Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
The symbolism of the mockingbird
The symbolism of the mockingbird
Symbolism in to kill a mockingbird essay
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Dubose as a symbol to foreshadow Jem rejecting white supremacy. In chapter eleven Jem is gifted a box of white camellias after Mrs. Dubose’s death. She gave the flowers to him because Jem helped Mrs. Dubose battle her morphine addiction by reading to her after school in her final days. When Jem receives the flowers Scout describes, “Jem opened the box. Inside, surrounded by wads of damp cotton, was a white, waxy, perfect camellia.
Children need great mothers to grow as respectable adults. In Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, a black woman named Calpurnia appears as an excellent mother figure. She became a mother-like being to Jem and Scout who lost their physical mother long time ago. Her presence influenced the children enormously in plenty of ways. As a proof of her being a good mother, the children grow and mature well as time passes.
After those months are over though, Mrs. Dubose passes away, leaving behind a gift for Jem. A single White Camellia in a box. Scout narrates, “Jem picked up the candy box and threw it in the fire. He picked up the camellia, and when I went off to bed I saw him fingering the wide petals.” (Lee 149).
Jem was stunned, but even more so when he received a parting gift from Mrs.Dubose. It was a camelia from her garden. His initial reaction was negative, but Scout later sees him holding it with care. Jem learned through this experience that showing regardless kindness to everyone is important because every person is fighting a battle of their
Jem loses his temper and breaks Scout’s baton while using it to smash and destroy Mrs. Dubose’s camellia bushes. What Mrs. Dubose said was very out of line and disrespectful. However, Atticus warns Jem about her
The mockingbird in To Kill A Mockingbird is symbolic of innocence. Early in the novel, Atticus, the father tells the children Scout and Jem that it is a "sin to kill a mockingbird". Later Scout asks Miss Maudie what he meant by that because she has never heard her father say anything was a sin. Miss Maudie explains his reasoning by saying that all mockingbirds do is provide beautiful music. They do not harm anyone, they don't bother anyone, and they "sing their hearts out for us."
The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is about two kids, Jem and Scout, and their childhood in their small town Maycomb, Alabama. In the beginning of the novel, Jem and Scout were two innocent kids playing in the summer sun, until school came along. Jem was about twelve throughout the novel and Scout was eight, and considering that Jem was twelve in the novel, he was changing. During the middle of the novel a rape trial occurred, which included a black man being accused by a white woman of first-degree rape. Atticus, the kid’s father was defending the african american man; Tom Robinson.
“In the corner of the room was a brass bed, and in the bed was Mrs. Dubose. I wondered if Jems activities had put her there and for a moment I felt sorry for her.” The reason why Jem and Scout were at Mrs. Dubose’s house, was because Jem and Scout were walking by her house when Dubose started yelling at the kids saying that Atticus is not any better than the “niggers and trash he works for.” Jem lost his temper and takes Scouts baton he bought for her and snaps it in half. Jem destroys all of
The heat was devastating and many people decided to not go outside. Jem and I, however, ignored Atticus ' warnings about the heat, and left to go to see Dill. We passed by the Radley house, no longer afraid of Boo, after all, he had saved our lives. I could still clearly remembering the events of that day, but when I brought up the topic with Jem, he would ignore me, and change the subject. “Jem?”
Lee’s usage of the azalea show readers Maudie 's compassionate and understanding personality, while the white camellias to were used to show Mrs. Dubose 's innocence and discriminatory
It’s your job not to let her make you mad. ”(page 100). Jem was far more civilized than Mrs.Dubose. Their relationship was not a good one, especially after Jems anger caused him to “...cut the tops off every camellia bush Mrs.Dubose owned. ”(page 103).
Mrs. Dubose as a ‘punishment’ wanted Jem to read to him. So Atticus says ‘’’Then you’ll do it for a month.’’’ (pg 140). He chose a month a month because in that time Jem started gaining respect for Mrs. Dubose. By Atticus being fair with the punishment and taking the high road, it became a important and positive life lesson for Jem.
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, the definition of revenge is “to inflict injury in return for.” In To Kill a Mockingbird (TKAM) by Harper Lee, Scout, and Jem explore Civil Rights and racism in the segregated Maycomb, Alabama during the 1930s. Expressed through the eyes of 7-year-old, you learn about her father Atticus Finch, an attorney who desperately tries to prove the innocence of a black man falsely accused of rape; and about Boo Radley, a mysterious neighbor who saves Scout and Jem from being slaughtered by Bob Ewell. In the scene when Jem and Scout are attacked by Bob Ewell, Lee develops the theme, revenge brings consequences through external conflict, and symbolism. Seeking destructive revenge always creates a larger issue.
In To Kill a Mockingbird, Mrs. Dubose has a bush of camellias in her yard. These flowers represent racism and prejudice towards black people in Macomb County. She refers to her flowers as “Snow-on-the-Mountain” that have white petals. The white petals show favoritism towards the white people in Maycomb County. In Chapter 11, Jem cuts down all the flowers with Scout’s baton.
The first time Jem really starts to understand moral integrity is before the trial when he is forced to read to Mrs. Dubose. Jem destroyed her flowers after she had said nasty things about Atticus. She stated, “Your father’s no better than the nig... s and trash he works for! (p. 135)”