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Examples Of Empathy In To Kill A Mockingbird

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Intro:
“Sometimes, the most influential thing you can do is listen.” (Bob Burg) This quote is implying a simple yet blunt way to describe the main point of this essay, empathy. To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel loosely based on true events in the life of the author, Harper Lee. This novel has great significance by inspiring many of at the time young authors and by winning the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and the Quill Award for Audio Books. This book exposed many to the horribly segregated and unfair life of the deep south during the great depression. This truly opened the eyes to many. I suggest that this book could take a little more time with the plot because it does go a little fast. This novel is about the problems of African American prejudice …show more content…

This ability helps you to be open to others and make more friends by being able to have more passive interactions. “Learning is a result of listening, which in turn leads to even better listening and attentiveness to the other person.” (Alice Miller) There are ways that this is proved in the book of To Kill a Mockingbird. One instance of this happening is when Scout at the end of the book steps on to the radley porch. “One time he said you never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them. Standing on the Radley porch was enough.” (Lee 279) Scout learns to walk around in others’ shoes by finally being able to see things from another point of view and feel empathy for another person. This is the case in the quote that was just stated. Furthermore this ability to feel empathy for others is what Scout and Jem have slowly …show more content…

Scout and Jem have both matured throughout this book and have been exposed to many things as they grow older throughout this book. They have both grown about two years throughout this story and have seen a lot in those few years. At the beginning of the story they would not be able to understand some of the things that they understood at the end. One of these things is the happenings of the court case and even then they did not know a lot about said case. Meeting new people and learning more perspectives can also help you to learn to empathize with others. By being able to meet new people you can be shown more ways of life and types of people that you have never met before. It can open your eyes to be empathetic to all different types of people. Therefore, using empathy has helped them to

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Scout undeniably carries this lesson with her, and I think people to this day should too, because not only is this an example of empathy in

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Another well known lesson taught by Atticus is about empathy. Empathy is defined as: the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. This is shown in chapter three when Scout encountered some problems with her new, first grade teacher, Mrs. Caroline. The little girl was mature well beyond her years, therefore, when she was asked to read out loud, Scout read with near perfect fluency. However, the teacher was surprisingly displeased with her advanced level in literature and flow, and assuming it was Atticus who was educating his daughter, Mrs. Caroline wanted the ‘lessons’ to come to a stop.

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Textual Evidence Throughout the whole story, we see many stages of Scouts growing empathy. In chapter 1, when Dill is introduced, Scout without thinking, “Asked Dill where his father was,”(Lee 8). Later in the book, we can observe that Jem was attempting to “mash”(Lee 273) a rollie pollie as she had no empathy for it. But finally, at the end of the novel, Scout finally “sees the neighborhood from [Another] angle.”(Lee 320) . In the first 2 examples of the novel, we see Scout being rather unthoughtful and unempathetic as she did not think of who or what she was hurting.

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In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee presents the idea that in order to gain empathy one must go through many experiences because the more one morally develops the higher their ability becomes to understand others. Going through many experiences can help one to grow morally. In To Kill a Mockingbird the character Jem shows throughout the book to be going through the changes of moral development in comparison to Dill who is younger yet has already progressed faster. In the beginning of the novel he is a young boy who believes that those older should be respected. Foolish and naive, he believes whatever gossip is told to him and believes that whatever he thinks is the truth.

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Harry Halvorsen Mr. Kanda Survey 1 12 November 2014 To kill a mockingbird final draft In the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, many characters experience empathy in different ways.. The growth of the children in the book can be compared to a kindergartner and a college student.

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Just like how Scout learns how to have empathy for others after going through traumas, such as getting attacked by Bob Ewell and getting bullied because of her dads trial. The article includes two studies that test how traumatic experiences that occur during childhood link to empathy levels. This was the conclusion of those two experiments. Studies have proven that “Adversity can lead to posttraumatic growth”, and, “Future research should explore how a person’s increased empathy following a traumatic event may lead them to actually taking action to help others who are experiencing suffering similar to that which they experienced” (National Library of Medicine). This proves that going through a difficult time can change one's

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Maturity: Empathy in To Kill a Mockingbird Maturity develops due to many different factors, such as responsibility, self-control, and empathy. While growing up, understanding others’ perspectives and experiencing different events can bring about maturity within people. In the book, To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, there are many instances in which the main characters go through coming-of-age moments. One of these main characters is Jem Finch. Jem goes through a major maturing moment when he has to read to one of his neighbors, Mrs. Dubose.

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Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another. To me the word empathy in “To Kill A Mockingbird” means “putting yourself in someone else’s shoes.” Harper Lee’s novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” suggests that empathy is a universal feeling, but everyone experiences it in different occasions and in different ways. Many people empathize through real life experiences. Scout is one of those people.

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Throughout the story, the two observes the conflict in Maycomb County and she becomes less judgmental, understanding people have a reason behind their actions. Being faced with societal conflict has forced Scout and Jem to understand that people have motives behind their actions. At the beginning of the story, Scout and Jem are very judgmental and feel that what they believe in is always true, causing the two to be unable to see things from a different perspective. An example of this is when Ms. Caroline asks Scout to have Atticus stop teaching her to read.

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The characterization of Scout reveals that she is very sympathetic and worried about Jem risking his life. This further heated the argument, leaving Jem feeling moody and silent. While trying to comfort her older brother, Scout is reminded of Atticus' advice, “As Atticus had once advised me to do, I tried to climb into Jem’s skin and walk around in it” (77). The characterization of Scout highlights her mentality maturing. At the beginning of the novel, Scout has a difficult time understanding others until Atticus gives her important advice about sympathy.

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When reading To Kill a Mockingbird a fiction novel by Harper Lee,there are atrocities that will cause the reader to empathy for the people,because the people are misunderstood and disliked , this going for almost every character in the book in their own ways To have empathy is to understand what somebody is going through, being able to understand because you probably have been through the same or similar things. I think that a man more so a child should never go throw some of the things that Tom Robinson and Walter Cunningham go through , there misunderstood by everyone,mistreated by the other folks, both live and are victims of poverty . Tom Robinson and I are both misunderstood , hurt and victims of poverty making him one of

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"To Kill a Mockingbird" is a novel which portrays the social and racial injustices of the 1950's through the 1960's. Written by Harper Lee, "To Kill a Mockingbird" is a fictional story that takes place in the static city of Maycomb during a time filled with racial injustice. What starts of being a tale of a group of children having fun and playing silly games quickly turns into a captivating and dramatic story filled with the crisis of conscience, racial grievance, and a battle between a lawyer and his family against what seems like the rest of the world. This novel demonstrates many themes throughout it's assortment of lovable characters, one of the main themes displayed by these characters is empathy. Characters Atticus Finch and Boo Radley illustrate

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Since I was little, I knew to always ask if someone was okay and to check up on people. In the book “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, a character that shows a lot of empathy is Atticus, even though he is heavily judged for defending a black man accused of rape. Many judged him and hated him because of what he was defending. I believe it is important to always show empathy to anyone, no matter

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Throughout To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee communicates on numerous occasions the importance of compassion, as taught to jem and scout through the book, empathy is one of

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