TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD

Harper Lee
Context
Nelle Harper Lee was born on April 28, 1926, in Monroeville, Alabama, a sleepy small town similar in many ways to Maycomb,
the setting of To Kill a Mockingbird Li!e Attic"s #inch, the father of $co"t, the narrator an% protagonist of To Kill a
Mockingbird, Lee&s father was a lawyer Among Lee&s chil%hoo% frien%s was the f"t"re novelist an% essayist 'r"man (apote,
from whom she %rew inspiration for the character )ill 'hese personal %etails notwithstan%ing, Lee maintains that To Kill a
Mockingbird was inten%e% to portray not her own chil%hoo% home b"t rather a nonspecific $o"thern town *+eople are people
anywhere yo" p"t them,, she %eclare% in a 1961 interview
-et the boo!&s setting an% characters are not the only aspects of the story shape% by events that occ"rre% %"ring Lee&s
chil%hoo% .n 19/1, when Lee was five, nine yo"ng blac! men were acc"se% of raping two white women near $cottsboro,
Alabama After a series of lengthy, highly p"blici0e%, an% often bitter trials, five of the nine men were sentence% to long prison
terms Many prominent lawyers an% other American citi0ens saw the sentences as sp"rio"s an% motivate% only by racial
pre1"%ice .t was also s"specte% that the women who ha% acc"se% the men were lying, an% in appeal after appeal, their claims
became more %"bio"s 'here can be little %o"bt that the $cottsboro (ase, as the trials of the nine men came to be calle%,
serve% as a see% for the trial that stan%s at the heart of Lee&s novel
Lee began To Kill a Mockingbird in the mi%21934s, after moving to New -or! to become a writer $he complete% the novel in
1935 an% p"blishe% it, with revisions, in 1964, 1"st before the pea! of the American civil rights movement
Plot Overview
$co"t #inch lives with her brother, 6em, an% their wi%owe% father, Attic"s, in the sleepy Alabama town of Maycomb Maycomb is
s"ffering thro"gh the 7reat )epression, b"t Attic"s is a prominent lawyer an% the #inch family is reasonably well off in
comparison to the rest of society 8ne s"mmer, 6em an% $co"t befrien% a boy name% )ill, who has come to live in their
neighborhoo% for the s"mmer, an% the trio acts o"t stories together 9vent"ally, )ill becomes fascinate% with the spoo!y ho"se
on their street calle% the :a%ley +lace 'he ho"se is owne% by Mr Nathan :a%ley, whose brother, Arth"r ;nic!name% <oo=, has
live% there for years witho"t vent"ring o"tsi%e
$co"t goes to school for the first time that fall an% %etests it $he an% 6em fin% gifts apparently left for them in a !nothole of a
tree on the :a%ley property )ill ret"rns the following s"mmer, an% he, $co"t, an% 6em begin to act o"t the story of <oo :a%ley
Attic"s p"ts a stop to their antics, "rging the chil%ren to try to see life from another person&s perspective before ma!ing
1"%gments <"t, on )ill&s last night in Maycomb for the s"mmer, the three snea! onto the :a%ley property, where Nathan :a%ley
shoots at them 6em loses his pants in the ens"ing escape >hen he ret"rns for them, he fin%s them men%e% an% h"ng over the
fence 'he ne?t winter, 6em an% $co"t fin% more presents in the tree, pres"mably left by the mysterio"s <oo Nathan :a%ley
event"ally pl"gs the !nothole with cement $hortly thereafter, a fire brea!s o"t in another neighbor&s ho"se, an% %"ring the fire
someone slips a blan!et on $co"t&s sho"l%ers as she watches the bla0e (onvince% that <oo %i% it, 6em tells Attic"s abo"t the
men%e% pants an% the presents
'o the consternation of Maycomb&s racist white comm"nity, Attic"s agrees to %efen% a blac! man name% 'om :obinson, who
has been acc"se% of raping a white woman <eca"se of Attic"s&s %ecision, 6em an% $co"t are s"b1ecte% to ab"se from other
chil%ren, even when they celebrate (hristmas at the family compo"n% on #inch&s Lan%ing (alp"rnia, the #inches& blac! coo!,
ta!es them to the local blac! ch"rch, where the warm an% close2!nit comm"nity largely embraces the chil%ren
Attic"s&s sister, Ale?an%ra, comes to live with the #inches the ne?t s"mmer )ill, who is s"ppose% to live with his *new father, in
another town, r"ns away an% comes to Maycomb 'om :obinson&s trial begins, an% when the acc"se% man is place% in the
local 1ail, a mob gathers to lynch him Attic"s faces the mob %own the night before the trial 6em an% $co"t, who have snea!e%
o"t of the ho"se, soon 1oin him $co"t recogni0es one of the men, an% her polite @"estioning abo"t his son shames him into
%ispersing the mob
At the trial itself, the chil%ren sit in the *colore% balcony, with the town&s blac! citi0ens Attic"s provi%es clear evi%ence that the
acc"sers, Mayella 9well an% her father, <ob, are lyingA in fact, Mayella propositione% 'om :obinson, was ca"ght by her father,
an% then acc"se% 'om of rape to cover her shame an% g"ilt Attic"s provi%es impressive evi%ence that the mar!s on Mayella&s
face are from wo"n%s that her father inflicte%B "pon %iscovering her with 'om, he calle% her a whore an% beat her -et, %espite
the significant evi%ence pointing to 'om&s innocence, the all2white 1"ry convicts him 'he innocent 'om later tries to escape from
prison an% is shot to %eath .n the aftermath of the trial, 6em&s faith in 1"stice is ba%ly sha!en, an% he lapses into %espon%ency
an% %o"bt
)espite the ver%ict, <ob 9well feels that Attic"s an% the 1"%ge have ma%e a fool o"t of him, an% he vows revenge He menaces
'om :obinson&s wi%ow, tries to brea! into the 1"%ge&s ho"se, an% finally attac!s 6em an% $co"t as they wal! home from a
Halloween party <oo :a%ley intervenes, however, saving the chil%ren an% stabbing 9well fatally %"ring the str"ggle <oo
carries the wo"n%e% 6em bac! to Attic"s&s ho"se, where the sheriff, in or%er to protect <oo, insists that 9well trippe% over a tree
root an% fell on his own !nife After sitting with $co"t for a while, <oo %isappears once more into the :a%ley ho"se
Later, $co"t feels as tho"gh she can finally imagine what life is li!e for <oo He has become a h"man being to her at last >ith
this reali0ation, $co"t embraces her father&s a%vice to practice sympathy an% "n%erstan%ing an% %emonstrates that her
e?periences with hatre% an% pre1"%ice will not s"lly her faith in h"man goo%ness
Analysis of Major Charaters
!ean Lo"ise #$o"t% &inh 2 'he narrator an% protagonist of the story $co"t lives with her father, Attic"s, her brother, 6em,
an% their blac! coo!, (alp"rnia, in Maycomb $he is intelligent an%, by the stan%ar%s of her time an% place, a tomboy $co"t
has a combative strea! an% a basic faith in the goo%ness of the people in her comm"nity As the novel progresses, this faith is
teste% by the hatre% an% pre1"%ice that emerge %"ring 'om :obinson&s trial $co"t event"ally %evelops a more grown2"p
perspective that enables her to appreciate h"man goo%ness witho"t ignoring h"man evil
$co"t is a very "n"s"al little girl, both in her own @"alities an% in her social position $he is "n"s"ally intelligent ;she learns to
rea% before beginning school=, "n"s"ally confi%ent ;she fights boys witho"t fear=, "n"s"ally tho"ghtf"l ;she worries abo"t the
essential goo%ness an% evil of man!in%=, an% "n"s"ally goo% ;she always acts with the best intentions= .n terms of her social
i%entity, she is "n"s"al for being a tomboy in the prim an% proper $o"thern worl% of Maycomb
8ne @"ic!ly reali0es when rea%ing To Kill a Mockingbirdthat $co"t is who she is beca"se of the way Attic"s has raise% her He
has n"rt"re% her min%, conscience, an% in%ivi%"ality witho"t bogging her %own in f"ssy social hypocrisies an% notions of
propriety >hile most girls in $co"t&s position wo"l% be wearing %resses an% learning manners, $co"t, than!s to Attic"s&s
han%s2off parenting style, wears overalls an% learns to climb trees with 6em an% )ill $he %oes not always grasp social niceties
;she tells her teacher that one of her fellow st"%ents is too poor to pay her bac! for l"nch=, an% h"man behavior often baffles her
;as when one of her teachers critici0es Hitler&s pre1"%ice against 6ews while in%"lging in her own pre1"%ice against blac!s=, b"t
Attic"s&s protection of $co"t from hypocrisy an% social press"re has ren%ere% her open, forthright, an% well meaning
At the beginning of the novel, $co"t is an innocent, goo%2hearte% five2year2ol% chil% who has no e?perience with the evils of the
worl% As the novel progresses, $co"t has her first contact with evil in the form of racial pre1"%ice, an% the basic %evelopment of
her character is governe% by the @"estion of whether she will emerge from that contact with her conscience an% optimism intact
or whether she will be br"ise%, h"rt, or %estroye% li!e <oo :a%ley an% 'om :obinson 'han!s to Attic"s&s wis%om, $co"t learns
that tho"gh h"manity has a great capacity for evil, it also has a great capacity for goo%, an% that the evil can often be mitigate% if
one approaches others with an o"tloo! of sympathy an% "n%erstan%ing $co"t&s %evelopment into a person capable of
ass"ming that o"tloo! mar!s the c"lmination of the novel an% in%icates that, whatever evil she enco"nters, she will retain her
conscience witho"t becoming cynical or 1a%e% 'ho"gh she is still a chil% at the en% of the boo!, $co"t&s perspective on life
%evelops from that of an innocent chil% into that of a near grown2"p
Atti"s &inh 2 $co"t an% 6em&s father, a lawyer in Maycomb %escen%e% from an ol% local family A wi%ower with a %ry sense
of h"mor, Attic"s has instille% in his chil%ren his strong sense of morality an% 1"stice He is one of the few resi%ents of Maycomb
committe% to racial e@"ality >hen he agrees to %efen% 'om :obinson, a blac! man charge% with raping a white woman, he
