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To Kill A Mockingbird Comparison Essay

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Easton Davidson
Mrs. Marton
Adv. Eng. 9 - D
25 May 2023
Comparing To Kill a Mockingbird’s Novel and Film The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee quickly gained a movie adaptation because of its engaging and educational story relating to prejudice and maturity. The novel follows Jean Louis Finch, nicknamed Scout, over several years as she grows up. Meanwhile, her father Atticus, a wise attorney, took on a controversial case defending a black man, Tom Robinson. To Kill a Mockingbird has a meaningful lesson in the literal story alone, but an even deeper one when you put the characters’ actions and emotions into perspective. However, the movie takes away some of the charm of the original because of the barrier between film and literature. …show more content…

Throughout part one of the novel, Scout is extremely against any feminine idea. She refuses to wear a dress, doesn’t like the little get-togethers that the women in her neighborhood do, and rejects anything relating to her Aunt Alexandra. In the movie, this is all packaged down to the simple fact that Scout was embarrassed to wear a dress during her first day of school and isn’t established any further. In part two of the novel, Scout gradually stops putting so much thought in the idea of being a girl. The Finches become so preoccupied with the trial and all of the drama in their lives. While this is happening, Scout subconsciously puts weight in more humane problems rather than her selfish idea of not wanting to be girly. This is shown in the book after the trial, when Aunt Alexandra is having a get together and Scout has to attend with a dress on. Throughout the day, Scout actually does a pretty good job at fitting to her Aunt’s standards and has an inquisitive realization. Scout notes, “After all, if Aunty could be a lady at a time like this, so could I” (Lee 237). When Scout says this, she is really showing how much she has matured from the start of the novel. Not only is she open to the idea of being a girl, but she is also giving respect to her aunt, who she hated so dearly. The movie could have greatly benefited from this arc, but unfortunately it is …show more content…

The book and the movie both show several forms of prejudice. There is obviously racial prejudice, with the trial of Tom Robinson, but also discrimination against Boo Radley without knowing who he really is. The movie could have benefitted from showing how Scout matured with respect to womanhood. In the novel, Scout struggled with this as a child but was more open to it as she aged and matured. In addition, the movie made it seem like Scout and Jem’s maturity goes hand in hand when in reality they were separate things in the book. Jem matured the most due to his experience with the trial and Mrs. Dubose. Even the adults in his life recognized that he was more mature than Scout. Overall, the movie possesses a strong emphasis on the important lesson about prejudice, but the brilliance of seeing Scout and Jem mature is hindered in the film compared to the

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Scout was beginning to put away her tomboyish acts and started acting like a young lady, "She seemed glad to see me when I appeared in the kitchen, and by watching her I began to think there was some skill involved in being a girl". This quote can be seen as a point where Scout started seeing being a girl a good thing rather than bad. Her brother Jem used to make fun of Scout when she would act like a girl, saying that girls are weak. Making this change from being a tough tomboy to a tough girl is a pretty big deal. In chapter 24, when Aunt Alexandra is hosting her missionary tea at the Finch’s Residence, Scout is inside instead of being outside to avoid it.

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Scout shows she realizes what being a girl really is while watching others. “Calpurnia seemed glad to see me when I appeared in the kitchen, and by watching her I began to think there was some skill involved in being a girl”(Lee 115/116). Scout has had her standards of what women should be by her brother, but once Scout sees Calpurnia working she realizes otherwise - to show her womanly traits instead of hiding them. “I was not so sure, but Jem told me I was being a girl, that girls always imagined things, that's why other people hated them so, and if I started behaving like one I could just go off and find some to play with”(Lee 41). Scout has always been taught that girls are bad, and boys have everything that could ever be good - she can not be one of the bad girls if she doesn't act like one.

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