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Loss Of Innocence In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee

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“25% of American children will confront at least one traumatic event before reaching the age of 16”(nctsn.org). In Harper’s Lee timeless classic “To Kill a Mockingbird” the theme of innocence lost resonates deeply, echoing the truth that once innocence is relinquished, it can never truly be regained. Through the lens of Scout, the reader is exposed to the intricacies of the effects that the loss of innocence has had on varying characters in the novel. The story takes place in Maycomb County, a place where innocence and fragility is a poignant topic, and is approached and written by the author from many different perspectives. From the onset, the perspective that dominates the novel is from Scout, and the reader is able to experience first hand …show more content…

‘Well if that’s all it is, why did Calpurnia dry me up when I asked her what it was?’” Scout doesn’t understand the sheer weight of what rape essentially is, and Atticus doesn’t help with giving a humane or tender response. Despite Atticus’s clinical and cold explanation, she is still able to understand the terrifying act of rape. Continuing on, throughout Tom Robinson’s trial, we see Scout’s opinions and views change on Robinson. Scout’s biases subconsciously lead her to believe that Robinson is just another insignificant black man going to jail, however at the end of the trial we see her humanity. At the end of the trial, she sees Tom as just another member of the community and begins to see him as a victim of the prejudiced justice system. Despite her young age, she was able to synthesize a well-informed opinion on Tom based on empathy and facts, which was in duality to the mob mentality that the racist folks of Maycomb had. Unfortunately, before Robinson was able to get the justice and freedom that he deserved, he was murdered, and this affected Scout in a multitude of

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843 Words | 4 Pages

On top of the Tom Robinson vs. Mayella Ewell case, Scout deals with more confusion and frustration of her own brought on by racial discrimination. The lynch mob that tried to kill Tom Robinson while he is held in jail had obviously already falsely decided the man’s fate before he was even put on trial (202-207). Atticus already knew that Tom Robinson is innocent and is outraged that a Bob Ewell would do this to such a good man just because he was able to. “There’s nothing more sickening to me than a low-grade white man who’ll take advantage of a Negro’s ignorance.” (296) This takes place in the discussion after Atticus’s harassment by Bob Ewell which included Miss Maudie, Scout, Jem, and Atticus.

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674 Words | 3 Pages

Another example of Scout's tolerance can be seen in her interactions with her father's client, Tom Robinson, a black man falsely accused of raping a white woman. Despite the intense racism and prejudice of the community, Scout is able to see Tom as a person, and not just as a black man. This is demonstrated when Scout says "Tom Robinson, a human being in white men's world" (Chapter 23). Through this statement, Scout is able to see the humanity in Tom and understand the injustice of his situation. In addition, Scout's relationship with her father Atticus Finch, who serves as a model of tolerance throughout the story, also helps her to

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466 Words | 2 Pages

Then at the trial of Tom Robinson, that was an important event for Scouts to witness to better understand the world and how it was working then. When Scout heard Atticus give an amazing argument to prove Tom Robinson innocent and potentially Bob Ewell guilty, despite Atticus knowing going into it that he was going to lose, Scout learned a lot about racism, social hierarchy, and courage. When Scout asks Atticus why Tom was proven to be guilty, Atticus replies, that in the South the word of a white woman is worth more than any word of a black man. Scout also learned from Atticus how despite having as little credibility as Bob Ewell, his word may have been used to prove Tom guilty but nobody believed him, which destroyed the rest of his reputation. Scout was also impressed, learning, that despite her father knowing he was going to lose the case, he still tried as hard as he could to prove Tom innocent.

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689 Words | 3 Pages

The first time Scout lost her innocence was by witnessing Tom Robinson’s trial. From the moment she stepped into that courtroom, she learned how bad society is and all the lies that have been spread through rumors. She notices how untruthful and racist her community is even at a court which represents honesty and fairness. Allegedly, Tom Robinson was accused of raping Mayella Ewell. In the court hearing, Atticus questioned Tom Robinson and he firmly answered.

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667 Words | 3 Pages

In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, coming of age or for lack of words, loss of innocence is the central theme affecting Jem’s feelings and understanding of the world. He experiences a life-or-death situation by almost being shot at the Radley's house, and he becomes a little closer and more protective of Scout. According to the text, “I tripped the roar of a shotgun that shattered the neighborhood.” Jem says “Fence by the schoolyard!—hurry, Scout!”