e?poses himself an% his family to the anger of the white comm"nity >ith his strongly hel% convictions, wis%om, an% empathy,
Attic"s f"nctions as the novel&s moral bac!bone
As one of the most prominent citi0ens in Maycomb %"ring the 7reat )epression, Attic"s is relatively well off in a time of
wi%esprea% poverty <eca"se of his penetrating intelligence, calm wis%om, an% e?emplary behavior, Attic"s is respecte% by
everyone, incl"%ing the very poor He f"nctions as the moral bac!bone of Maycomb, a person to whom others t"rn in times of
%o"bt an% tro"ble <"t the conscience that ma!es him so a%mirable "ltimately ca"ses his falling o"t with the people of
Maycomb Cnable to abi%e the town&s comfortable ingraine% racial pre1"%ice, he agrees to %efen% 'om :obinson, a blac! man
Attic"s&s action ma!es him the ob1ect of scorn in Maycomb, b"t he is simply too impressive a fig"re to be scorne% for long After
the trial, he seems %estine% to be hel% in the same high regar% as before
Attic"s practices the ethic of sympathy an% "n%erstan%ing that he preaches to $co"t an% 6em an% never hol%s a gr"%ge against
the people of Maycomb )espite their callo"s in%ifference to racial ine@"ality, Attic"s sees m"ch to a%mire in them He
recogni0es that people have both goo% an% ba% @"alities, an% he is %etermine% to a%mire the goo% while "n%erstan%ing an%
forgiving the ba% Attic"s passes this great moral lesson on to $co"tDthis perspective protects the innocent from being
%estroye% by contact with evil
.ronically, tho"gh Attic"s is a heroic fig"re in the novel an% a respecte% man in Maycomb, neither 6em nor $co"t conscio"sly
i%oli0es him at the beginning of the novel <oth are embarrasse% that he is ol%er than other fathers an% that he %oesn&t h"nt or
fish <"t Attic"s&s wise parenting, which he s"ms "p in (hapter /4 by saying, *<efore 6em loo!s at anyone else he loo!s at me,
an% .&ve trie% to live so . can loo! s@"arely bac! at him,, "ltimately wins their respect <y the en% of the novel, 6em, in partic"lar,
is fiercely %evote% to Attic"s ;$co"t, still a little girl, loves him "ncritically= 'ho"gh his chil%ren&s attit"%e towar% him evolves,
Attic"s is characteri0e% thro"gho"t the boo! by his absol"te consistency He stan%s rigi%ly committe% to 1"stice an% tho"ghtf"lly
willing to view matters from the perspectives of others He %oes not %evelop in the novel b"t retains these @"alities in e@"al
meas"re, ma!ing him the novel&s moral g"i%e an% voice of conscience
!ere'y Atti"s #!e'% &inh 2 $co"t&s brother an% constant playmate at the beginning of the story 6em is something of a
typical American boy, ref"sing to bac! %own from %ares an% fantasi0ing abo"t playing football #o"r years ol%er than $co"t, he
gra%"ally separates himself from her games, b"t he remains her close companion an% protector thro"gho"t the novel 6em
moves into a%olescence %"ring the story, an% his i%eals are sha!en ba%ly by the evil an% in1"stice that he perceives %"ring the
trial of 'om :obinson
.f $co"t is an innocent girl who is e?pose% to evil at an early age an% force% to %evelop an a%"lt moral o"tloo!, 6em fin%s
himself in an even more t"rb"lent sit"ation His shattering e?perience at 'om :obinson&s trial occ"rs 1"st as he is entering
p"berty, a time when life is complicate% an% tra"matic eno"gh His %isill"sionment "pon seeing that 1"stice %oes not always
prevail leaves him v"lnerable an% conf"se% at a critical, formative point in his life Nevertheless, he a%mirably "phol%s the
commitment to 1"stice that Attic"s instille% in him an% maintains it with %eep conviction thro"gho"t the novel
Cnli!e the 1a%e% Mr :aymon%, 6em is not witho"t hopeA Attic"s tells $co"t that 6em simply nee%s time to process what he has
learne% 'he strong presence of Attic"s in 6em&s life seems to promise that he will recover his e@"ilibri"m Later in his life, 6em
is able to see that <oo :a%ley&s "ne?pecte% ai% in%icates there is goo% in people 9ven before the en% of the novel, 6em shows
signs of having learne% a positive lesson from the trialB for instance, at the beginning of (hapter 23, he ref"ses to allow $co"t to
s@"ash a roly2poly b"g beca"se it has %one nothing to harm her After seeing the "nfair %estr"ction of 'om :obinson, 6em now
wants to protect the fragile an% harmless
'he i%ea that 6em resolves his cynicism an% moves towar% a happier life is s"pporte% by the beginning of the novel, in which a
grown2"p $co"t remembers tal!ing to 6em abo"t the events that ma!e "p the novel&s plot $co"t says that 6em pinpointe% the
chil%ren&s initial interest in <oo :a%ley at the beginning of the story, strongly implying that he "n%erstoo% what <oo represente%
to them an%, li!e $co"t, manage% to she% his innocence witho"t losing his hope
Charater List
Arth"r #Boo% Ra(ley 2 A recl"se who never sets foot o"tsi%e his ho"se, <oo %ominates the imaginations of 6em, $co"t, an%
)ill He is a powerf"l symbol of goo%ness swathe% in an initial shro"% of creepiness, leaving little presents for $co"t an% 6em
an% emerging at an opport"ne moment to save the chil%ren An intelligent chil% emotionally %amage% by his cr"el father, <oo
provi%es an e?ample of the threat that evil poses to innocence an% goo%ness He is one of the novel&s *moc!ingbir%s,, a goo%
person in1"re% by the evil of man!in%
Bo) *well 2 A %r"n!en, mostly "nemploye% member of Maycomb&s poorest family .n his !nowingly wrongf"l acc"sation that
'om :obinson rape% his %a"ghter, 9well represents the %ar! si%e of the $o"thA ignorance, poverty, s@"alor, an% hate2fille%
racial pre1"%ice
Charles Ba+er #Dill% ,arris 2 6em an% $co"t&s s"mmer neighbor an% frien% )ill is a %imin"tive, confi%ent boy with an active
imagination He becomes fascinate% with <oo :a%ley an% represents the perspective of chil%hoo% innocence thro"gho"t the
novel
Miss Ma"(ie At+inson 2 'he #inches& neighbor, a sharp2tong"e% wi%ow, an% an ol% frien% of the family Miss Ma"%ie is almost
the same age as Attic"s&s yo"nger brother, 6ac! $he shares Attic"s&s passion for 1"stice an% is the chil%ren&s best frien% among
Maycomb&s a%"lts
Cal-"rnia 2 'he #inches& blac! coo! (alp"rnia is a stern %isciplinarian an% the chil%ren&s bri%ge between the white worl% an%
her own blac! comm"nity
A"nt Alexan(ra 2 Attic"s&s sister, a strong2wille% woman with a fierce %evotion to her family Ale?an%ra is the perfect $o"thern
la%y, an% her commitment to propriety an% tra%ition often lea%s her to clash with $co"t
Mayella *well 2 <ob 9well&s ab"se%, lonely, "nhappy %a"ghter 'ho"gh one can pity Mayella beca"se of her overbearing
father, one cannot par%on her for her shamef"l in%ictment of 'om :obinson
To' Ro)inson 2 'he blac! fiel% han% acc"se% of rape 'om is one of the novel&s *moc!ingbir%s,, an important symbol of
innocence %estroye% by evil
Lin+ Deas 2 'om :obinson&s employer .n his willingness to loo! past race an% praise the integrity of 'om&s character, )eas
epitomi0es the opposite of pre1"%ice
Mrs. ,enry Lafayette D")ose 2 An el%erly, ill2tempere%, racist woman who lives near the #inches Altho"gh 6em believes that
Mrs )"bose is a thoro"ghly ba% woman, Attic"s a%mires her for the co"rage with which she battles her morphine a%%iction
Nathan Ra(ley 2 <oo :a%ley&s ol%er brother $co"t thin!s that Nathan is similar to the %ecease% Mr :a%ley, <oo an% Nathan&s
father Nathan cr"elly c"ts off an important element of <oo&s relationship with 6em an% $co"t when he pl"gs "p the !nothole in
which <oo leaves presents for the chil%ren
,e+ Tate 2 'he sheriff of Maycomb an% a ma1or witness at 'om :obinson&s trial Hec! is a %ecent man who tries to protect the
innocent from %anger
Mr. /n(erwoo( 2 'he p"blisher of Maycomb&s newspaper Mr Cn%erwoo% respects Attic"s an% proves his ally
Mr. Dol-h"s Ray'on( 2 A wealthy white man who lives with his blac! mistress an% m"latto chil%ren :aymon% preten%s to be
a %r"n! so that the citi0ens of Maycomb will have an e?planation for his behavior .n reality, he is simply 1a%e% by the hypocrisy
of white society an% prefers living among blac!s
Mr. 0alter C"nnin1ha' 2 A poor farmer an% part of the mob that see!s to lynch 'om :obinson at the 1ail Mr ("nningham
%isplays his h"man goo%ness when $co"t&s politeness compels him to %isperse the men at the 1ail
0alter C"nnin1ha' 2 $on of Mr ("nningham an% classmate of $co"t >alter cannot affor% l"nch one %ay at school an%
acci%entally gets $co"t in tro"ble
The'es2 Motifs 3 $y')ols
The Coexistence of Good and Evil
'he most important theme of To Kill a Mockingbird is the boo!&s e?ploration of the moral nat"re of h"man beingsDthat is,
whether people are essentially goo% or essentially evil 'he novel approaches this @"estion by %ramati0ing $co"t an% 6em&s
transition from a perspective of chil%hoo% innocence, in which they ass"me that people are goo% beca"se they have never seen
evil, to a more a%"lt perspective, in which they have confronte% evil an% m"st incorporate it into their "n%erstan%ing of the worl%
As a res"lt of this portrayal of the transition from innocence to e?perience, one of the boo!&s important s"bthemes involves the
threat that hatre%, pre1"%ice, an% ignorance pose to the innocentA people s"ch as 'om :obinson an% <oo :a%ley are not
prepare% for the evil that they enco"nter, an%, as a res"lt, they are %estroye% 9ven 6em is victimi0e% to an e?tent by his
%iscovery of the evil of racism %"ring an% after the trial >hereas $co"t is able to maintain her basic faith in h"man nat"re
%espite 'om&s conviction, 6em&s faith in 1"stice an% in h"manity is ba%ly %amage%, an% he retreats into a state of %isill"sionment
'he moral voice of To Kill a Mockingbird is embo%ie% by Attic"s #inch, who is virt"ally "ni@"e in the novel in that he has
