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To Kill A Mockingbird Coming Of Age Analysis

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Children—with all their innocence and hope—all have to grow up sometime. Along the way they will need guidance from family and friends so that they will become individuals to be proud of. To Kill a Mockingbird is a story about fighting for what you believe in, even if everyone is against it. In this case a lawyer is defending an African-American man in a region where prejudice is a contagious disease amongst the people. Intertwined in that story is another story: children who must grow up in a racist town who must try their best to live by their fathers morals of loving everyone regardless of race. Harper Lee presents the world of children as vastly different from that of the adults yet still dependent on them, and describes coming of age as a slow process that requires patient guidance along the way.
The world of children through the eyes of six year old Scout as wildly different from the adult world. The two worlds are intertwined, but still have unique characteristics that identify them. Unlike the main adult figure, Atticus, who is often busy at work, Jem and Scout are either outside entertaining themselves, or at …show more content…

She conveys this through Jem and Scout’s reliance upon Atticus. For example, during the first winter in Maycomb County since 1985 is a good example of this. When Scout first sees the snow falling, she is startled and tells Atticus, "The world's endin', Atticus! Please do something--" (Lee 73). Because she is young and hasn't experienced a real winter yet, the snow is unknown to her and frightens her. This trait distinguishes her from Atticus, an adult who is familiar with the world and can explain things to her. Another example is during the fire of Miss Maudie Atkinson. When Scout remembers see left something valuable in their own house, Jem tells her not to worry because Atticus is not yet worried. Even when he is far away, he is their rock that supports

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The development of characters throughout the book, and what children learn puts it in perspective how children lack a complete comprehension of the world surrounding them. In the book, To Kill A Mockingbird, Scout learns about respecting other’s views and that everybody else does not understand how she mentally puts her learnings into context. The characters of Atticus as well Miss Maudie reveals to the reader a theme that is being shown by Harper Lee; maturation; Scout as well Jem mature throughout the short time that’s elapsed in the book, helped by the models listed previously. Atticus’ character is evident in this chapter. We see him teaching Jem and Scout about respect and other’s views.

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In the 1930’s south, racism was at its peak, but one man with contrasting ideas, was willing to sacrifice his entire social standing to defend a negro. In Harper Lee’s, “To Kill a Mockingbird,” Scout’s father, Atticus, taught her many things. He taught her how to shoot, not to fight, and most importantly, to stand up for her values. Atticus showed his children the importance of protecting their beliefs on a few occasions: when he took on Tom Robinson’s case, when he protected them from the mad dog, and when he raised them to judge upon character, not appearance. First and foremost, when Atticus took Tom’s case upon himself, he showed the importance of doing what you think is right, regardless of the consequences.

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