How Does Harper Lee Use Ethical Issues In To Kill A Mockingbird

Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird explains that to grow up, one must understand the flaws of the world. Maycomb Alabama is a quiet isolated town, set in the 1930’s. In the eyes of Jem and Scout, their town is ideal and without fault. As they gain more experience, Jem and Scout realize that society has nefarious views on the world. Continually, he realizes that the town he stood by has unethical values that blind the people in Maycomb. Harper Lee illustrates through the experiences of Jem and Scout that to come of age one must realize that society’s views on people are racist. To begin, Jem’s first signs of maturity is when he reads to Mrs. Dubose. In the novel, Jem ruins Mrs. Dubose’s flowers as a result of an offensive comment she remarks about his father. Mrs. Dubose says that Jem and Scouts father, Atticus, is a “nigger lover”. Thereafter, he was very enraged resulting in him destroying Mrs. Dubose’s garden. (Lee 101-105). Jem has heard this offense many times

In third grade, Scout and her classmates talk about current events, and someone brings up Adolf Hitler. Her teacher, Miss Gates, explains how terrible he is for persecuting the Jewish people. Miss Gates hates Hitler for persecuting the Jews, but at the courthouse she explained that blacks needed to be put in there place (Lee 243-247). Scout is confused by this comment, noting that it is controversial in itself. Her teacher hates Adolf Hitler because he oppresses the Jews but at the same time she tramples the African Americans without reason. Scout starts to grasp that in a way Maycomb is just like Germany, because blacks are discriminated just because of the color of their skin. Although Miss Gates is not wrong for thinking persecution is terrible Scout sees what she still does the same wrong things to the people of color. Realizing malicious ideals like racial prejudice are the foundation to being shaped as a