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476 Words | 2 Pages

The loss of innocence In the book “To Kill a Mockingbird” written by Harper Lee, the children scout and Jem lose a lot of their innocence and truly mature after exposure to the harsh realities of their world. Many substantial moments in their life’s greatly attributed to this growing maturity and understanding of the world. The children have very basic views of the world at the beginning of the novel, thinking only in a way that their innocence permits them to, but by the end of the story they start to realize the injustices that consistently show in the world around them. The trial of Tom Robinson was a big part of the children’s loss of innocence. In the beginning, Scout sees the world in a simple way.

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523 Words | 3 Pages

Loss of innocence Some may think the world is fair and equal, but in the blink of an eye, society changes drastically by the realization of unfairness in the world that becomes a reality. Scout Finch undergoes various struggles in the book To Kill A Mockingbird, by Harper Lee. These harsh incidents leave revolving thoughts and confuse Scout, but opens her eyes to realize the world. Scout faces multiple conflicts and incidents that results in her loss of innocence, but with help from her loved ones she learns to cope with the realities of the world.

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1331 Words | 6 Pages

In a prejudiced southern town, a book's perceivable focus on oppression makes an immense narrative of innocence being surrendered to empathy and where characters met with injustice courageously choose to fight for societal progress. The novel To Kill a Mockingbird, written by Harper Lee, is set in the 1930s deep in the South. The town is controlled by social injustices and predicts actions. As the novel unfolds, the necessity of change for social advancement becomes evident, often at the cost of one's innocence. Though the novel appears to focus on the oppressive nature of a prejudiced Southern town, its deeper message lies in the inevitable loss of innocence required for social progress.

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520 Words | 3 Pages

This event shows Scout’s intolerance of people at the beginning of the novel. During Tom Robinson 's trial, Scout learns a great deal more about tolerance. She learns to accept the way other people live. As well, she learns about the intolerance that some other people have. Scout’s perception of tolerance throughout the novel changes her behavior.

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585 Words | 3 Pages

The more she learns about the importance of life's meanings, the more significant her character grows. Scout's first interactions with racial prejudice allowed her to acknowledge the unfair treatment towards African-Americans inside her community. An interaction Scout came across and witnessed was the Trial of Tom Robinson. Tom Robinson was an innocent man of color who was accused of raping a white woman, Mayella. However, due to racial discrimination in the community the jury was racist and prevented Tom from getting the justice he deserved, simply because of his race.

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805 Words | 4 Pages

The novel To Kill a Mockingbird shows many prominent themes such as the end of innocence. Throughout the theme which pertains to real life, during the time it was written and even to today, the novel goes through the life of Scout, the narrator, a little girl that lives in Maycomb, Alabama. The theme of end of innocence is expressed by the extended Finch family's opinions, the community's opinions on Atticus defending Tom Robinson, and how Jem perceives the Tom Robinson court case. The extended Finch family is an enormous negative influence on the characters Jem and Scouts' lives. The family has a truly diverse opinion on how the children should be raised compared to how Atticus is raising them.

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1522 Words | 7 Pages

In the book, To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee tells a poignant coming-of-age story about the loss of innocence in the character of Scout. Three significant events illustrate this fact. The first example portrayed in the novel occurred when Scout went to the jail to find out what Atticus was up to, only to find that a mob had arrived to lynch Tom Robinson. This event left Scout with the notion of a mob mentality. Another event was the turning point of the story, the trial of Tom Robinson; this defining moment taught Scout of prejudice and injustice.

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1220 Words | 5 Pages

“‘You gonna take that back, boy?’...‘My folks said your daddy was a disgrace an’ that ‘negro’ oughta hang from the water-tank!’” (Lee 87)Since the racism is extremely common amongst not only the adults in town but also the Maycomb children, Scout almost reneged on her promise to keep her head high and fists down. If Scout chose to fight Cecil, she would disappoint Atticus, but more importantly herself. After Tom Robinson is wrongfully convicted of rape and assault by the jury, Jem is furious and doesn’t understand why they even have juries. He even goes on to say that we oughta “do away with juries.”

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752 Words | 4 Pages

To Kill a Mockingbird displays multiple examples as to how the sincerity of a child is stripped away from them because of new experiences life caused. When the reality of life is

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816 Words | 4 Pages

(Lee 240). They refuse to believe Tom Robinson simply because he’s African American, despite all the proof that he’s telling the truth, and seeing this, Scout realizes how corrupt her society is. She understands that the only reason that Tom Robinson was found guilty was because of his race and is horrified by the outcome of the trial. This shatters her childlike trust in her society, though this broken trust is later fragmented

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