e?perience% an% "n%erstoo% evil witho"t losing his faith in the h"man capacity for goo%ness Attic"s "n%erstan%s that, rather
than being simply creat"res of goo% or creat"res of evil, most people have both goo% an% ba% @"alities 'he important thing is to
appreciate the goo% @"alities an% "n%erstan% the ba% @"alities by treating others with sympathy an% trying to see life from their
perspective He tries to teach this "ltimate moral lesson to 6em an% $co"t to show them that it is possible to live with
conscience witho"t losing hope or becoming cynical .n this way, Attic"s is able to a%mire Mrs )"bose&s co"rage even while
%eploring her racism $co"t&s progress as a character in the novel is %efine% by her gra%"al %evelopment towar% "n%erstan%ing
Attic"s&s lessons, c"lminating when, in the final chapters, $co"t at last sees <oo :a%ley as a h"man being Her newfo"n% ability
to view the worl% from his perspective ens"res that she will not become 1a%e% as she loses her innocence
The Importance of Moral Education
<eca"se e?ploration of the novel&s larger moral @"estions ta!es place within the perspective of chil%ren, the e%"cation of
chil%ren is necessarily involve% in the %evelopment of all of the novel&s themes .n a sense, the plot of the story charts $co"t&s
moral e%"cation, an% the theme of how chil%ren are e%"cate%Dhow they are ta"ght to move from innocence to a%"lthoo%D
rec"rs thro"gho"t the novel ;at the en% of the boo!, $co"t even says that she has learne% practically everything e?cept
algebra= 'his theme is e?plore% most powerf"lly thro"gh the relationship between Attic"s an% his chil%ren, as he %evotes
himself to instilling a social conscience in 6em an% $co"t 'he scenes at school provi%e a %irect co"nterpoint to Attic"s&s
effective e%"cation of his chil%renA $co"t is fre@"ently confronte% with teachers who are either fr"stratingly "nsympathetic to
chil%ren&s nee%s or morally hypocritical As is tr"e of To Kill a Mockingbird&s other moral themes, the novel&s concl"sion abo"t
e%"cation is that the most important lessons are those of sympathy an% "n%erstan%ing, an% that a sympathetic, "n%erstan%ing
approach is the best way to teach these lessons .n this way, Attic"s&s ability to p"t himself in his chil%ren&s shoes ma!es him an
e?cellent teacher, while Miss (aroline&s rigi% commitment to the e%"cational techni@"es that she learne% in college ma!es her
ineffective an% even %angero"s
The Existence of Social Inequality
)ifferences in social stat"s are e?plore% largely thro"gh the overcomplicate% social hierarchy of Maycomb, the ins an% o"ts of
which constantly baffle the chil%ren 'he relatively well2off #inches stan% near the top of Maycomb&s social hierarchy, with most
of the townspeople beneath them .gnorant co"ntry farmers li!e the ("nninghams lie below the townspeople, an% the white
trash 9wells rest below the ("nninghams <"t the blac! comm"nity in Maycomb, %espite its ab"n%ance of a%mirable @"alities,
s@"ats below even the 9wells, enabling <ob 9well to ma!e "p for his own lac! of importance by persec"ting 'om :obinson
'hese rigi% social %ivisions that ma!e "p so m"ch of the a%"lt worl% are reveale% in the boo! to be both irrational an%
%estr"ctive #or e?ample, $co"t cannot "n%erstan% why A"nt Ale?an%ra ref"ses to let her consort with yo"ng >alter
("nningham Lee "ses the chil%ren&s perple?ity at the "npleasant layering of Maycomb society to criti@"e the role of class
stat"s an%, "ltimately, pre1"%ice in h"man interaction
Gothic Details
'he forces of goo% an% evil in To Kill a Mockingbird seem larger than the small $o"thern town in which the story ta!es place
Lee a%%s %rama an% atmosphere to her story by incl"%ing a n"mber of 7othic %etails in the setting an% the plot .n literat"re, the
term 7othic refers to a style of fiction first pop"lari0e% in eighteenth2cent"ry 9nglan%, feat"ring s"pernat"ral occ"rrences,
gloomy an% ha"nte% settings, f"ll moons, an% so on Among the 7othic elements in To Kill a Mockingbird are the "nnat"ral
snowfall, the fire that %estroys Miss Ma"%ie&s ho"se, the chil%ren&s s"perstitions abo"t <oo :a%ley, the ma% %og that Attic"s
shoots, an% the omino"s night of the Halloween party on which <ob 9well attac!s the chil%ren 'hese elements, o"t of place in
the normally @"iet, pre%ictable Maycomb, create tension in the novel an% serve to foresha%ow the tro"blesome events of the
trial an% its aftermath
Small-Town ife
(o"nterbalancing the 7othic motif of the story is the motif of ol%2fashione%, small2town val"es, which manifest themselves
thro"gho"t the novel As if to contrast with all of the s"spense an% moral gran%e"r of the boo!, Lee emphasi0es the slow2pace%,
goo%2nat"re% feel of life in Maycomb $he often %eliberately 1"?taposes small2town val"es an% 7othic images in or%er to
e?amine more closely the forces of goo% an% evil 'he horror of the fire, for instance, is mitigate% by the comforting scene of the
people of Maycomb ban%ing together to save Miss Ma"%ie&s possessions .n contrast, <ob 9well&s cowar%ly attac! on the
%efenseless $co"t, who is %resse% li!e a giant ham for the school pageant, shows him to be "nre%eemably evil
$y')ols
Moc!in"#irds
'he title of To Kill a Mockingbirdhas very little literal connection to the plot, b"t it carries a great %eal of symbolic weight in the
boo! .n this story of innocents %estroye% by evil, the *moc!ingbir%, comes to represent the i%ea of innocence 'h"s, to !ill a
moc!ingbir% is to %estroy innocence 'hro"gho"t the boo!, a n"mber of characters ;6em, 'om :obinson, )ill, <oo :a%ley, Mr
:aymon%= can be i%entifie% as moc!ingbir%sDinnocents who have been in1"re% or %estroye% thro"gh contact with evil 'his
connection between the novel&s title an% its main theme is ma%e e?plicit several times in the novelA after 'om :obinson is shot,
Mr Cn%erwoo% compares his %eath to *the senseless sla"ghter of songbir%s,, an% at the en% of the boo! $co"t thin!s that
h"rting <oo :a%ley wo"l% be li!e *shootin& a moc!ingbir%, Most important, Miss Ma"%ie e?plains to $co"tA *Moc!ingbir%s %on&t
%o one thing b"t sing their hearts o"t for "s 'hat&s why it&s a sin to !ill a moc!ingbir%, 'hat 6em an% $co"t&s last name is
#inch ;another type of small bir%= in%icates that they are partic"larly v"lnerable in the racist worl% of Maycomb, which often
treats the fragile innocence of chil%hoo% harshly
$oo %adley
As the novel progresses, the chil%ren&s changing attit"%e towar% <oo :a%ley is an important meas"rement of their %evelopment
from innocence towar% a grown2"p moral perspective At the beginning of the boo!, <oo is merely a so"rce of chil%hoo%
s"perstition As he leaves 6em an% $co"t presents an% men%s 6em&s pants, he gra%"ally becomes increasingly an% intrig"ingly
real to them At the en% of the novel, he becomes f"lly h"man to $co"t, ill"strating that she has %evelope% into a sympathetic
an% "n%erstan%ing in%ivi%"al <oo, an intelligent chil% r"ine% by a cr"el father, is one of the boo!&s most important moc!ingbir%sB
he is also an important symbol of the goo% that e?ists within people )espite the pain that <oo has s"ffere%, the p"rity of his
heart r"les his interaction with the chil%ren .n saving 6em an% $co"t from <ob 9well, <oo proves the "ltimate symbol of goo%
+art 8ne,
Analysis4 Cha-ter 5
'he story that constit"tes almost the entirety of To Kill a Mockingbird is set in the time between $co"t #inch&s fifth an% ninth
birth%ays, b"t $co"t pres"mably commences the first2person narrative that opens the novel m"ch later in her life As a res"lt,
the narrative voice fl"ct"ates between the chil%&s point of view, chronicling the events as they happen, an% the a%"lt voice,
loo!ing bac! on her chil%hoo% many years later 'he chil%&s naEve voice %ominates the central plot, allowing the rea%er to ma!e
connections an% "n%erstan% events in a way that the yo"ng $co"t %oes not At the same time, the narrative often %igresses into
anec%otes or %escriptions presente% retrospectively, li!e $co"t&s %epiction of Maycomb in the first chapterA *Maycomb was an
ol% town, b"t it was a tire% ol% town when . first !new it $omehow, it was hotter then FpGeople move% slowly then, Here,
Lee&s lang"age in%icates an a%"lt&s recollection rather than a girl&s e?perience
$tr"ct"rally, To Kill a Mockingbird is circ"larA the story begins where it en%s 'he first line of the novel intro%"ces 6em&s bro!en
arm, an% the novel then flashes bac! to cover the events lea%ing "p to his acci%ent 'he narrator "ses this %evice to provi%e
bac!gro"n% for the #inch family, intro%"cing the legen%ary $imon #inch an% his three %escen%ants <"t at this stage of the
novel, the family history is treate% as bac!gro"n% information, of secon%ary importance to the private worl% of the yo"ng #inch
chil%ren .n this way, the first chapter provi%es only a brief s!etch of Attic"s, whose importance increases as the novel
progresses 6em an% $co"t are the center of the story, filling it with their worl% of imagination an% s"perstition, centere% on town
myths s"ch as the c"rio"s history of <oo :a%ley an% imaginative %iversions s"ch as acting o"t stories from boo!s
)ill %ominates this early part of the novelA he is only a s"mmer visitor, with no connection to Maycomb&s a%"lt worl% As this
a%"lt worl% asserts itself later in the novel, )ill fa%es from the story #or now, however, the novel appropriates )ill&s chil%hoo%
perspective an% only hints at the %ar!er, more a%"lt problems that will intr"%e on 6em an% $co"t 8ne of the central themes
of To Kill a Mockingbird is the process of growing "p an% %eveloping a more mat"re perspective on life (orrespon%ingly, the
