To Kill a Mockingbird

By Harper Lee

Setting

 Maycomb, Alabama (fictional city)   1933-1935 Although slavery has long been abolished, the Southerners in Maycomb continue to believe in white supremacy.

Themes

        Racial Prejudice Social Snobbery Morality Tolerance Patience Equality The Need for Compassion The Need for Conscience

Symbolism

 The Mockingbird: Symbolizes Everything That is Good and Harmless in This World  The mockingbird only sings to please others and therefore it is considered a sin to shoot a mockingbird. They are considered harmless creatures who give joy with their song.

 The mockingbird image or symbol appears four times in the novel.

 Two characters in the novel symbolize the mockingbird: Tom Robinson & Boo Radley.

Jean Louis Finch – “Scout”

  The story’s narrator Although now an adult, Scout looks back at her childhood and tells of the momentous events and influential people of those years.

 Scout is six when the story begins.

 She is naturally curious about life.

Scout’s Character Traits

       Tomboy Impulsive Emotional Warm & Friendly Sensitive Adorable Gains in Maturity throughout the Novel

Atticus Finch

             Father of Scout and Jem A widower An attorney by profession Highly respected Good citizen Instills good values and morals in his children.

His children call him “Atticus” Honest Typical southern gentleman Brave Courteous Soft-spoken

Jem Finch

 Scout’s older brother  Looks up to his father Atticus  Usually looks out for Scout  Typical older brother at times  Smart  Compassionate  Matures as the story progresses

Calpurnia

  Has watched the children since their mother’s death  The Finch’s black housekeeper Has been a positive influence on the children.

Arthur “Boo” Radley

       An enigma An adult man, whose father has “sentenced” him to a lifetime confinement to their house because of some mischief he got into when he was a teenager.

Has a reputation of being a lunatic Basically a harmless, well-meaning person Sometimes childlike in behavior Starving for love and affection Saves Jem and Scout from certain danger

Tom Robinson

    A young, harmless, innocent, hardworking black man Has a crippled left hand Married with three children. Works on a farm belonging to Mr. Link Deas, a white man Will be falsely accused of raping a white girl, Mayella Ewell

Dill

 A close friend of Jem and Scout    Usually lives in Maycomb only during the summer (stays with a relative) Tells “big stories” Has been deprived of love and affection

Two Poor White Families:

The Cunninghams The Ewells       Poor white family Includes Bob Ewell the father of Mayella Ewell (19) Hard-working Honest Proud Survive on very little Always pay back their debts – even if it is with hickory nuts, turnips, or holly.

 Poor white trash  Dirty  Lazy  Good-for-nothing  Never done a day’s work  Foul-mouthed  Dishonest  Immoral

Ewells

          Mayella 19 years old white, poor accuses Tom of rape oldest of a large family motherless uneducated Bob Ewell father of 8 children no job

Heck Tate

      sheriff of Maycomb admires Atticus as being a better shot with a gun was the first to arrive at the Ewells did not call for a doctor good citizen of Maycomb respectable to most everyone

The Black Community

         Simple Honest Clean Hard-working God fearing Proud Would never take anything without paying it back Respectful Had stronger character than most of the whites      Oppressed Uneducated Discriminated against Talked about badly Deserve better than what is dished out to them by society

The Caste System

 The four levels of people from the novel - or how Jem says, “the people of Maycomb society understood their place.”    1. Finchs, towns people, white, educated 2. County folk, farmers, white, landowners 3. Poor white folk  4. Black community

Language

       Sometimes the language of Scout will be that of her as a child; other times, she will be speaking in the voice of an adult Atticus uses formal speech Calpurnia uses “white language” in the Finch house and switches to “black jargon” when amidst blacks The Ewells use foul words and obscenities Jem, Scout, and Dill will use slang words, typical of their age Tom Robinson uses language typical of the southern black such as “suh” for “sir” and “chillun” for “children” Various derogatory terms for blacks will be used such as “nigger,” “darky,” “Negroes,” and “colored folk” – Lee uses such language to keep her novel naturally in sync with common language of the times

Tone

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Somber

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Serious

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Humorous (at times)

Review for chapters 1-17

          TRUE or FALSE Miss Alexandra’s house burned down during the winter.

