To Kill a Mockingbird: Courage To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is the unforgettable novel of a child’s story growing up in a sleepy, Southern town and the crisis of conscience that rocked it. The novel takes readers through the many emotions of a...
A novel in which every scene and detail has its meaning and a single item has symbolism is no other than To Kill A Mockingbird. To Kill A Mockingbird has many themes although one theme, in particular, develops over the course of the novel. In...
As a story based on The Great Depression, the time period shapes many aspects of life that contrast widely to that of today’s society. The 1930’s in the south was an era of inequality in many ways. Although many years after the abolition of slavery...
In Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird, Scout’s (the narrator’s) older brother, Jem, plays an ironically important role. He may seem similar to other boys in Maycomb given his brotherly characteristics, but there is more to his character. Jem is a luminary to his sister....
Alabama, Atticus Finch, Family, Harper Lee, In Cold Blood, Monroeville, Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, Sibling, Southern Gothic, The Importance Of Moral Development
Often, there is no greater power that influences an individual’s development than his or her surroundings. It is one’s society that establishes what is generally accepted and how one comes to act within that society. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, the author Harper...
“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it” (Lee 33). Atticus Finch tells this quote to the main character, Scout Finch, in the book To Kill...
In the coming of age novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee portrays many characters in various ways, but none more insidious than Mayella Violet Ewell. Mayella is the story’s boldest antagonist. She is a static character who undergoes no inner change throughout the story,...
Throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout’s feelings and notions regarding Arthur “Boo” Radley change from her initial preconceived impression that he was a monster, to accepting Boo as a person and empathizing his perspective of the world. In the beginning, Scout was a...
Justice and its relationship with prejudice is the central theme of the timeless 1960 novel, Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. Its focal point is the trial of Tom Robinson, an African-American erroneously charged with the rape of a white girl, Mayella Ewell. Racial prejudice...
“Every lawyer gets at least one case in his lifetime that affects him personally. This one’s mine, I guess.” To Kill A Mockingbird, an award winning book by Harper Lee is about Atticus Finch, a lawyer in Maycomb, Alabama trying to defend Tom Robinson. Tom,...
Climbing into someone’s shoes and walking in it can give you the power to genuinely understand a variety of people. Doing this can also help you get along with all kinds of people, opening your mind to new perspectives of life. Considering things from other...
Tom Robinson and OJ Simpson are two black men who have both been taken to trial. They have many similarities that affected their court cases such as their race, social status, and verdict. Tom Robinson was accused of raping and beating up a white woman....
Symbolism is a very important aspect of any story. Symbols can build on the theme of a book like a theme about good and evil. It can also be the symbolism of a character or an animal like a Mockingbird. In the novel, “To Kill...
In this story how to kill a mockingbird scout has changed her attitude in the ways a lot of people do like in her clothes,fighting, and by her taking up for things she believe not what other people believe.Scout is taught new things by questions...
In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch plays a crucial role in the development of the story by acting as its moral backbone. He is always looked to for his infinite wisdom and to always do what is right. To Kill a...
In this American classic, a sleepy Southern town is rocked by the trial of a young black man accused of rape. This seemingly simple story, written in 1960, is now regarded as a hallmark of critical writing. Harper Lee writes in the themes, events, and...
Black people, Capital punishment, Harper Lee, Racism and Prejudice, Samuel Leibowitz, Scottsboro Boys, Scottsboro: An American Tragedy, Social inequality, The Scottsboro Boys, To Kill a Mockingbird
Harper Lee creates characters that contribute to the novels appeal to audiences of all ages. In To Kill a Mockingbird we learn lessons about life from both children and adults. There are three characters that are looked down on by society around them, one because...
1961 in literature, African American, Alabama, Alienation and Loneliness, Atticus Finch, Black people, Great Depression, Harper Lee, In Cold Blood, Miscegenation
The place: Maycomb, Alabama, finalist for Most Boring Town in America. Few people move in, fewer move out, so it’s just the same families doing the same things for generation after generation. Like the Finches: Scout, her brother Jem, and their father Atticus. Every summer...
To determine the amount of ones courage, they first need to explore the many definitions of what it means to be courageous. To Kill a Mockingbird was written by Lee Harper in the 1960’s during the Civil Rights Movement. In the book, Scout Finch talks...
Discrimination occurs everywhere. In TKAM, people can see the world of discrimination through many different aspects and characters. To start, gender discrimination affected the relationship between Scout and Alexandra by how Alexandra constantly harassed Scout because she isn’t enough of a “lady” in her perspective....
For centuries, countries have fought with one another over power. Whether squabbling over who has control of their nation or who really owns a territory, struggles over domination have been commonplace throughout history, featuring not only countries as a whole, but their individual settlers. Power...
