To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel full of intricate and in-depth characters that help the main character, Scout, on her journey of growing up and accepting the differences in everyone. Every character helped Scout in some way to become the person she was at the end of the book. Even though every character serves a purpose in Scout’s life, some people believe that Dill Harris, Scout’s best friend, does not play an important role in Scout’s development in the story. I believe Dill played a very important part in helping Scout become empathetic and realize things from other people’s perspective. He also played a big part in advancing the plot; without him Jem and Scout would never have reached the level of fascination they had with Boo Radley.
The first reason Dill plays a very important role, is the fact that he is so empathetic. In the first chapter of the story Dill feels sympathetic towards the metaphorical turtle Jem speaks about. On the fourteenth page of the novel,
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Even after all Dill did in the story, people still say he plays no real part in the novel; that he is just a character included for sentimental reasons by Harper Lee. As I have stated in the paragraphs above; Dill plays an important role in helping Scout becoming more empathetic and also in helping the plot develop. Another point I might add is the fact that Dill is an outsider. Dill is not from the prejudistic town of Maycomb; so we as readers are able to experience a different viewpoint through him. Unlike Scout, Dill has no prejudice against people who are ‘different’ from him. This is shown especially during the trial, Scout responds to Dill’s sobs on page 199 by saying, “‘Well, Dill, after all he’s just a Negro.’” Even though Scout is less biased than most in Maycomb, she is still affected by it, and therefore is jaded by the racism. As readers we can see this flaw in Scout’s character. Without Dill, readers might not be able to see this flaw, and realize how extreme the prejudice in