Mrs. Dubose successfully withdrew from alcohol before she died.

Mr. Heck Tate shot Tim Johnson Dill’s parents wanted Aunt Rachel to adopt him.

Scout beat up Francis for calling her day a “nigger-lover.” Walter Cunningham did not have lunch money on the first day of school.

Miss Caroline slapped Scout’s hands with a ruler.

Nathan Radley left gifts in the tree for Jem and Scout.

Jem was told to kill all the mockingbird he wanted.

20

THE TRIAL

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Chapter 17 - Day 1 - Courtroom Players

Mr. Gilmer - Prosecuting attorney (Ewells) Atticus - Defending attorney (Tom) Judge Taylor Heck Tate - sheriff - first to take the stand Mayella Ewell - 19 year old, white female Black community - sitting in balcony Jury - white farmers (Cunninghams?) Bert - the court reporter Seated behind the court players where white folk from around the country

Testimony of Heck Tate and Bob Ewell

         Heck Called Nov. 21 found Mayella lying on the floor in the middle of the front room, pretty well beat up.

washed her face and said she was alright asked who beat her and she said Tom Robinson asked her if he took advantage of her and she said yes he did, so he arrested Tom and took him in.

Did not call a doctor She was beaten around the head, bruises on her arms, and a black eye on her right eye.

She had finger marks on her throat.

Testimony of Bob Ewell

          Bob Ewell father of Mayella says he came home from the woods when he heard Mayella scream when he got up to the window he say Tom having sexual intercourse with Mayella He ran in the room, but Tom ran out ahead of him.

Then he ran for Heck Tate Did not run for a doctor because it would have cost $5 agreed her right eye was bunged up Wrote his name with his left hand Felt tricked and said he could use his right hand just as

Mayella’s Testimony - Chapter 18

           Mayella saw Tom walk by her house, asked him to bust up a chiffarobe, she’s pay him a nickel As she went in the house for the nickel, she said Tom run behind her, got her around the neck, and hit her.

Said he “chunked me on the floor an’ choked me’n took advantage of me.” Then her Papa came in hollering’ Then Heck Tate was there Didn’t like Atticus calling her ma’am or Miss Mayella three years of school has no friends her age says her dad has never beat her says it was the first time she asked Tom in the house

Chapter 19 Tom’s Testimony

 Reader’s Theater - Roles:    Atticus Judge Taylor Mr. Gilmer   Tom Robinson Jem, Scout, Dill, Rev. Sykes   Mayella Ewell Mr. Ewell   Link Deas Mr. Dolphus Raymond

Ch. 20 Analyze Atticus’ Closing Remarks RemaRemarks

Paragraph 1- Who is Atticus speaking to? Why does he want to influence them? What adjectives describe Atticus as a speak? Why does he fit these adjectives?

 Paragraph 2 - Summarize each paragraph of his speech. Identify the subject or main topic of each paragraph. How does he reason that his topic sentence is true?

 Paragraph 3 - Pick out specific words and phrases and explain how Atticus uses them to make people feel an emotion such as understanding, loyalty, justice, kindness, or honesty.

 Paragraph 4 - Pick out words or phrases Atticus uses to make people use logical thinking or common sense. Explain these examples.  Paragraph 5 - Pick out specific words Atticus uses which make his speech overall effective. Explain why this language worked.

The Verdict -

Chapter 21   After two hours the jury was polled.

“guilty  “I looked around. They were all standing. All around us and in the balcony on the opposite wall the Negroes were getting to their feet. Reverend Syke’s voice was a distant as Judge Taylor’s: ‘Miss Jean Louise, stand up. Your father’s passin’.’ 27 27

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Harper Lee

She was born in 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama (the fictional “Maycomb, Alabama”) Her father “Amasa” was a lawyer whom she deeply admired Her mother’s maiden name was “Finch” Her own childhood mirrors that of the character “Scout” In 1960 she published her only novel – “To Kill a Mockingbird” It received the Pulitzer Prize for Literature in 1961 Since 1960, “To Kill a Mockingbird” has never been out of print At age 81, she is alive and resides in New York She rarely makes public appearances or gives interviews