narrative gra%"ally comes to mirror a loss of innocence, as the carefree chil%hoo% of this first chapter is slowly replace% by a
%ar!er, more %angero"s, an% more cynical a%"lt story in which the chil%ren are only minor participants
<oo :a%ley becomes the foc"s of the chil%ren&s c"riosity in (hapter 1 As befits the perspective of chil%hoo% innocence, the
recl"se is given no i%entity apart from the yo"thf"l s"perstitions that s"rro"n% himA $co"t %escribes him as a *malevolent
phantom, over si? feet tall who eats s@"irrels an% cats 8f co"rse, the rea%er reali0es that there m"st be more to <oo&s story
than these s"perstitions imply 9vent"ally, <oo will be transforme% from a nightmare villain into a h"man being, an% the
chil%ren&s "n%erstan%ing of him will reflect their own 1o"rney towar% a%"lthoo%
Analysis4 Cha-ters 678
$co"t&s "npleasant first %ay of school has a threefol% p"rposeA it locates the rea%er&s sympathies firmly with the narratorB it
offers a f"rther intro%"ction to Maycomb&s tort"re% social la%%erB an% it provi%es sharp social commentary on the theme of
chil%ren an% e%"cation, one of the boo!&s most important themes .n her interactions with Miss (aroline, $co"t is victimi0e% by
her teacher&s ine?perienceB $co"t means well b"t receives only p"nishment in ret"rn 'he rigi%, impersonal protocols %eman%e%
by the law an% by Miss (aroline&s metho% of teaching are shown to be ins"fficient an% irrationalD<"rris 9well can !eep the law
happy by coming to school only one %ay a year, while $co"t inc"rs her teacher&s wrath simply by learning to rea% at an early
age 'his topsy2t"rvy e%"cational o"tloo! fails catastrophically to meet the nee%s of either st"%ent $co"t, who is
commonsensical eno"gh to perceive this fail"re imme%iately, is fr"strate% by her inability to "n%erstan% why her teacher acts as
she %oes, an% why she, $co"t, contin"ally inc"rs %isfavor for well2intentione% actions
'hro"gho"t these chapters, $co"t&s well2meaning missteps ;telling the teacher abo"t >alter&s poverty, critici0ing >alter for
p"tting molasses on his meat an% vegetables= earn harsh reb"!es from the a%"lt worl%, emphasi0ing the contrast between the
comfortable, imaginative chil%hoo% worl% that $co"t occ"pies in (hapter 1 an% the more grown2"p worl% she is now e?pecte% to
occ"py 'his interaction sets a pattern for the boo! an% for the basic %evelopment of $co"t as a characterA whether %ealing with
a%"lts or with other chil%ren, $co"t always means well, an% her nat"re is essentially goo% Her mista!es are honest mista!es,
an% while there is evil all aro"n% her in the novel, it %oes not infect her, nor %oes in1"stice %isill"sion her, as it %oes 6em At the
en% of (hapter 2, $co"t, acting on her best intentions ;as always=, tries to e?plain the ("nninghams to Miss (aroline
-o"ng >alter ("nningham is the first glimpse we get of the ("nningham clan, part of the large pop"lation of poor farmers in the
lan% aro"n% Maycomb >alter&s poverty intro%"ces the very a%"lt theme of social class into the novel $co"t notes in (hapter 1
that Maycomb was a r"n2%own town ca"ght "p in the 7reat )epression, b"t so far, we have seen only the "pper2class si%e of
town, represente% by relatively s"ccessf"l an% comfortable characters s"ch as Attic"s Now, however, we begin to see the rest
of Maycomb, represente% by the str"ggling ("nninghams an% the %irt2poor 9wells 6em later %ivi%es Maycomb into fo"r social
classes, placing the ("nninghams a level beneath the other families in the town ;>alter&s fon%ness for molasses on all of his
foo% ill"strates the %ifference in stat"s between his family an% the #inches=
A correlation between social stat"s an% moral goo%ness becomes evi%ent as the novel progresses At the top of this pyrami%
rests Attic"s, a comparatively wealthy man whose moral stan%ing is beyon% reproach <eneath him are the poor farmers s"ch
as the ("nninghams 'he 9wells are below even the ("nninghams on the social la%%er, an% their "napologetic, s@"ali%
ignorance an% ill tempers @"ic!ly ma!e them the villains of the story >e %o not enco"nter them again "ntil +art 'wo, b"t
<"rris&s vicio"s cr"elty in this section foresha%ows the later behavior of his father, <ob 9well
Miss (aroline&s teaching metho%s, meanwhile, facilitate Lee&s s"btle criti@"e of e%"cational ortho%o?y Miss (aroline cannot
accept that $co"t alrea%y !nows how to rea% an% write, beca"se it confo"n%s the teaching form"la that she has been ta"ght to
implement $he a%heres strictly to a *metho%, that she learne% from a%"lts, instea% of learning from her e?periences in the
classroom an% a%apting her teaching accor%ingly 'o $co"t, this metho% is %"llB to the rea%er, it e?emplifies how well2meaning
b"t rigi% thin!ing can fail 6"st as Attic"s enco"rages $co"t to place herself in another person&s position before she 1"%ges that
person, Miss (aroline wo"l% %o better to try to thin! li!e her st"%ents an% respon% to their nee%s rather than simply trying to
impose an e?ternal system on their e%"cation 'hro"gho"t the novel, Attic"s&s moral position of sympathy an% "n%erstan%ing is
contraste% with rigi%, impersonal systems s"ch as Miss (aroline&s that fail to acco"nt for in%ivi%"al necessities .n this sense,
Miss (aroline&s behavior in the schoolho"se foresha%ows the co"rtroom scenes later in the novel, when the system that fails is
not an e%"cational techni@"e b"t the law
Analysis4 Cha-ters 97:
'hese chapters serve primarily as a recor% of 6em an% $co"t&s chil%hoo% a%vent"res with )ill an% the specter of <oo :a%ley
9ven as the chil%ren play the *<oo :a%ley game,, ma!e their attempts to give a message to <oo, an% pee! thro"gh his sh"tters,
<oo&s character is transforme% from a monster into a h"man being Altho"gh <oo&s relevance to the main plot of the novel is still
"n!nown, the compelling h"man story that these chapters weave aro"n% <oo !eeps the rea%er intereste% in him, even if he
serves only as a %iversion to the yo"ng #inch chil%ren at this point
<oo ma!es his presence felt in these chapters in a n"mber of ways #irst, the presents begin to appear in the :a%ley tree, an%,
tho"gh $co"t %oes not reali0e who has been p"tting them there, the rea%er can easily g"ess that it is <oo $econ%, Miss
Ma"%ie offers insight into the origins of <oo&s recl"siveness an% a sympathetic perspective on his story Miss Ma"%ie has only
contempt for the s"perstitio"s view of <ooA he is no %emon, an% she !nows that he is alive, beca"se she hasn&t seen him
*carrie% o"t yet, #rom her point of view, <oo was a nice boy who s"ffere% at the han%s of a tyrannically religio"s family He is
one of many victims pop"lating a boo! whose title, To Kill a Mockingbird, s"ggests the %estr"ction of an innocent being .n fact,
as a sweet, yo"ng chil% apparently %riven ma% by an overbearing father obsesse% with sin an% retrib"tion, <oo epitomi0es the
loss of innocence that the boo!, as a whole, %ramati0es #or the chil%ren, who first treat him as a s"perstition an% an ob1ect of
ri%ic"le b"t later come to view him as a h"man being, <oo becomes an important benchmar! in their gra%"al %evelopment of a
more sympathetic, mat"re perspective
.n these chapters, the first person other than Attic"s to %isplay a sympathetic attit"%e towar% <oo is Miss Ma"%ie, who, li!e <oo,
emerges as an important character in this section Miss Ma"%ie is one of the boo!&s strongest, most resilient female characters
8ne of the few people in the town who share Attic"s&s sense of 1"stice, she is also $co"t&s closest frien% an% confi%ante among
the local women Attic"s&s wife is %ea%, leaving $co"t with Miss Ma"%ie an% A"nt Ale?an%ra as her principal maternal fig"res
>hereas the latter provi%es a vision of proper womanhoo% an% family pri%e, the former offers $co"t "n%erstan%ing instea% of
critici0ing her for wearing pants an% not being la%yli!e Miss Ma"%ie is a stronger role mo%el for $co"tA she serves as a
conscience for the town&s women, 1"st as Attic"s %oes for the men, an% her sharp tong"e an% honesty ma!e her the opposite of
vapi% gossips li!e $tephanie (rawfor%
Analysis4 Cha-ters ;7<
8riginally portraye% as a frea! an% a l"natic, <oo :a%ley contin"es to gain the sympathy of the chil%ren in these chapters Lee
"ses an elliptical techni@"e in telling <oo&s storyDshe hints an% implies at what is happening witho"t ever showing the rea%er
%irectly 'he rea%er m"st rea% between the linesDinferring, for instance, that it was <oo :a%ley who men%e% 6em&s pants an%
place% the presents in the tree, since $co"t %oes not reali0e that <oo&s han% is at wor! "ntil 6em e?plains things to Attic"s after
the fire
.n comparison to $co"t&s still very chil%ish perspective, 6em&s more mat"re "n%erstan%ing of the worl% is evi%ent here, along
with his strong sense of 1"stice >hen Nathan :a%ley pl"gs "p the hole in the tree, $co"t is %isappointe% b"t har%ly
heartbro!en, seeing it as merely the en% of their presents 6em, on the other han%, is bro"ght to tears, beca"se he grasps that
<oo&s brother has %one something cr"elA he has %eprive% <oo of his connection to the wi%er worl% an% has bro!en "p his
brother&s attempt at frien%ship 'his inci%ent, which the rea%er m"st %etect behin% the scenes of $co"t&s narrative, plays into the
novel&s broa% theme of s"ffering innocence, an% 6em&s anger at this in1"stice foresha%ows his later f"ry concerning 'om
:obinson&s trial >hile $co"t retains her innocence an% optimism thro"gho"t the boo!, 6em "n%ergoes severe %isill"sionment
as part of his *growing "p,, an% the <oo :a%ley inci%ent in this chapter is an important early step towar% that %isill"sionment
