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The Importance Of Understanding In To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee

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"Knowing is not understanding. There is a great difference between knowing and understanding: you can know a lot about something and not really understand it" once said by Charles Kettering. In the town of Maycomb, Atticus defends a black man from being convicted of rape. His children Scout and Jem grow up from as innocent children to understanding racism within their community. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee informs the readers that growing up can teach you how understanding other people can make you a better person through symbolism, characterization, and dialogue.

First, Lee uses symbolism to demonstrate how Scout develops a better understanding of Atticus and Boo Radley. In the beginning of the book, Atticus gives Scout and Jem air-rifles but did not teach them how to shoot. This is because he wanted to teach them the essence of killing a mockingbird. For example, Atticus informs Scout about how innocent mockingbirds are when he says, ' 'I 'd rather you shot at tin cans in the backyard, but I know you 'll go after birds. Shoot all the blue jays you want, if you can hit …show more content…

With Scout 's development, she increased her amount of knowledge by being rubbed off of the other characters. Lee showed that understanding other people will teach you valuable life lessons and shape you into a better person. In the world, many people do not agree with a person exactly, which is why people must be open to viewing other people 's thoughts from different perspectives to fully understand empathy. In other words, people often mistake knowing as understanding, but no matter how many times someone can know something, not everyone will understand the true meaning behind someone 's thought. All in all, humans should be aware of their surroundings to learn, benefit and gain information from

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6/24, Chapter One: As the book begins, the readers are introduced to Scout, and her knowledge of Maycomb. I noticed how Scout’s narration sounded; she is telling the story as an adult but from a five year old’s point of view during the book, but her narrative included complex words such as “imprudent” (5) and “domiciled” (10), which is unlike what a child would say. Harper Lee uses the unique narration so that Scout would be able to provide background and context to Maycomb, but also so that readers would be able to see how Scout reacted and felt about the events in the book, and how it impacted her life growing up. Scout also used description and imagery as she told the story, which I found intriguing, since children don’t usually care for description and see things simplistically.

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Lee uses the mockingbird as a symbol of evoking empathy in the novel. She writes, “I’d rather you shoot a tin can in the backyard, but I know you’ll go after the birds. Shoot all the blue jays you want, if you can hit them, but remember it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird” (Lee119). Atticus is explaining to Scout to not kill the mockingbird because it’s a sin. Lee evokes empathy by using the mockingbird to symbolize innocence.

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The theme of this novel is "Not everything is the way you predict it is". I believe this thematic statement suits the story because throughout the book there are lots of surprises, and most situations don't go the way people predict they will. For example, Aunt Alexandra was first seen as mean, according to her attitude towards Scout. At the end of the book Aunt Alexandra hands Scout her overalls, as mentioned in the story, "the garments she most despised." Because she always wanted Scout to be a lady and wear dresses.

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You can tell that Scout was very innocent in some things and she didn’t quit understand them. But this quotes explains to the audience, that when a child is curious about something or is asking you about something, you need to answer them. They’re children who are full of curiosity and when they notice something weird they try to find a way to answer the questions they have. In this quotes it explains how Scout began to wonder about things, she noticed that in Maycomb it was very difficult for people to get along because of the diversity.

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Lee uses Dramatic Irony to show that Scout shouldn’t be getting away with the things that he does and that Atticus needs to be a bit more tougher on his kids. A little later in the story Jem and Dill have an idea to go to the Radley house and try to look inside to see what is going on. This takes a turn for the worst and has the whole neighborhood worried. “Dill and Jem were simply going to peep in the window with the loose shutter to see if they could get a look at Boo Radley, and if I didn’t want to go with them I could go straight home and keep my fat flopping mouth shut, that was all''(69). This quote is an example of what a scout should have done instead of again bothering Boo Radley and bothering him when you don’t know what he is actually like.

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When one grows up, it is inevitable they will lose their innocence. Seeing the world through rose colored glasses can only take one so far, and eventually they will have to open their eyes to real issues in their lives. While this happens at different ages for everyone, Atticus in the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee believes that his kids should not be sheltered from the real world. As Scout and Jem, Atticus’ children, grow up, especially in a time where Maycomb is so segregated, Atticus teaches his kids real life lessons and to not become like the rest of their town; racist and judgemental. This comes with a cost, however, as the kids “grow up” at an expedited rate.

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Children are very impressionable people. Almost everything around them changes them in some way. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, the main characters, Scout and Jem, start out as little kids who spend their days making up stories and playing sill games. Then their dad, who is a lawyer, takes on a case defending a black man who has been charged with rape. Since they live in Alabama, The whole family has to absorb some pretty ugly things, which forces Scout and Jem to grow up quickly, and it gives them a different and more mature view of the world.

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Perception defines the world around you. It affects every aspect of your being: your thoughts, actions, beliefs, etc… In the novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, Jean Louise “Scout” Finch begins to understand just how impactful perception can be as she witnesses the deterioration of the dignity of Tom Robinson, a black man who is being tried for the rape of a white girl. In this intriguing read, Harper Lee demonstrates the theme of inaccurate allegations very effectively. More specifically, when inaccurate allegations that are solely based on perceptions are presented, the consequences can be significant, for others may suffer at great lengths.

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    To begin, Scout has an incredible ability to see the big idea of things and think about what other people are feeling. Part of this is due to Atticus being an excellent mentor and father, telling her early on that Scout will “‘never fully understand a person until you consider

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She didn 't fully understand what was going on therefore can 't comprehend the miscarriages of justice. As she can 't fully compose adult commentary, the novel was shown in innocence. One advantage of reading this novel from Scout 's point of view is when she experiences something for the first time, so does the reader. Such as when she goes to Cal 's church and experiences the bitterness some black members have towards white members in

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While school may teach lessons, they are certainly not valuable life lessons. Harper Lee’s To Kill A Mockingbird repeatedly shows the ineffectiveness of the education system in a child’s morals. To Kill A Mockingbird takes place in the Great Depression era in Alabama, where education was not the best. Teachers would only seek to teach their classes average, everyday lessons rather than valuable life teachings.

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The novel To Kill a Mockingbird is so titled because there are several characters in the story which could be consisted mockingbirds. Tom Robinson and Boo Radley do not cause any harm, they go about their business without interfering in the lives of others, and however both of them are in turn harmed by the citizens of Maycomb. Harper Lee’s novel examines the dark side of human nature and explores the ramifications of prejudice, racism and bigotry in a time when people were openly hostile to anyone they considered different and inferior. Lee tells her story to highlight the injustices of the South during a time of inequality, discrimination, where the innocent are unfairly punished. Tom Robinson a character in the novel is accused of something

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