Should To Kill A Mockingbird Be Taught In Schools Essay

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Should To Kill A Mockingbird Be Taught In Schools?
"Shoot all the bluejays you want, if you can hit 'em, but remember it's a sin to kill a mockingbird"(Lee 90). This quote from Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird may seem familiar because most high school students read To Kill A Mockingbird in the ninth grade. This quote emphasizes the idea that it is sinful to harm anything so pure and beautiful regardless of its look. It symbolizes the prejudice that exists in our society. Many educators, parents, and writers, believe that high-school students should not be told to read To Kill A Mockingbird, but To Kill A Mockingbird teaches a valuable lesson to students. It recognizes the interconnectedness of race, class, and gender. Many reporters say …show more content…

It helps the student understand what the effects of their actions and words could have on others and it teaches an invaluable lesson. Throughout To Kill A Mockingbird this is not the only lesson taught. The lesson of courage is taught as well. Courage is taught in many ways, such as when Atticus, a white man, defends a black man named Tom Robinson. Atticus knows he will get backlash for this, but he does it anyway. He shows his children many examples of courage such as when he shares Mrs. Dubose's determination to die without being on Morphine. These lessons stick with Scout and her brother Jem. Specifically Jem. When Jem sees his sister getting attacked, he risks his life to save her. Jem uses courage he learned from his father and To Kill A Mockingbird can teach students reading it to use courage as …show more content…

Many students around the world can be getting knowledge about a time they are unfamiliar with, and that is something that can not be lessened to fit a curriculum. Reporters that are against the reading of To Kill A Mockingbird typically say that other books can be used to teach about racial injustice and they may give a more realistic and exact example of what happened, but every person will have a different view and perspective. Scout's view shows a perspective of a child. It can relate to the students better and make the read more engaging, For example when Scout talks about the excitement of finding a small item in a tree. She says, "We ran home, and on the front porch we looked at a small box patchworked with bits of tinfoil collected from chewing gum wrappers" (Lee 39). This kind of excitement will not be shown in a novel told from the perspective of an adult, and that is why To Kill A Mockingbird is a sensible read for