To Kill A Mockingbird By Harper Lee: Character Analysis

In “To Kill a Mockingbird”, a novel by Harper Lee, the main character, Scout (Jean Louise Finch) a young girl who lives with her father Atticus and her brother Jem, tries to understand the world around her. The story takes place in the fictitious town of Maycomb Alabama in the 1930s. Scout and her brother Jem spend their summers playing outside. One day Scout’s neighbor’s nephew, Dill, comes for the whole summer. Once Dill arrives Scout, Jem and Dill all start a obsessive and sometimes dangerous campaign to try and get their neighbor, Boo out of his house. As the summer comes to an end, Dill heads back to his hometown and leaves Jem and Scout to start school. Scout hates school, having learned almost everything she will ever need from her

Around the middle of the novel, Atticus, who is a lawyer, becomes part of a trial for an African American who is accused of raping a white woman. Scout and Jem must now face many racial slurs and derogatory terms because Atticus is defending the African American, Tom Robinson. During this time Scout is having a hard time keeping cool when many of her peers insult her father. Even Jem, who is the more level headed of the two has a hard time staying calm when his neighbor (Mrs. Dubose) trash talks Atticus. When this happens Jem destroys her flowers. Later in the book Harper Lee brings Scout’s Aunt Alexandra into Scout and Jem’s lives. In the last summer of the novel, Tom Robinson is tried. Atticus proves that Tom couldn’t of raped Mayella Ewell. During the court case Atticus inadvertently insults Bob Ewell, Mayella’s father. Although Atticus does a great job in defending Tom the jury decides that Tom is guilty. Later in the summer while Scout is attending one of her Aunt’s missionary meetings Atticus comes in and tells Calpurnia, Aunt Alexandra, and Scout that Tom Robinson has been shot and killed during an escape attempt. In the weeks following the court case, Bob Ewell threatens