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How Does Jem Lose His Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird

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While serenely reading a book, the sweet voice of a songbird travels through the window. The sound may have come from the beak of a mockingbird. This petite gray bird is completely harmless. Their sole purpose is to provide music for us to enjoy. This is why Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, the protagonist in To Kill a Mockingbird, is always told that “it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (119). Many characters lose their innocence just as a mockingbird would when it is shot. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee compares Jeremy “Jem” Finch, Boo Radley, and Tom Robinson to wounded mockingbirds. Harper Lee wounds and kills many mockingbirds in To Kill a Mockingbird including Jem Finch. Jem is only thirteen years old. He is still innocent with many years ahead of him. During his thirteenth year his father, Atticus Finch, takes a court case involving an innocent man of color. The case quickly gains popularity …show more content…

Although readers learn little about Boo, it is inferred that he regains innocence after being isolated for so many years. As he watches Jem and Scout from inside his house, he grows to like and care for them. He shows many signs of compassion, such as leaving gifts in a tree for the kids. He expects nothing in return just as a mockingbird would not expect any praise after singing a sweet song. As mentioned earlier, Boo saved Jem and Scout from Bob Ewell. Scout talks about this event as the biggest gift they ever received from Boo. She says, “Boo was our neighbor. He gave us…our lives” (373). Through some series of events, Bob Ewell ends up dead, with a knife stuck in his torso. It is insinuated that Boo is responsible. Mr. Tate and Atticus realize how wrong it would be to expose Boo to the harsh microscope that is Maycomb County. “Well it’d be sort of like shootin’ a mockingbird, wouldn’t it?” Scout asks (370). They fabricate a story of Bob Ewell falling on his knife in order to protect

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Jem heard some noises as they were walking home and got very scared. At first they both thought that it was just Scout’s dress rustling but they realized someone was chasing them. After escaping the “kidnapper” Scout and Jem ran inside and called the town sheriff Heck Tate. Heck Tate arrived and shortly after he arrived, they found Bob Ewell with a kitchen knife in his chest lying dead on a tree. Boo Radley then knocked on the Finch’s door as he went out of his house for the first time in 20 years.

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TKM Theme Essay Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird takes place during the Great Depression in the small town of Maycomb in Alabama. Scout and Jem live in what they think is a good community. From what they know, everyone fits into the community except Boo Radley, a mysterious neighbor. They think this until the trial of Tom Robinson, an African American that is accused a raping a white women, takes place. The kids see something they have never noticed about their community before.

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Mayella’s father named Mr.Ewell is not received by the time Atticus attitude in court, despite the problems it has ended with the death of Tom, still do not receive even avenge secretly to Atticus, even his family, Judge Taylor, and Tom 's wife. Mr.Ewell ever spit on Atticus’s face and made Scout and Jem must restrain their anger. All of these problems end with death Mr.Ewell. He fell and impaled by a knife clutched himself to kill Jem and Scout. When it jem injured, still in his costume Scout survived a puncture in the dark.

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" Even though Jem has never seen Boo Radley, he's convinced that Boo is this monster-like- person. Not to mention, what happened with Miss Stephanie Crawford, Jem retells the story that Miss Stephanie told him and Scout and says," she woke up in the middle of the night one time and saw him looking straight through the window at her.." Based on what people have said about Boo; Jem, Scout and Dill all believed it. They don’t realize that he's actually a good person because they're so convinced that he's a

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811 Words | 4 Pages

In To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Jem grows from a little boy to an intelligent young man. Throughout the book, he discerns many things that shape his personality. As Jem grows, he learns how bad society is and that not everyone is perfect. Fortunately for Jem, this ends up helping him and he finds out that Atticus is a hero and that he should look up to Atticus. Through Atticus and the trial, Jem loses his innocence by learning about prejudice, bravery, and that the justice system is crippled.

