ipl-logo

The Importance Of Understanding In To Kill A Mockingbird

588 Words3 Pages

How to Understand
Someone once said that “Understanding is much deeper than knowledge, there are many people who know us but very few people who understand us”. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee takes two children on a journey of understanding life and understanding others. Lee uses incidents like the trial of an innocent and Jem and Scout nearly escaping death to establish that it takes a lot for someone to finally understand what someone is going through.
The trial of Tom Robinson helps Jem to really grasp the idea that Maycomb has divided itself into groups based on certain prejudice. After the trial when Jem said “It ain’t right, Atticus” (Lee 180) this helps the reader comprehend that Jem doesn’t really understand racism. This also shows that at first Jem was not able to understand this because Tom was black, that could even be a reason that people would still think he is guilty regarding the evidence to prove otherwise. This also is shown as a lesson for Jem because he never really understood that in terms of rights some people believe that not everyone is entitled to the same privileges as others. …show more content…

This really shows when Scout says “I returned to school and hated Calpurnia steadily until a sudden shriek shattered my resentments” (Lee 19). Scout hated Calpurnia for scolding her but throughout the novel she never really got the chance to understand why Calpurnia did this. For a while Scout was able to really love Calpurnia because as she matured and got older that was when she could really appreciate all the things that Cal has done for

Show More
Related

How Does Walter Chunningham Pay In To Kill A Mockingbird

580 Words | 3 Pages

Cal scolded Scout routinely unlike Jem leaving Scout to believe that Calipurnia appreciated Jem more. Atticus pointed out the fact that Jem does not give her nearly as much trouble, so she does not have to look out for him to the extent she has to look after Scout. At face value it appears that Calipurnia does not like Scout, but if you dig deeper you come to see that Cal cares a great deal for her. The last person who teaches Scout about looking at things from another’s prospective is Miss

Read More

To Kill A Mockingbird Calpurnia Quotes

1881 Words | 8 Pages

She had always been too hard on me, she had at last seen the error of her fractious ways, she was sorry and too stubborn to say so” (Lee 28). As it's stated in the quote that Calpurnia is hard on Scout, but it is out of love for her that she is hard on them. She just wants the kids to grow up and have the best life that they can. Calpurnia had been in their life when their mother died.

Read More

To Kill A Mockingbird Adversity Quotes

588 Words | 3 Pages

And that is when she did not tell her father about how she felt about having Aunt Alexandria in her life. “I could have made several answers to this: Cal’s a girl, it would be many years before I would be interested in boys, I would never be interested in clothes… but I kept quiet” (Lee 180). Here in this quote you can tell that Scout is thinking why aunt Alexandra had to come stay with them, when Calpurnia is there. She is starting to have knowledge and think about how things are going to

Read More

What Role Does Calpurnia Play In To Kill A Mockingbird

533 Words | 3 Pages

Calpurnia is the first parental figure to help develop and advance Scout’s character throughout the story. She taught Scout how to be courteous to others. One example of this is when the Finches had Walter Cunningham over. When he soaked his food in molasses, Scout had an uproar about him using all the molasses. Calpurnia reprimanded scout by saying the following “There's some folks who don't eat like us, but you ain't called on to contradict 'em at the table when they don't.

Read More

How Does Jem Mature In To Kill A Mockingbird

811 Words | 4 Pages

After Atticus loses his trial, Jem notices that the Maycomb County justice system is broken and it needs help, “Then it all goes back to the jury, then. We oughta do away with juries. ”(294) This shows that Jem now understands that people are racist in everything and racism needs to be fought. On top of realizing that the justice system is in shambles, Jem realized that Tom Robinson’s case was very good at showing that.

Read More

Jem Changes In To Kill A Mockingbird

622 Words | 3 Pages

Even though the readers know that Tom Robinson is not guilty, the court had ruled that Tom Robinson was guilty, due to the amount of racism found in Maycomb. Jem has realized this and had even said that he “thought Maycomb folks were the best folks in the world, least that’s what they seemed like.”(Lee

Read More

To Kill A Mockingbird Jem Character Analysis

682 Words | 3 Pages

After this verdict Jem’s point of view on the world shifts, and Jem is slowly realizing that racism lives in the hearts of people in Maycomb. When Jem heard the word guilty he gives up a little bit of his innocent childhood because he is starting to notice how racist people are. When Atticus walks out of the courthouse to meet up with Jem and Scout, Jem is in total disbelief of what the verdict because he thought that evidence could win a case alone, “It was Jem’s turn to cry. His face streaked with angry tears as we made our way through a cheerful crowd. ‘It ain’t right’ he muttered all the way to the corner of the square where we found Atticus waiting.

