Characters in a book not only tell the story, but teach the reader a lesson. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee, Jean Louise Finch, better known as Scout, is one of the major characters. She is meant to open the eyes of readers to their overlooked mothers. Throughout the story, she matures greatly because of the women in her life, such as Calpurnia, her Aunt Alexandra, and Miss Maudie. In this novel, Scout teaches all readers the lesson about how important it is to have a motherly figure in your life; she does so through possessing the traits of being curious, tomboy, and hot-tempered.
First off, Scout is a very curious, young girl. Her curiosity drives her to do things that do not always seem to be the best of ideas.
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She often loses her cool quickly, and resorts to fighting. Scout narrates, “My fists were clenched and I was ready to let fly” (98). Cecil Jacobs, Scout’s peer, says something offensive to her, causing her to prepare to fight. She makes sure to get back at the person who upsets her by hurting them in return. Walter Cunningham, another classmate of Scout, infuriates her, therefore she rubs his nose in the dirt until Jem commands her to stop. Scout even swings at her cousin, she explains, “This time I split my knuckle to the bone on his front teeth” (112). Her cousin antagonizes her, so she punches him in the face; she thinks that fighting is a possible solution to conflict when it should not be. Scout learns to see other’s point of views because of Miss Maudie; seeing other aspects of situations helps to better solve the problem than fighting, which is being more mature. Throughout the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout shows the traits of being curious, tomboy, and hot-tempered, which proves the point that a motherly figure is needed in a child’s life. Although Scout lost her mother at a very young age, she has other motherly figures such as Calpurnia, her Aunt Alexandra, and Miss Maudie to help guide her to being the mature lady she needs to grow up to be. Scout matures immensely due to these women being in her life. She learns to be more respectful, more ladylike, and more composed. Scout teaches readers that it is crucial for a child to have a motherly figure in their life, in order to reach their full