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599 Words | 3 Pages

After discussing the attack following the pageant, Heck Tate declares Bob Ewell fell on his knife and that is how he died. Atticus makes sure that Scout understands how Bob died in order to keep Boo safe and out of a courtroom. Scout very confidently agrees with the death of Bob Ewell and replies, to the hidden question of telling on Boo by saying “ Well, it’d be sort of like shootin’ a mockingbird, wouldn't it?” (Lee 276). In earlier chapters, the idea of killing a mockingbird was explained as killing a bird that was fully innocent and only sang songs that harmed no

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This explains how Boo had to get out of his comfort zone of staying in his house to do the heroic service of protecting Scout and Jem, risking the unveiling of his shy ways to the Maycomb community. After both children are safe and Atticus thanks Boo for his children, Scout takes him by the hand and leads him back to his house. As he releases Scout’s hand and shuts the door, never to be seen again, Scout describes him, stating that “He gave us two soap dolls, a broken watch and chain, a pair of good luck pennies, and our lives.”. (320) This illustrates how Boo Radley had acted as a guardian angel for the children; socializing with them but also defending them when necessary. Boo demonstrates courage when he chooses to protect the Finch children; resulting in having to murder someone and risk exposure after being a recluse for many

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951 Words | 4 Pages

When Jem and Scout were coming home from the pageant and were attacked by Mr.Ewell, Boo rescues them and kills Bob Ewell in the process. Scout appreciates his actions because Boo saves her brother. When Atticus discusses turning Boo in, Scout says, “Well, it’d be sort of like shootin’ a mockingbird, wouldn’t it?” (Lee 370). Boo makes the right decision by saving Scout and Jem and he does not mean to cause any harm.

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Heck Tate arrives with news that Bob Ewell is dead.. Scout, Atticus, Heck Tate, and Boo move to the front porch. Atticus begins defending Jem saying that killing Bob Ewell was obviously a self defense move. Heck Tate corrects Atticus saying that Bob Ewell fell on his own knife. Atticus appreciates what Heck is trying to do, but he doesn't want anyone to cover for Jem.

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Overtime, Scout realizes that they are just disrupting Boo, and decides to stop trying to lure him outside. She almost completely forgets about Boo, until he saves both her and Jem from Mr. Ewell who was attacking them. When Scout first saw Boo, she teared up, since she only fantasized about that very moment. Curiosity struck Scout and her

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365, 369). Atticus and Mr. Tate cannot decide whether the right thing is to assume that Bob fell on his knife and not make a big deal of the situation or assume that Jem did it in self defense and have a trial so that Jem wouldn’t have to live with the guilt if he did stab him. Mr. Tate argued that it was Bob who was killed because he knew that it was actually Boo who was trying to protect him from being charged. Atticus comprehends this

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591 Words | 3 Pages

The novel To Kill A Mockingbird is compiled of thirty captivating chapters. There are many events that occur throughout these thirty chapters, and many relationships between the characters change. One such relationship is the one between Arthur, or Boo, Radley and Jem and Scout Finch. Although Boo only came out of his house once in the novel, his relationship with the Finch children was seemingly the most dynamic one in this novel. Ten-year-old Jem and six-year-old Scout naturally believed almost everything they heard, which is why they believed the horror stories about Boo and the rest of the Radley family that they heard from Miss Stephanie Crawford, the town gossip.

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638 Words | 3 Pages

In the story, the innocents are destroyed by evil, the “mockingbird” comes to represent the idea of innocence. Thus, to kill a mockingbird is to destroy innocence. Such as when Atticus says “Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit'em, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (103). Another example could be when Boo stabs Bob Ewell to save Jem and Scout, which sheriff Tate decides to say that Mr.Ewell fell on the knife, so Boo won’t have to go to court.

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980 Words | 4 Pages

In the story Boo Radley plays the role of Scout and Jem’s guardian angel. He watches over them and helps them when they get into trouble. In the first chapters, the kids make fun of Boo, they taunt him. All they know about him is what they have heard, that he is a crazy man. Throughout the story though, Boo proves them wrong.

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1004 Words | 5 Pages

Boo displays protection towards the children (Jem and Scout) a couple of times throughout the story. In the beginning, when Jem, Scout, and Dill went Hunter 2 onto Boo’s property he shows protection by not telling Atticus or anybody else that he knew that it was Jem and Scout who were on his lawn. Boo then stitches Jem’s pants that got ripped off when he was crawling under the fence and he leaves them out for Jem to retrieve them. He protected the children from getting in huge trouble from Atticus and he protected their reputation because the entire town would hear about how they intruded and that would look bad on Jem and Scout. Boo also protects

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