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To Kill A Mockingbird Appearance Vs Reality Analysis

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Have you ever been told not to judge a book by it’s cover? Have you ever believed gossip about another person? Have you ever met a person who is the opposite of who you thought they were? How can we learn the difference between a rumor and reality from reading To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee? This novel is set in a small town in Alabama during the 1930s where everybody knows everybody, or so they think. Through the eyes of the main character, Scout, we see how her views mature as she ages and discovers the real truth about the people of Maycomb. Harper Lee is effective in presenting the preconceived ideas and the realities of the characters, Ms. Dubose, Dolphus Raymond, and Boo Radley.
First and foremost, Ms. Dubose, a grumpy, cantankerous woman who lives down the street from the Finches, teaches them very valuable lessons and is a great example of stereotyping in Maycomb. Judging from her first appearance, Mrs. Dubose is not a pleasant lady to be around. Jem and Scout do their best to …show more content…

As they get older they begin to understand things from Boo’s point of view. For example, when Scout and Dill are talking, they have a realization: “ ‘Why do you reckon Boo Radley’s never run off?’ Dill sighed a long sigh and turned away from me. ‘Maybe he doesn’t have anywhere to run off to…’ ” (146). As soon as they start to view Arthur as a person they start to sympathize and relate to him. Furthermore, they develop a friendship with him and learn to discard their previous fears about him, this friendship even saves their lives. When Bob Ewell was going after Jem and Scout, it was Arthur who stepped in and saved them: “ ‘I never heard tell that it’s against the law for a citizen to do his utmost to prevent a crime from being committed, which is exactly what he did’ ” (280). In conclusion, Arthur Radley is one of the most extreme cases of the speculation that occurs in the town of

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Scout also understands Boo more when she arrives at his house. Standing on his porch after leading him home, Scout realizes the simple trick effect and thinks, “ One time he [Atticus] said that you never really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them. Just standing on the Radley porch was enough” (374). Scout literally stands in Boo’s position and understands how things my look from his stance in this world. Standing there, Scout understands that Boo was unaccustomed to the world around him and afraid of what it had to offer him, which is why he stayed inside.

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" Even though Jem has never seen Boo Radley, he's convinced that Boo is this monster-like- person. Not to mention, what happened with Miss Stephanie Crawford, Jem retells the story that Miss Stephanie told him and Scout and says," she woke up in the middle of the night one time and saw him looking straight through the window at her.." Based on what people have said about Boo; Jem, Scout and Dill all believed it. They don’t realize that he's actually a good person because they're so convinced that he's a

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(Lee 376). Arthur Radley is misunderstood by Scout until she finally meets him, seeing that he is a nice man. She thinks he is nice because he saved her and Jem’s lives, and if he had been “evil”, he would not have helped them. He also gave them small gifts in a hole in a tree, which, at the time, was his only connection to them. “Before [Atticus] went inside the house, he stopped in front of Boo Radley.

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This new understanding of Boo changes the way Jem and Scout think about him and makes them have a more open mind about the Radley house.

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After three years, Scout learns to have patience when trying to reach out to someone and not judge others due to insubstantial rumors. She also understands what Atticus means by viewing another’s perspective. In an attempt to learn about Boo, Scout follows Jem and Dill impatiently as they try to bring Boo out of his house. Having never seen Boo, they do anything they could to just have a glimpse of him so they could learn about him.

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In chapters 10-12 of To Kill A Mockingbird, Scout learned about perception versus reality from Calpurnia. The church was described as having “no piano, organ, hymn-books, or church programs,” (Lee 159). The church was very poor monetarily, but Scout realized that there was more to it than that. Scout at first assumed that the church didn’t have hymnals because the church was poor, but it was later revealed that most of the members of the church couldn’t read. Calpurnia was one of the few members who could actually read, and she taught her brother as well.

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Lee uses characters such as Mrs. Dubose to show that even those oppressed by the stereotypes still conform to and perpetuate them. Mrs. Dubose, an old, grouchy neighbor of the Finch’s, is used by Lee to represent those who are set in their ways, and who think that their way is the only way. One day as the Finch children walk by her house, she yells at Scout, “‘what are you doing in those overalls? You should be in a dress and camisole, young lady! You’ll grow up waiting on tables if somebody doesn’t change your ways’”

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Soon, Jem and Scout mention Boo Radley to their new friend Dill. Being a newcomer to Maycomb, Dill becomes curious and wants to know what Boo is like. In an attempt to give Dill a sense of who he is, “Jem gave a reasonable description of Boo: Boo was about six and a half feet tall... he dined on raw squirrels... his eyes popped.”

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Appearance VS. Reality In the novel To Kill a MockingBird written by Harper Lee there are many events that occur that show the theme of appearance vs Reality. Throughout the story Boo radley is looked at as a monster that hides in his house and scares children. Mrs.Dubose is an old lady who had a morphine addiction and Tom robinson is known for sexualy abuseing a young white woman.

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Why do so many people feel the need to judge others based on how they look? Judging others gives people a sense of honor because demeaning others can create a sense of security and identity. If one concludes who a person is merely on what they look like they will miss what is important, what their morals are, and what their intentions are. It takes an individual who has read the novel To Kill A Mockingbird to understand because it is a perfect example of treating others with respect and not determining who others are based on what they look like. Many characters in Lee’s

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Appearance vs Reality is when you see someone as something and they turn out to be the complete opposite. In the book to kill a mocking bird there was one character that stood out to me that has a lot of appearance vs reality. There being the man, the myth, the legend Arthur (Boo) Radley, there is also Tom Robison, and there is Dolphus Raymond. The most impacted character by appearance vs reality is Tom Robinson because he was put on the court for "raping" Ms. Mayella and beating her. The main reason he is brought to court is that he black and, in that time, they thought the blacks were less than a person.

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Throughout the novel, the children befriend Boo Radley, since he is a shut in and many children of the neighborhood are quite curious as to what he does inside all of the time. Boo and Scout came specifically close, him giving her a blanket when Maudie Atkinson’s house burned down and at the climax point when he makes his initial known physical appearance as he saves Scout and Jem when Bob Ewell attacks them. After the Tom Robinson trial, Jem and Scout are finally starting to see from his perspective as Jem says “Scout, I think I'm beginning to understand something. I think I'm beginning to understand why Boo Radley's stayed shut up in the house all this time... it's because he wants to stay inside.

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In the screenplay To Kill Mockingbird written by Horton Foote. There is a man named Boo Radley that people think is a mean madman with no heart or no soul. People assume that he is a unwanted madman ready to kill anyone at any given time. But we have to look at the fact that appearance does not always affect reality. In the screenplay Dill and Scout are playing in the front yard.

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To Kill a Mockingbird Literary Analysis There is an abundant amount of fear and wondering about the unknown in the world. A prime example of this idea is in Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. This modern classic is set during the Great Depression in the small-town of Maycomb County. Everyone knows each other and gossip disperses among the town rapidly.

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In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Lee presents a large social atmosphere that includes many different cultures and extremes. The story takes place in the southern town of Maycomb, Alabama during the Great Depression. This novel illustrates how the southerners perceived different ideas about each other and social norms. It is told through the eyes of a young girl, Scout Finch, as she is growing up and becoming influenced by societal attitudes. Throughout the course of this book Scout learns many lessons including: how a society functions, why there is conflict between different cultures, and what makes cultures different from each other.

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