In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee introduces us to a society called Maycomb in the 1930s in which social ignorance and prejudice were harmful. The word “Mockingbird” in the title is a symbol of innocence, and Boo Radley is one of the...
“Racism is still with us. But it is up to us to prepare our children for what they have to meet, and, hopefully, we shall overcome” (Rosa Parks). Prejudice will always remain in society, and it sure does in the novel To Kill A Mockingbird...
To Kill a Mockingbird, a novel by Harper Lee shows multiple people deserving of compassion, during the hard times of the Great Depression. Mayella Ewell is a misunderstood girl who is exposed for her false and rude accusations against an innocent African American man. When...
To kill a Mockingbird and Go set a watchman are novels written by the same author – Harper Lee, which both showed the process of the development of scout’s characteristics from Scout’s perspective, how she changes from a young ignorant girl to an independent thoughtful...
As a youthful and curious child, the small town that Scout Finch lived in seemed like the world. Since the book To Kill a Mockingbird was set in the south during the course of the 1930s, where she lived included a lot of prejudice and...
To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee was published in 1960. All through the novel, Harper Lee uses the character Scout to advance the invited reading that it is important to show empathy towards others, to walk in their shoes and consider things from their...
“Respect for ourselves guides our morals; respect for others guides our manners” – Laurence Sterne. This quote by Laurence Sterne performs as the general idea of respect and equality in To Kill a Mockingbird. Throughout the novel, Harper Lee creates occurrences that demonstrate respect, which...
As humans, we all change and become wiser as we grow, and Harper Lee’s novel perfectly encapsulates the essence of growth. To Kill a Mockingbird is a story of many messages, but most notably that of maturing in a society drenched in prejudice and inequality....
Atticus Finch, Scout Finch, Jem Finch, Dill Harris, Calpurnia, Aunt Alexandria, John Finch, Arthur Radley
Based on
It is partially based on Lee Harper's childhood, which is why the story is told by the child protagonist.
Symbols/motives
The loss of innocence, prejudice, racial challenges, honor, childhood, friendship, loss of innocence. The most powerful aspect is the very meaning behind "to kill a mockingbird", which means to destroy the innocence. It is made clear by Scout when he asks to "remember [that] it's a sin to kill a mockingbird". The flowers also symbolize patience and understanding, which are reflected by the white camellia flower.
Influence
To Kill a Mockingbird is not an easy book to read, yet it quickly became a symbol for the Civil Rights Movement all over the world. It teaches us about being brave, about injustice that must not be ignored, inequality around us, poverty, racism, corruption, anger control, innocence, oppression, hatred, and judging others. Reading this book reminds us of hope, patience, being equal to each other, and fighting for being brave and true.
Plot
The story starts when Tom Robinson, an African American male is accused of raping Mayella Ewell, a white woman, the local lawyer called Atticus agrees to defend Tom even though he receives threats from the community. Even when things are quickly getting dangerous, Atticus refuses to leave his client. His young son Scout unwittingly helps to settle down the challenge.
Interesting facts
The book has almost been called "Atticus" instead of the famous title that we know so well.
Harper Lee was writing only one manuscript page per day even though she worked for about 12 hours a day.
The character of Atticus Finch has been inspired by Lee's father who also worked as the lawyer and defended African American clients.
The book has helped to create a cottage industry in the author's hometown, which has started with a museum.
Lee Harper decided to choose her middle name instead of "Nelle", which she was afraid could be mispronounced.
To Kill a Mockingbird became one of the most beloved books in the American literary history.
The character of Dill has been based on author's childhood friend Truman Capote who has also used her personality's character in his "Other Voices, Other Rooms" novel that has been published in 1948.
Quotes
"The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience."
"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view. Until you climb inside of his skin and walk around in it."
"Mockingbirds don't do one thing except make music for us to enjoy. They don't eat up people's gardens, don't nest in corn cribs, they don't do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird."
"It's never an insult to be called what somebody thinks is a bad name. It just shows you how poor that person is, it doesn't hurt you."
"I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It's when you know you're licked before you begin, but you begin anyway and see it through no matter what."
Why is this topic important
The main factor in To Kill a Mockingbird is teaching one's children and reminding each other about the dangers of prejudice and judging others. Providing an example of defending a black male in the American South shows that one must always keep the faith and seek the truth regardless of the conditions.
Why should this topic be used
It is one of the most influential civil rights movement works in English literature and a symbolism of social challenge, culture, courage, defense of truth, and justice. It is also an essay topic where a person learns about prejudice and understanding that one has to be in another person's shoes to see and understand what it is like. Choosing this book as an essay topic, middle school, high school, and college students learn about justice, honor, and courage.
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