'he implicit comparison between <oo&s soap fig"res an% 6em an% $co"t&s snowman reveals the %ifference in how each party
interacts with others >hereas <oo carves his fig"res o"t of a %esire to connect with the two !i%s, 6em an% $co"t craft their
snowman o"t of a %isli!e for Mr Avery #"rther, <oo %oesn&t ma!e his carvings for himselfB rather, he offers them as presents
6em an% $co"t, on the other han%, ma!e the snowman p"rely for their own en1oyment <oo interacts with others on their terms,
while the chil%ren, not yet mat"re, interact with others on their own terms
(ritic (la"%ia )"rst 6ohnson has arg"e% that To Kill a Mockingbird contains many 7othic elements, from the legen%s an%
secrets s"rro"n%ing <oo :a%ley to )ill&s imaginative stories an% the chil%ren&s s"perstitions 'he "nseasonable snow an% the
fire at Miss Ma"%ie&s, as well as the later appearance of a ma% %og, can be seen as contrib"ting to a sense of s"pernat"ral
forebo%ing lea%ing "p to the in1"stice that perva%es 'om :obinson&s trial 'his interpretation, however, is balance% by the fact
that both the snow an% the fire bring o"t the best in peopleDschool is cancele%, $co"t an% 6em b"il% a fine snowman, the
neighbors help save Miss Ma"%ie&s belongings, an% Miss Ma"%ie perseveres after her ho"se is %estroye% 9ven when she sees
her pri0e flowers r"ine%, the brave ol% woman %oes not %espairB instea%, she offers a cheerf"l comment abo"t wanting a smaller
ho"se an% a larger gar%en 'his interweaving of %ramatic, 7othic atmospherics an% goo%2hearte% small2town val"es
epitomi0es To Kill a Mockingbird an% mirrors the novel&s main theme .n a worl% in which innocence is threatene% by in1"stice,
cr"elty, pre1"%ice, an% hatre%, goo%ness can prevail in the form of sympathy, "n%erstan%ing, an% common sense, as evi%ence%
by how the townspeople&s affectionate willingness to help one another enables them to overcome the intr"sion of these 7othic
elements into their simple small2town lives
Analysis4 Cha-ters =755
'he fire in which the previo"s section c"lminate% represents an important t"rning point in the narrative str"ct"re of To Kill a
Mockingbird <efore the fire, the novel centers on $co"t&s chil%hoo% worl%, the games that she plays with 6em an% )ill, an% their
chil%hoo% s"perstitions abo"t <oo :a%ley After the fire, <oo :a%ley an% chil%hoo% p"rs"its begin to retreat from the story, an%
the %rama of the trial ta!es over 'his shift begins the novel&s gra%"al %ramati0ation of the loss2of2innocence theme, as a%"lt
problems an% concerns begin %isr"pting the happy worl% of the #inch chil%ren
'he occasion for the a%"lt worl% to intr"%e on $co"t&s life is the trial of 'om :obinson <eca"se :obinson is a blac! man
acc"se% of raping a white woman, the white resi%ents of Maycomb are f"rio"s that Attic"s, the town&s best lawyer, wo"l%
choose to help his ca"se 'he townspeople are "nwilling to limit their %isplays of anger to Attic"s himselfB $co"t an% 6em
become targets as well 'he town of Maycomb, whose inhabitants have been presente% th"s far in a largely positive light,
s"%%enly t"rns against the #inches, as the "gly, racist "n%erbelly of $o"thern life e?poses itself 9ven members of Attic"s&s own
familyDAle?an%ra an% her obno?io"s gran%sonDcon%emn his %ecision to %efen% 'om :obinson (hapter 9 mar!s Ale?an%ra&s
first appearance in the story, an% her portrayal is mostly negativeB only later will she %evelop into a sympathetic character
'he a%versity face% by the family reveals Attic"s&s parenting style, his foc"s on instilling moral val"es in 6em an% $co"t
+artic"larly important to Attic"s are 1"stice, restraint, an% honesty He tells his chil%ren to avoi% getting in fights, even if they are
verbally ab"se%, an% to practice @"iet co"rage instea% >hen he gives 6em an% $co"t air rifles as presents, he a%vises them
that it is a sin to !ill a moc!ingbir% 'his i%ea is, of co"rse, the so"rce of the novel&s title, an% it reflects the boo!&s preocc"pation
with in1"stices inflicte% "pon innocents .n %ifferent ways, 6em an% $co"t, <oo :a%ley, an% 'om :obinson are all
*moc!ingbir%s,
'he inci%ent with the ma% %og %emonstrates Attic"s&s co"rage an% symboli0es the town&s %epen%ence "pon his protection from
both the rabi% animal an% the worst evil within themselves 'hat $co"t, in partic"lar, is so impresse% with the masc"line
prowess with which she associates his mar!smanship symboli0es how m"ch she has to learn abo"t co"rage #or, in Attic"s&s
min%, tr"e bravery has nothing to %o with weapons 'he s"bse@"ent events s"rro"n%ing Mrs )"bose give him an opport"nity to
show 6em what he consi%ers real co"rage Mrs )"bose, in many ways, represents everything wrong with MaycombA she is
"nforgivably racist, raining c"rses on the chil%ren an% %enigrating Attic"s for representing a blac! man -et the %ar!ness in her
is balance% by her bravery an% %etermination, an% 1"st as Attic"s loves Maycomb %espite its flaws, he respects Mrs )"bose for
possessing *real co"rage,, which he e?plains as *when yo" !now yo"&re lic!e% before yo" begin b"t yo" begin anyway an% yo"
see it thro"gh no matter what, 'his attit"%e, of co"rse, fittingly %escribes Attic"s&s approach to the 'om :obinson case Attic"s
p"ts into practice every moral i%ea that he espo"ses, which is the !ey to his importance in Maycomb an% his heroism in the
novel
'he camellia that Mrs )"bose leaves 6em constit"tes a %istillation of what Attic"s consi%ers her essential goo%ness $he has
slo"ghe% off her mortal persona, one that is racist an% irritable, an% the whiteness of the flower symboli0es the p"rity of so"l that
Attic"s attrib"tes to everyone 6em&s initial re1ection of the gift symboli0es his inability to see this goo%ness Altho"gh Mrs
)"bose&s gest"re seems to imply an appreciation of 6em, 6em has not yet mat"re% eno"gh to reali0e that goo% an% evil can
coe?ist within the same personB he th"s remains "nwilling to accept that Mrs )"bose co"l% represent anything goo%
+art 'wo
Analysis4 Cha-ters 56758
)ill&s absence from Maycomb coinci%es appropriately with the contin"e% encroachment of the a%"lt worl% "pon $co"t&s
chil%hoo%, as )ill has represente% the perspective of chil%hoo% thro"gho"t the novel $co"t&s 1o"rney to (alp"rnia&s ch"rch is
the rea%er&s first glimpse of the blac! comm"nity in Maycomb, which is portraye% in an overwhelmingly positive light An air of
%esperate poverty hangs over the ch"rchDthe b"il%ing is "npainte%, they cannot affor% hymnals, an% the congregation is
illiterateDyet the a%versity seems to bring the people closer together an% creates a stronger sense of comm"nity than is fo"n%
in $co"t&s own ch"rch 'he %evotion of the blac! ch"rch contrasts star!ly with the hypocrisy of the white la%ies& missionary circle
that $co"t atten%s in (hapter 2H 'here, one of the missionary la%ies, Mrs Merriweather, bemoans the plight of the oppresse%
in%igeno"s people of Africa at the same time that she complains abo"t how moo%y Maycomb&s blac!s are
.n a%%ition, Lee intro%"ces the blac! comm"nity at a cr"cial moment in the narrativeD1"st as race relations in Maycomb are
thrown into crisis by the trial of 'om :obinson <y emphasi0ing the goo%ness an% soli%arity of the blac! comm"nity, Lee casts
the racism rampant among Maycomb&s whites in an e?tremely harsh an% "gly light 8ne of the main moral themes of the novel
is that of sympathy an% "n%erstan%ing, Attic"s&s tenet that $co"t sho"l% always try to p"t herself in someone else&s shoes
before she 1"%ges them Lee enables "s to i%entify with the blac! comm"nity in a way that ma!es the townspeople&s
"nwillingness to %o so seem mean2spirite% an% st"bborn $imply beca"se of their racial pre1"%ice, the townspeople are
prepare% to accept the wor% of the cr"el, ignorant <ob 9well over that of a %ecent blac! man .f the novel&s main theme involves
the threat that evil an% hatre% pose to innocence an% goo%ness, it becomes clear that ignorant, "nsympathetic racial pre1"%ice
will be the pre%ominant incarnation of evil an% hatre%, as the chil%hoo% innocence of $co"t an% 6em is thrown into crisis by the
circ"mstances of the trial
'he visit to the ch"rch brings (alp"rnia to center stage in the novel Her character serves as the bri%ge between two worl%s,
an% the rea%er %evelops a sense of her %o"ble life, which is split between the #inch ho"sehol% an% the blac! comm"nity >hen
she goes to ch"rch, her lang"age changesB she spea!s in a *colore%, %ialect rather than the proper, precise lang"age that she
"ses in Attic"s&s ho"sehol% 6em as!s her why, an% she e?plains that the ch"rchgoers wo"l% thin! she was *p"ttin& on airs fit to
beat Moses, if she spo!e *white, in ch"rch 'his speech %emonstrates the g"lf between blac!s an% whites in MaycombA not only
%o class %istinctions an% bigotry %ivi%e the two races, b"t lang"age %oes as well
A"nt Ale?an%ra, meanwhile, ta!es over the #inch ho"sehol% an% imposes her vision of social or%er >ith her rigi% notions of
class an% her habit of %eclaring what&s best for the family, she nat"rally clashes with (alp"rnia, whose presence she %eems
"nnecessary, an% $co"t, who wants no part of what her a"nt representsDnamely, respectable $o"thern womanhoo% 'he
rea%er may si%e with $co"t at this 1"nct"re an% consi%er A"nt Ale?an%ra infle?ible an% narrow2min%e%, b"t ;li!e most of the
boo!&s characters= she has many re%eeming @"alities $he may not have her brother&s fierce yearning for 1"stice or his
parenting abilities, b"t her eagerness to rear 6em an% $co"t properly an% her pri%e in the #inch name %emonstrate that she
cares %eeply abo"t her family
Analysis4 Cha-ters 5975>
.f A"nt Ale?an%ra embo%ies the r"les an% c"stoms of the a%"lt worl%, then the reappearance of )ill at this 1"nct"re offers $co"t
