To Kill a Mockingbird

By Harper Lee

OVERVIEW OF THE NOVEL

     AUTHOR: Harper Lee PUBLICATION DATE: 1960 SETTING: Maycomb, Alabama 1933-1935 POINT OF VIEW: First person narrative THEMES: Lack of and need for human compassion Need for individual conscience

HARPER LEE

    (Nellie) Harper Lee BORN: April 28, 1926 PLACE OF BIRTH: Monroe, Alabama PARENTS: Amasa C. and Frances (Finch) Lee Related to Robert E. Lee

AWARDS

 1960 Pulitzer Prize for Distinguished Fiction by an American author  National Conference of Christian and Jews Brotherhood Award  Paperback of the Year Award  Book-of-the-Month Club

EDUCATION

 Monroe, Alabama Public School  Huntington College in Montgomery, Alabama (1944)  attended Oxford College one year as a Fullbright scholar

AUTHOR’S LINKS TO THE NOVEL’S PLOT AND CHARACTERS

     Harper Lee’s father was a Southern lawyer. He served as the prototype for Atticus Finch.

Harper Lee’s age (6 to 8) correlates with Scout’s age during 1933-1935, the time period of the book.

The courtroom in Maycomb is patterned after the one in Monroeville where Harper Lee observed her father in courtroom proceedings.

Tom Robinson’s trial appears to be a composite of many trials in the South, specifically the Scottsboro trials.

Some of the novel’s characters are composites of people Harper Lee knew personally; for example, the author Truman Capote as Dill.

CHARACTERS

    ATTICUS FINCH – lawyer, father of Scout and Jem; widower JEAN LOUISE “SCOUT” FINCH – adult narrator as story begins; narrates story in retrospect; relates events that begin when she is 6 years old.

JEM FINCH – Scout’s brother, who is 4 years older than she.

CHARLES BAKER “DILL” HARRIS – 7 year-old visitor to Maycomb; acts as a catalyst

MORE CHARACTERS

 ARTHUR “BOO” RADLEY – neighborhood recluse  CALPURNIA – the black housekeeper for the Finch family  AUNT ALEXANDRA – Scout & Jem’s aunt  MAUDE ATKINSON – friend of Finch family

MORE CHARACTERS

 TOM ROBINSON – black man accused of raping a white girl  MAYELLA EWELL – the girl who accuses Tom of rape  BOB EWELL – Mayella’s father  HECK TATE – sheriff of Maycomb

JEM

Innocence

DILL CALPURNIA

Helpfulness

MAUDIE

Bigotry Or Prejudice

CHARACTERS AS SYMBOLS TOM

Helplessness

BOO

1.

2.

3.

4.

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER

What was America like during the time of this book?

What is the significance of the title with regards to the plot and symbolism?

What experiences and people did Harper Lee rely on in order to develop her plot and characters?

Is there still prejudice in America today?