Read More

How Does Atticus Change In To Kill A Mockingbird

1058 Words | 5 Pages

The trial of Tom Robinson and the racial injustices in Maycomb deeply impacted Scout and Jem, shaping their views on morality and justice. The unfair conviction of Tom Robinson shocks Jem, who cries, “It ain't right, Atticus” (Lee #). Jem’s emotional reaction signifies his loss of innocence and discouragement with the justice system. This moment is important in shaping his understanding of the harsh realities of racism and injustice. Scouts are also affected by the trial, although in different ways.

Read More

Theme Of Knowing In To Kill A Mockingbird

1076 Words | 5 Pages

To Kill a Mockingbird, a classic tale with a meaning deeper than the simple story of childhood shenanigans, remains a staple in many classes throughout the US. The people of the town consistently express their racist values, and how there prejudice clearly divides white and black people. Beyond that, the contrast between knowing and not knowing consistently appears throughout the story. There are many different types of ‘not knowing,’ ranging from innocence to ignorance. The people of Maycomb are ignorant when it comes to race, and the Finch children are innocent and do not know what’s really involved with the case taken up by their father.

Read More

Theme Of Ignorance In To Kill A Mockingbird

231 Words | 1 Pages

The game that Scout, Jem, and Dill play during Chapter 4 of the novel To Kill A Mockingbird suggests that although ignorance abounds in children due to their inexperience in life, adults perpetuate this ignorance through their discourse and actions. When Atticus catches the children playing the game and asks them about it, Scout explains that “Jem’s evasion” of the question told her the game “was a secret” (Lee 40). Jem’s avoidance of a straight answer and his desire to keep it a secret from the most unprejudiced person in the novel suggests he knows he is at fault for playing the game and that, if Atticus knew the true nature of it, he would be displeased with the children; not only is the game wrong because of inaccuracy, but it is also

Read More

Calpurnia And Scout Relationship Analysis

253 Words | 2 Pages

The relationship between Calpurnia and Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is interesting because in spite of their love-hate relationship Calpurnia is the closest figure to a mother both Scout and Jem have. We get to know Calpurnia through Scout’s eyes as a mother-like figure who is hard on Scout in some situations and loving in others. We get to see the tough, bossy, and strict side as well as the soft, nurturing, kind and motherly side. Even though she is just an African American housekeeper, she has been a member of the Finch’s Family and means much more as she is one of the few black people in Maycomb who is educated. She teaches Scout to write during rainy days as well as carrying the responsibility of teaching Scout and Jem

Read More

Theme Of Ignorance In To Kill A Mockingbird

1201 Words | 5 Pages

Some would say ignorance is bliss. While some may disagree with that statement, in the case of Jean Louise Finch —known as Scout in her childhood— the main protagonist in the novel, “Go Set a Watchman” by Harper Lee, that statement is upheld. It is a sequel to the novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird”. The story begins in the 1950’s, as Jean Louise is returning to visit her hometown of Maycomb, Alabama from New York City. She made this journey to check up on her elderly father, Atticus, and during her time back in her hometown, she finds herself at odds with the ideals of the community she once thought she knew.

Read More

Lessons Learned In To Kill A Mockingbird

751 Words | 4 Pages

To Kill A Mockingbird, morality is a big part of the theme; what one is taught as a child one will forever use as an adult. The first lesson learned by Scout is empathy. This is taught to her when she and Miss Caroline get into a little fight about how scout knows how to read. Scout comes home and tells her dad, Atticus, about the event. Atticus responds to the event by saying, “You never understand a person until you consider things from his point of view-until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.

Read More

Importance Of Education In To Kill A Mockingbird

1016 Words | 5 Pages

Children go to school to gain knowledge, but life can give children the most important education. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Jem, and Scout are two growing children navigating life in the 1930’s in racist Alabama. They see racism throughout their town and have to navigate how they want to live their lives or follow their town. In their own school, they see racist people, and they often question what they hear, see, and learn.

Read More

The Importance Of Education In To Kill A Mockingbird

858 Words | 4 Pages

Education is a small word but it has a big meaning it can change your life and take you to another level and a new world, it teaches you how to communicate with everyone and everywhere, like Malcom X said “ Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” In to kill a mockingbird Scout values education and understands how important it is to be educated, it’s like having a big power. Scout is smart, she reads at a young age and she enjoys doing it even her older brother is proud of her for example he told Dill “Scout yonder 's been reading ever since she was born.

Read More

More about The Importance Of Understanding In To Kill A Mockingbird

Related Topics

Open Document