an opport"nity to flee, at least for a short time, bac! into the comforts of chil%hoo% However, )ill&s ret"rn also emphasi0es the
growing g"lf in %evelopment between $co"t an% 6em .n the previo"s section, we saw the twelve2year2ol% 6em in%ignantly
"rging $co"t to act more li!e a girl, in%icating his growing awareness of a%"lt social roles an% e?pectations Here again, 6em
proves clearly too ol% for the chil%hoo% soli%arity that )ill&s presence recalls $co"t relates that, "pon seeing )ill "n%er the be%,
6em *rose an% bro!e the remaining co%e of o"r chil%hoo%, by telling Attic"s 'o $co"t, this act ma!es 6em a *traitor,, tho"gh it is
really an act of responsibility that mar!s 6em&s mat"ration towar% a%"lthoo%
)ill&s acco"nt of his family tro"bles remin%s both $co"t an% the rea%er of the #inch ho"sehol%&s goo% fort"ne Attic"s is a
won%erf"l father, an% A"nt Ale?an%ra&s fa"lts res"lt from caring too m"ch rather than too little )ill&s parents have treate% him
with apathy an% %isregar%, perhaps the greatest offense a parent can commit
As $co"t %"ly notes, the worl% of chil%hoo% f"n that )ill represents can no longer stave off the a%"lt reality of hatre% an%
"nfairness that 6em fin%s himself entering >hereas, two years before, the #inch chil%ren&s lives were %ominate% by games an%
frien%ship with )ill, their lives now foc"s on the a%"lt worl% of 'om :obinson&s trial 'he now mat"re 6em lea%s $co"t an% )ill
into town on the night that Attic"s faces the lynch mob $ymbolically, this scene mar!s 6em&s transition from boy to man, as he
stan%s besi%e Attic"s an% ref"ses to *go home,, since only a chil% wo"l% %o so 'ho"gh he %isobeys his father, he %oes so not
pet"lantly b"t mat"rely He "n%erstan%s Attic"s&s %iffic"lt sit"ation with regar% to the case an% conse@"ently fears for Attic"s&s
safety Nevertheless, the confrontation is %ominate% by $co"t&s innocence, still s"fficiently intact that she can chat with Mr
("nningham abo"t his son %espite being s"rro"n%e% by a hostile lynch mob
$ome critics fin% $co"t&s performance an% the %ispersal of the mob in this scene "nconvincing an% pat, won%ering how $co"t
can remain so blissf"lly "naware of what is really going on an% how Mr ("nningham can be pers"a%e% by $co"t&s $o"thern
co"rtesy to brea! "p the %r"n!en posse >ithin the moral "niverse of To Kill a Mockingbird, the behavior of both characters
ma!es perfect sense As befits her innocence, $co"t remains convince% of other people&s essential goo%ness, a conviction that
the novel shares :ather than mar!ing them as inherently evil, the mob members& racism only shro"%s their h"manity, their
worthiness, an% their essential goo%ness $co"t&s attempt at politeness ma!es Mr ("nningham reali0e her essential goo%ness,
an% he respon%s with civility an% !in%ness As Attic"s says later, the events of that night prove that *a gang of wil% animals can
be stoppe%, simply beca"se they&re still h"man,
Analysis4 Cha-ters 5:75;
'he trial is the most gripping, an% in some ways the most important, %ramatic se@"ence in To Kill a MockingbirdB the testimony
an% %eliberations cover abo"t five chapters with almost no %igression ;A%%itionally, the co"rtroom scene, with Attic"s pic!ing
apart the 9wells as the whole town watches, is the most cinematic portion of the narrative, an% it is the centerpiece of the 1962
film version of the novel= 'ho"gh the trial targets 'om :obinson, in another sense it is Maycomb that is on trial, an% while
Attic"s event"ally loses the co"rt case, he s"ccessf"lly reveals the in1"stice of a stratifie% society that confines blac!s to the
*colore% balcony, an% allows the wor% of a %espicable, ignorant man li!e <ob 9well to prevail witho"t @"estion over the wor% of
a man who happens to be blac! .n the trial con%"cte% in the co"rtroom, Attic"s loses .n the trial con%"cte% in the min% of the
rea%er, it is the white comm"nity, wallowing in pre1"%ice an% hatre%, that loses
.t is fitting that the chil%ren en% "p sitting in the *colore% section, of the co"rtho"se, 1"st as it is fitting that Miss Ma"%ie ref"ses to
atten% the trial All three lac! the racism that the crow% of white faces in the co"rtroom propagates 6em, $co"t, an% )ill are
segregate% even from the other chil%ren, who have ta"nte% 6em an% $co"t with cries of *nigger2lover, in the schoolyar%
'hat the trial scene creates s"ch an atmosphere of s"spense is testimony to the a"thor&s s!ill, beca"se there is no real
s"spenseB even Attic"s !nows that the ver%ict is a foregone concl"sion No matter what evi%ence is presente% at the trial, the
racist 1"ry wo"l% never, "n%er any circ"mstances, ac@"it a blac! man acc"se% of raping a white woman 'he rea%er !nows that
'om :obinson will be fo"n% g"ilty, so Lee locates the tension an% s"spense elsewhereDin Attic"s&s slow b"t stea%y
%ismantling of the prosec"tion&s case 6em, still clinging to his yo"thf"l ill"sions abo"t life wor!ing accor%ing to concepts of
fairness, %oesn&t "n%erstan% that his father&s brilliant efforts will be in vain He believes that the irref"table implications of the
evi%ence will clinch the case for Attic"s >hen 6em says, *>e&ve got him,, after <ob 9well is shown to be left2han%e%, the
rea%er !nows better Attic"s, li!e Mrs )"bose in her battle with morphine, is *lic!e%, before he begins
<ob 9well&s real name is :obert 9 Lee 9well, a moni!er that lin!s him with the $o"th&s past an% ma!es him abs"r% by
comparison with his namesa!e, 7eneral :obert 9 Lee, who fo"ght valiantly for the (onfe%eracy in the (ivil >ar %espite his
opposition to slavery .f :obert 9 Lee represents the i%eali0e% $o"th, then <ob 9well epitomi0es its %ar!er an% less respectable
si%e, %ominate% by tho"ghtless pre1"%ice, s@"alor, an% meanness Attic"s&s a%monition to $co"t that she sho"l% increase her
tolerance by stepping insi%e other people&s shoes %oes not apply to <ob 9well >hen Attic"s tries to %o so later, he only
"n%erestimates the %epth of this little man&s wic!e%ness 'he irony, of co"rse, is that <ob 9well is completely "nimportantB he is
an arrogant, la0y, ab"sive fool, la"ghe% at by his fellow townsfol! -et in the racist worl% of Maycomb, sa%ly, even he has the
power to %estroy an innocent manDperhaps the novel&s most tragic e?ample of the threat pose% to innocence by evil
Analysis4 Cha-ters 5<75=
Mayella 9well is pitiable, an% her miserable e?istence almost allows her to 1oin the novel&s para%e of innocent victimsDshe, too,
is a !in% of moc!ingbir%, in1"re% beyon% repair by the forces of "gliness, poverty, an% hatre% that s"rro"n% her Lee&s
presentation of Mayella emphasi0es her role as victimDher father beats her an% possibly molests her, while she has to %eal
with her "nhelpf"l siblings $he has lac!e% !in% treatment in her life to s"ch an e?tent that when Attic"s calls her Miss Mayella,
she acc"ses him of ma!ing f"n of her $he has no frien%s, an% $co"t seems 1"stifie% in thin!ing that she *m"st have been the
loneliest person in the worl%, 8n the other han%, tho"gh, $co"t&s pict"re of Mayella as a victim is marre% by her attempt to
become a victimi0er, to %estroy 'om :obinson in or%er to cover her shame >e can have little real sympathy for Mayella 9well
Dwhatever her s"fferings, she inflicts worse cr"elty on others Cnli!e Mr ("nningham, who, in (hapter 13, is to"che% eno"gh
by $co"t&s h"man warmth to %isperse the lynch mob, Mayella respon%s to Attic"s&s polite interrogation with gro"chy snarls
+ity m"st be reserve% for 'om :obinson, whose honesty an% goo%ness ren%er him s"premely moral Cnli!e the 9wells, 'om is
har%wor!ing an% honest an% has eno"gh compassion to ma!e the fatal mista!e of feeling sorry for Mayella 9well His story is
the tr"e version of eventsA beca"se of both 'om&s obvio"sly tr"thf"l nat"re an% Attic"s&s brilliant an% morally scathing
@"estioning of the 9wells, the story leaves no room for %o"bt A n"mber of critics have ob1ecte% that the facts of the case are
crafte% to beDno p"n inten%e%Dtoo blac! an% white <"t, as Attic"s&s awareness of his %efeat as a foregone concl"sion
s"ggests, Lee was not intereste% in the believability of the trial 'he e?aggerate% %emarcation between goo% an% ba% ren%ers
the trial more important for its symbolic portrayal of the %estr"ction of an innocent by evil As clear as it is that 'om is innocent, it
is e@"ally clear that 'om is %oome% to %ie
Lin! )eas represents the %iametric opposite of pre1"%ice 'he fact that 'om is blac! %oesn&t factor into )eas&s assessment of
himB rather, he is partic"larly conscientio"s abo"t scr"tini0ing 'om only in respect to his in%ivi%"al character However, 1"st as
the co"rt ref"ses to accept the "n%eniable implications of the evi%ence that Attic"s presents, so too %oes it ref"se to accept the
implications of )eas&s vali%ation of 'om&s character 'he 1"%ge e?pels )eas beca"se his inter1ection %"ring the procee%ings
threatens the integrity of the formal manner in which co"rt procee%ings are r"nB the grim irony, of co"rse, is that the blatant
pre1"%ice of the trial %oes so as well, tho"gh the 1"%ge %oes nothing to alleviate this pre1"%ice
'he rea%er is spare% m"ch of Mr 7ilmer&s harsh cross2e?amination of 'om when )ill&s crying ta!es $co"t o"t of the co"rtroom
)ill is still a chil%, an% he respon%s to wic!e%ness with tears, m"ch as the rea%er respon%s to Mr 7ilmer&s "nabashe% pre1"%ice
with %isg"st 'he small sample of his cross2e?amination that $co"t an% the rea%er %o hear is eno"gh (alling 'om *boy, an%
acc"sing him at every t"rn, the racist Mr 7ilmer believes that 'om m"st be lying, m"st be violent, m"st l"st after white women
Dsimply beca"se he is blac!