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Life During the 1930s

Race Relations  Nine black teenagers are falsely charged with raping two white women in Scottsboro, Alabama; eight are convicted and sentenced to death  The U.S. Supreme Court reverses their convictions because their constitutional rights had been violated  The teens are tried for a second time, and are again found guilty  The Supreme Court reverses the convictions again  Eventually, four of the defendants are freed; the other five serve prison terms  The last Scottsboro defendant was paroled in 1950  It was virtually impossible for a black to receive a fair trial

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Life During the 1930s

The Great Depression sweeps the nation – Many families do not even have money for basic needs such as food, clothing, and shelter.

The per capita income for families in Alabama (and Oklahoma) is $125 - $250 a year Many southern blacks pick cotton for a living Franklin D. Roosevelt is President

Life During the 1930s

       Hitler is Chancellor of Germany He believes that Jews, African Americans, and other races are inferior to Anglo Saxons.

In 1936, Jesse Owens, a black American athlete, traveled to Germany to participate in the Summer Olympics.

Owens’ biggest competitor in the long jump was a German named Luz Long.

Despite racial tensions, the two became good friends. Jesse Owens won the gold medal and Long won the silver.

Long was later killed during World War II, and Jesse Owens traveled back to Germany to pay his respects when the war was over.

Legal Segregation in Alabama, 1923-1940

        No white female nurses in hospitals that treat black men Separate passenger cars for whites and blacks Separate waiting rooms for whites and blacks Separation of white and black convicts Separate schools No interracial marriages Segregated water fountains Segregated theatres

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Morphine: A Southern Lady’s Drug

1930s Typical Morphine Addict:  White female  In “To Kill a Mockingbird,” the Finch children will become acquainted with a morphine addict named Mrs. Dubose. Although only a fictitious character, she personifies the American morphine addict of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

 Middle-aged or older      Widowed Homebound Lives in the south Property owner Began using morphine for medical reasons (pain relief)

 Review To Kill a Mockingbird Test  1. Character information - 3 details for Atticus, Jem, Scout, Calpurnia, Heck Tate, Bob Ewell, Mayella Ewell, and Boo Radley  2. Caste system’s four levels  3. True or false questions for part I of book  4. Trial questions - Heck Tate, Mayella, Bob, and Tom’s testimony points. Key points surrounding the trial.

 5. Story elements: setting, themes, POV, conflicts, rising action, falling action, climax, resolution.

 6. Short answer response - 1)Trace Bob and Scout’s relationship and 2) Jem’s changes

 Jem’s psychological profile:  Influenced by Atticus, his lessons, his job, his role model as a father, his family history, community respect from all people  Jem changes the way he sees his father 1. At first he thought his father old and boring 2. After the rabid dog, he thought his dad had secrets. He found out his dad was admired by others. Jem felt interested in his father now. 3. The trial made Jem realize his father’s courage.

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 Jem’s Psychological Profile  Influenced by Calpurnia - that you can make something of yourself even if society doesn’t want you to  Jem changes his view of black people. 1. First he understands the caste system as a given. 2. After his visit to Cal’s church, Jem sees that this system forces people to behave in strange ways. 3. Eventually Jem understands how difficult it is to change the caste system.

 Jem’s Psychological Profile  Influenced by Community people that it is okay to be prejudice, set in your ways, and judgmental.

 Jem changes his view of his town and their traditions. 1. Jem was proud of his town. 2. Jem soon learned that people could be difficult to deal with. 3. After the trial, Jem grew disappointed in his town.

 Jem’s Psychological Profile  Influenced by Scout and Dill and Atticus to see things from other people’s point of view, to trust, and find love  Jem was able to change his feelings about Boo and other people. 1. At first Jem thought Boo was a phantom only to find out he was a innocent victim. 2. Jem learned to see Mrs. Dubose differently 3. Jem began to see Mr. Raymond Dolphus as his own person.

 Jem’s Psychological Profile  Influenced by Miss Maudie that you don’t have to go along with what everyone else does.

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