Changes In To Kill A Mockingbird, By Harper Lee

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Change can come in many different forms in our lives. In Harper Lees To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee creates two intriguing characters and develops/changes them throughout her novel. The two characters Jeremy Finch and Jean Louise Finch, well known as Jem and Scout, mature physically as they age throughout the course of the novel. The children experience many different situations and lessons that change them mentally; as their perception of the world that they once thought was flawless is altered. The people they meet, know and interact with begin to form a different perspective of how people act than the kids originally had at the beginning of the text as the change emotionally. THESIS

Jem and Scout mature physically throughout the course …show more content…

Before the trial, the finch family faced a lot of hatred towards the fact that Atticus was defending a black man. Jem is presented in the novel as a well-tempered character that doesn’t let a lot of things bother him, although eventually all of the comments got to Jem and Mrs.Dubose’s comment “ Not only waiting on tables but one in the courthouse lawing for niggers!” (Lee 101) was the last of the cruelty he could take. In the text Jem released his anger towards Mrs.Dubose by attacking her flowers and destroying them. Jems emotions changed at that moment as he demonstrated he went from cool, calm and collected to frustrated, angry and sad. Scouts initial impression of Dolphus Raymond was that he was an “evil man” (Lee 200) and hopeless drunk who spent time with black people because he could not get over his wife’s tragic passing. Scout had heard all of these speculations from others and had no reason to assume differently. Once she met Dolphus and he explained “Some folks don’t-like the way I live” “I try to give ‘em a reason, you see.” (Lee 2002) everything changed. After discovering how Dolphus pretends to be someone he’s not in order to make others feel more content towards his harmless actions, Scout realized how cruel people are. This showed how Scouts emotions towards the goodness of people changed from seeing only the good in others to realizing the judgment that people processes. SUM UP