Analysis4 Cha-ters 6?766
.t is easy to critici0e Mr )olph"s :aymon% as an "nreal, saccharinely nonracist character .n%ee%, in a temporal an%
geographical setting in which the white comm"nity as a whole has so little sympathy for blac!s, :aymon% is not only anomalo"s
b"t also somewhat prepostero"sDit seems that even the righteo"s an% morally "pstan%ing Attic"s might view :aymon% as
having breache% accepte% notions of social propriety 'he importance of :aymon%&s character, however, lies in the nat"re of his
preference for blac!s :aymon% never e?plains precisely why he prefers blac!sDhe 1"st %oesB similarly, the white comm"nity
never e?plains why it hates blac!sDit 1"st %oes 'he %ifference between these two ingraine% attit"%es, however, is that whereas
the white comm"nity imposes its preferences "napologetically on the whole of Maycomb, :aymon% acts on his preferences
solely beca"se he wants to live that way, not beca"se he wants to %ictate how others sho"l% live
Mr :aymon%&s presence o"tsi%e the co"rtroom is fittingA li!e Miss Ma"%ie, he %oes not belong insi%e with the rest of the white
people, beca"se he %oes not share their g"ilt Mr :aymon% is a harsh realist, an% while he shares 6em&s o"trage, he is too ol%
to cry .n a way, Mr :aymon% is another ill"stration of an innocent %estroye% by hatre% an% pre1"%iceA a moral an%
conscientio"s man, he is also an "nhappy fig"re, a goo% man who has t"rne% cynical an% lost hope after witnessing too m"ch
evil in the worl% *-o" haven&t seen eno"gh of the worl% yet,, he tells $co"t, commenting on how special an% goo% her father is,
an% her innocent belief in h"man goo%ness *-o" haven&t even seen this town, b"t all yo" gotta %o is step bac! insi%e the
co"rtho"se,
>hereas Mr :aymon% believes that Maycomb&s racist si%e is the real Maycomb, Attic"s, less embittere%, seems to hol% o"t
hope for the townDsignificantly, his elo@"ent closing arg"ment is %evoi% of %espair :ather, he spea!s to the 1"ry with
confi%ence an% %ignity, "rging them to fin% confi%ence an% %ignity within themselves 'ho"gh To Kill a Mockingbird %ramati0es
the threat pose% to goo%ness by evil, an% tho"gh it fre@"ently treats this theme by e?ploring the %estr"ction of innocence, the
novel&s "ltimate moral o"tloo! is not blea!B rather, it is characteri0e% by Attic"s&s wise "n%erstan%ing of both the goo%ness an%
the ba%ness within people Moral iss"es within the novel are often blac! an% white, with a clear goo% si%e an% a clear evil si%e,
b"t the novel&s concl"sion abo"t h"manity is not so simple 8n the contrary, Attic"s "n%erstan%s that people are capable of
great goo%ness an% great evil, which proves the !ey to his own a%mirable moral strength Cnli!e the chil%ren&s o"tloo!, Attic"s&s
"n%erstan%ing of the worl% is not innocentA he %oes not believe in goo%ness simply beca"se he has never seen evil He has
in%ee% seen an% e?perience% evil, b"t he is nevertheless capable of faith in the goo% @"alities of h"man!in% 'his faith
represents the a%"lt perspective towar% which $co"t, who begins the novel as an innocent chil%, is force% to move as the story
progresses Altho"gh the 1"ry stri!es a blow for pre1"%ice by convicting 'om, it is still possible for the town&s morally
"nblemishe% a%"lt characters to hol% o"t hope 9ven after the ver%ict has been han%e% %own, there is a sense that progress
has been ma%eA as Miss Ma"%ie p"ts it, the town has ta!en *a stepDit&s 1"st a baby2step, b"t it&s a step,
6em, however, is not able to see things this way $co"t is bewil%ere% by the ver%ict, b"t, li!e Attic"s, she is resilient an% retains
her positive view of the worl% Her brother is cr"she%A his %early hel% ill"sions abo"t 1"stice an% the law have been shattere% .n
a way, 6em, li!e 'om :obinson, is a moc!ingbir% >hile the 9wells an% the forces of hatre% an% pre1"%ice %o not ta!e his life,
they %o strip him of his chil%hoo% an% yo"thf"l i%ealism
Analysis4 Cha-ters 6876>
>hen he reass"res his family that <ob 9well %oes not really inten% to harm him, Attic"s a%vises 6em to stan% in <ob 9well&s
shoes, echoing the a%vice that he gives $co"t earlier in the novel an% evo!ing one of the most important moral themes in the
boo! Here, however, Attic"s&s attempt to "n%erstan% another h"man falls shortA he ma!es an honest mista!e in his analysis by
failing to "n%erstan% the %epth of 9well&s anger towar% him A"nt Ale?an%ra is more insightf"l, maintaining that a man li!e 9well
will %o anything to get revenge Altho"gh her comments seem typical of her ten%ency to stereotype *those people, who are
%ifferent from the #inches, her analysis of 9well proves correct #or all her fa"lts, A"nt Ale?an%ra gains, by way of her
stereotypes, a basically reliable "n%erstan%ing of the people of Maycomb
<oth 6em an% $co"t are force% to face the a%"lt worl% in these chapters to an "nprece%ente% %egree .n fact, 6em is act"ally
beginning to enter the a%"lt worl%, showing $co"t his chest hair an% contemplating trying o"t for football 6em an% Attic"s
%isc"ss the 1"%icial system in Maycomb (o"nty for m"ch of (hapter 2/ 'heir conversation is an e%"cation for 6em in the
realities not only of the 1"ry system b"t also of life Attic"s&s revelation that the ("nningham on the 1"ry wante% to ac@"it 'om
presents 6em with a remar!able instance of an "ne%"cate% white man being able to see beyon% his ingraine% racial pre1"%iceD
a f"rther in%ication that the a%"lt worl% is comple? rather than blac! an% white, as is the worl% of chil%ren
$co"t, meanwhile, moves closer to the a%"lt worl% by %rawing closer to Ale?an%ra Ale?an%ra&s ref"sal to have the lowly >alter
("nningham to %inner p"ts her at o%%s with 6em an% $co"t, provi%ing them with another opport"nity to %eri%e Maycomb&s
l"%icro"sly irrational social hierarchy <"t the missionary tea party reveals Ale?an%ra&s better si%e 'he scene brilliantly portrays
the hypocrisy of the Maycomb la%ies *Mrs Merriweather&s large brown eyes always fille% "p with tears when she consi%ere%
the oppresse% Fin AfricaG,, $co"t notes, yet the same woman can complain that *there&s nothing more %istracting than a s"l!y
%ar!y, .n the wa!e of hearing of 'om :obinson&s tragic %eath, however, the tea party becomes an opport"nity for the #inch
women to %isplay moral co"rage by maintaining a p"blic faca%e of compos"re Mr Cn%erwoo% li!ens 'om&s %eath to *the
senseless sla"ghter of songbir%s,, an obvio"s reference to the novel&s title .n this moment, Ale?an%ra an% $co"t stan% together
as finches, as harmless as moc!ingbir%s, force% to bear the white comm"nity&s "tter %isregar% of 1"stice
>hereas 6em embraces entrance into the a%"lt worl%, $co"t seems rel"ctant abo"t it 6em pro"%ly shows $co"t his chest hair
as a mar! of his emergence into manhoo% $co"t&s ba%ge of incipient womanhoo%, the %ress that she wears to the missionary
circle meeting, %oesn&t s"it herB she wears her "s"al tomboy tro"sers "n%erneath A%%itionally, whereas 6em intently %isc"sses
aspects of the complicate% legal system with Attic"s, Miss $tephanie teases the yo"ng $co"t abo"t growing "p to be a lawyer
'his %ifference in mat"rity between 6em an% $co"t manifests itself in the inci%ent with the roly2poly b"g >ishing to with%raw
bac! into the chil%hoo% worl% of actions witho"t abstract significance, $co"t moves to cr"sh the b"g 6em, now sensitive to the
v"lnerability of those who are oppresse%, "rges her to leave the %efenseless b"g alone
Analysis4 Cha-ters 6:76;
'hese short chapters are mar!e% by a moo% of mo"nting mischief lace% with a growing sense of real %anger 'hey begin with a
reference to the :a%ley +lace, the so"rce of chil%hoo% terror that no longer scares 6em an% $co"tD*<oo :a%ley was the least
of o"r fears,, $co"t comments 'he %issipation of 6em an% $co"t&s yo"thf"l fear of <oo reflects how the trial has har%ene% them
an% how, in the wa!e of the trial&s in1"stice an% <ob 9well&s threats, the chil%ren have become increasingly mire% in the more
serio"s concerns of the a%"lt worl% 'he :a%ley +lace is part of the past now 'he a"ra of scariness attache% to the name *<oo,
has %issolve% into c"riosity, perhaps even into fon%ness As 6em an% $co"t gain a greater "n%erstan%ing of <oo, he seems less
li!e a town frea! to them an% more, in a strange way, li!e a pet or a plaything $co"t still e?presses a wish to see <oo some%ay,
an% she remembers fon%ly the near enco"nters with <oo %"ring s"mmers past 'hese memories restore <oo :a%ley to the
rea%er&s conscio"sness, which has been occ"pie% with the trial for most of +art 'wo, thereby foresha%owing <oo&s appearance
a few chapters later
Meanwhile, the aftereffects of the trial contin"e to loom, an% 6em an% $co"t&s fa%ing fear of <oo accent"ates the real %anger
that <ob 9well&s vario"s attempts at revenge present <ob 9well shows himself to be sinister, an% the fact that he has not yet
attempte% anything against the #inches only increases the sense of forebo%ing Attic"s remains confi%ent in his own safety, b"t
this confi%ence begins to seem li!e wishf"l thin!ing .n fact, rather than offer f"rther thematic commentary, Lee %evotes a great
part of these chapters to b"il%ing tension an% s"spense by foc"sing on the "npre%ictable threat that <ob 9well poses 'he
mis%ee%s of the previo"s Halloween, which lea% to the i%ea of a Halloween play this year, hint again at the %amage ca"se% by
those who act witho"t conscience
Meanwhile, the inci%ent involving Miss 7ates reveals the e?tent to which 6em remains affecte% by the trial )espite the grim
e?perience of the trial, $co"t retains her faith in the basic goo%ness of others, an% th"s her teacher&s obvio"s hypocrisy
conf"ses her 6em, meanwhile, has become %isill"sione%, an% when $co"t tries to tal! to him abo"t Miss 7ates, he sh"ts
himself off from the painf"l memory of the trial <ob 9well&s threats are not the only %ar! clo"% hanging over the #inch
ho"sehol% in this sectionA the in1"stice of the trial has change% 6em irrevocably
Analysis4 Cha-ters 6<785
Lee fills the night of the pageant with elements of foresha%owing, from the sense of forebo%ing that grips A"nt Ale?an%ra 1"st
before 6em an% $co"t leave the ho"se, to the omino"s, pitch2%ar! night to (ecil 6acobs&s attempt to scare them 'he pageant
itself is an am"sing %epiction of small2town pri%e, as the la%y in charge spen%s thirty min"tes %escribing the e?ploits of (olonel
Maycomb, the town&s fo"n%er, to the a"%ience A%%itionally, the rea%er can vis"ali0e the comical para%e of meats an%
vegetables crossing the stage, with $co"t, 1"st awa!e, h"rrying after them as the a"%ience roars with la"ghter .n this way, as
with the early snowfall, the fire, an% the ma% %og, the night of the pageant incorporates both the 7othic motif of the novel an%
the motif of small2town life that co"nterbalances it
A moo% of mo"nting s"spense mar!s 6em an% $co"t&s wal! home 'hey hear the noise of their p"rs"er an% ass"me it to be
(ecil 6acobs, only to reali0e relatively @"ic!ly that they are in mortal %anger 'he attac! is all the more terrifying beca"se 6em
an% $co"t are v"lnerableA they are very near their home, in an area that they ass"me to be safe, an% $co"t, in her aw!war%
cost"me, has no i%ea what is happening 'ho"gh Lee has spent a great %eal of time foresha%owing 9well&s impen%ing attac! on
the #inches, she manages to ma!e the scene of the attac! s"rprising All of the cl"es in the novel to this point have s"ggeste%
that 9well wo"l% attac! Attic"s, not the chil%ren <"t, as we reali0e in this scene, the cowar%ly 9well wo"l% never have the
co"rage to attac! the best shot in Maycomb (o"ntyB his insi%io"s, malicio"s attac! on the chil%ren reveals how loathsome a
man he is .n this way, Lee&s %iversionary techni@"e of lea%ing the rea%er to s"spect that Attic"s wo"l% be 9well&s victim ma!es
this scene sim"ltaneo"sly startling for the rea%er an% revealing of character
<oo :a%ley&s entrance ta!es place in the thic! of the sc"ffle, an% $co"t %oes not reali0e that her recl"sive neighbor has save%
them "ntil she has reache% homeB even then, she ass"mes him to be *some co"ntryman, 'his fail"re of recognition symboli0es
the inability of $co"t an% the other chil%ren, thro"gho"t the novel, to see <oo as a h"man being, treating him instea% as merely
a so"rce of chil%hoo% ghost stories As his name s"ggests, <oo is a sort of ghost, b"t this con%ition has less to %o with his
appearance o"t of nowhere on Halloween than with $co"t&s hollow "n%erstan%ing of him >hen $co"t finally reali0es who has
save% her, however, <oo the chil%hoo% phantom becomes <oo the h"man beingA *His lips parte% into a timi% smile, an% o"r
neighbor&s image bl"rre% with my s"%%en tears IHey, <oo,& . sai%, >ith this sentence, $co"t ta!es the first of two large steps in
this section towar% completing the %evelopment of her character an% ass"ming the grown2"p moral perspective that Attic"s has
shown her thro"gho"t the boo!
Hec! 'ate&s %ecision to spare <oo the horror of p"blicity by saying that <ob 9well fell on his !nife invo!es the title of the boo!
an% its central theme one last time, as $co"t says that e?posing <oo to the p"blic eye wo"l% be *sort of li!e shootin& a
moc!ingbir%, $he has appropriate% not only Attic"s&s wor%s b"t also his o"tloo!, as she s"%%enly sees the worl% thro"gh <oo&s
eyes .n this moment of "n%erstan%ing an% sympathy, $co"t ta!es her secon% great step towar% a grown2"p moral perspective
'he rea%er gets the sense that all of $co"t&s previo"s e?periences have le% her to this enriching moment an% that $co"t will be
able to grow "p witho"t having her e?perience of evil %estroy her faith in goo%ness Not only has <oo become a real person to
her, b"t in saving the chil%ren&s lives he has also provi%e% concrete proof that goo%ness e?ists in powerf"l an% "ne?pecte%
forms, 1"st as evil %oes
)espite $co"t&s obvio"s mat"ration in (hapter /1, the novel closes with her falling asleep as Attic"s rea%s to her 'his en%"ring
image of her as Attic"s&s baby chil% is fittingDwhile she has grown "p @"ite a bit over the co"rse of the novel, she is still, after
all, only eight years ol% 6"st as her ham cost"me, a symbol of the silly an% carefree nat"re of chil%hoo%, prevents <ob 9well&s
!nife from in1"ring her, so %oes the timely intervention of <oo, another part of $co"t&s chil%hoo%, thwart the total intr"sion into
her life of the often hate2fille% a%"lt worl% that 9well represents .nterestingly, the boo! ma!es no ret"rn to the a%"lt $co"t for
closing narration, an% Lee offers the rea%er no %etails of $co"t&s f"t"re e?cept that she never sees <oo again :ather, she
leaves $co"t an% the rea%er with a powerf"l feeling of ca"tio"s optimismDan ac!nowle%gment that the e?istence of evil is
balance% by faith in the essential goo%ness of h"man!in%
I'-ortant @"otations *x-laine(
1
Maycomb was an old town, but it was a tired old town when I first knew it. In rainy weather the streets turned to red slop . . . [somehow it was
hotter then . . . bony mules hitched to Hoo!er carts flicked flies in the sweltering shade of the li!e oaks on the s"uare. Men#s stiff collars wilted
by nine in the morning. Ladies bathed before noon, after their three$o#clock naps, and by nightfall were like soft teacakes with frostings of sweat
and sweet talcum. . . . There was no hurry, for there was nowhere to go, nothing to buy and no money to buy it with, nothing to see outside the
boundaries of Maycomb %ounty. &ut it was a time of !ague optimism for some of the people' Maycomb %ounty had recently been told that it
had nothing to fear but fear itself.
'his @"otation, from (hapter 1, is $co"t&s intro%"ctory %escription of Maycomb $co"t emphasi0es the slow pace, Alabama heat, an% ol%2
fashione% val"es of the town, in which men wear shirt collars, la%ies "se talc"m pow%er, an% the streets are not pave%, t"rning to *re% slop, in
the rain 'his %escription sit"ates Maycomb in the rea%er&s min% as a sleepy $o"thern townB $co"t even calls it *tire%, .t also sit"ates $co"t with
respect to the narrativeA she writes of the time when she *first !new, Maycomb, in%icating that she embar!s "pon this recollection of her
chil%hoo% m"ch later in life, as an a%"lt 'he %escription also provi%es important cl"es abo"t the story&s chronological settingA in a%%ition to now2
o"t%ate% elements s"ch as m"le2%riven Hoover carts an% %irt roa%s, it also ma!es reference to the wi%esprea% poverty of the town, implying that
Maycomb is in the mi%st of the 7reat )epression
*>e have nothing to fear b"t fear itself, is the most famo"s line from #ran!lin )elano :oosevelt&s first ina"g"ral speech, ma%e after the 19/2
presi%ential election #rom this cl"e, it is reasonable to infer that the action of the story opens in the s"mmer of 19//, an ass"mption that
s"bse@"ent historical cl"es s"pport 'he %efeat of the National :ecovery Act in the $"preme (o"rt in 19/3, for instance, is mentione% in
(hapter 25 of the novel, when $co"t is eightDabo"t two years ol%er than at the start of the novel
2
(ou ne!er really understand a person until you consider things from his point of !iew . . . until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.
'his important snippet of conversation from (hapter / fin%s Attic"s giving $co"t the cr"cial piece of moral a%vice that governs her %evelopment
for the rest of the novel 'he simple wis%om of Attic"s&s wor%s reflects the "ncomplicate% manner in which he g"i%es himself by this sole
principle His ability to relate to his chil%ren is manifeste% in his restatement of this principle in terms that $co"t can "n%erstan% ;*climb into his
s!in an% wal! aro"n% in it,= $co"t str"ggles, with varying %egrees of s"ccess, to p"t Attic"s&s a%vice into practice an% to live with sympathy an%
"n%erstan%ing towar% others At the en% of the boo!, she s"ccee%s in comprehen%ing <oo :a%ley&s perspective, f"lfilling Attic"s&s a%vice in
(hapter / an% provi%ing the novel with an optimistic en%ing %espite the consi%erable %ar!ness of the plot
/
)*emember it#s a sin to kill a mockingbird.+ That was the only time I e!er heard ,tticus say it was a sin to do something, and I asked Miss
Maudie about it.
)(our father#s right,+ she said. )Mockingbirds don#t do one thing but make music for us to en-oy . . . but sing their hearts out for us. That#s why
it#s a sin to kill a mockingbird.+
'hese lines from (hapter 14 are the so"rce of the novel&s title an% intro%"ce one of the !ey metaphors of the boo!A the i%ea of *moc!ingbir%s,
as goo%, innocent people who are %estroye% by evil <oo :a%ley, for instance, is li!e a moc!ingbir%D1"st as moc!ingbir%s %o not harm people
b"t only *sing their hearts o"t for "s,, <oo %oes not harm anyoneB instea%, he leaves 6em an% $co"t presents, covers $co"t with a blan!et
%"ring the fire, an% event"ally saves the chil%ren from <ob 9well )espite the p"reness of his heart, however, <oo has been %amage% by an
ab"sive father 'he connection between songbir%s an% innocents is ma%e e?plicitly several times in the boo!A in (hapter 23, Mr Cn%erwoo%
li!ens 'om :obinson&s %eath to *the senseless sla"ghter of songbir%s by h"nters an% chil%ren,B in (hapter /4, $co"t tells Attic"s that h"rting
<oo :a%ley wo"l% be *sort of li!e shootin& a moc!ingbir%, 'he moral imperative to protect the v"lnerable governs Attic"s&s %ecision to ta!e
'om&s case, 1"st as it lea%s 6em to protect the roly2poly b"g from $co"t&s han%
H
, boy trudged down the sidewalk dragging a fishing pole behind him. , man stood waiting with his hands on his hips. .ummertime, and his
children played in the front yard with their friend, enacting a strange little drama of their own in!ention. It was fall, and his children fought on the
sidewalk in front of Mrs. /ubose#s. . . . 0all, and his children trotted to and fro around the corner, the day#s woes and triumphs on their faces.
They stopped at an oak tree, delighted, pu11led, apprehensi!e. 2inter, and his children shi!ered at the front gate, silhouetted against a bla1ing
house. 2inter, and a man walked into the street, dropped his glasses, and shot a dog. .ummer, and he watched his children#s heart break.
,utumn again, and &oo#s children needed him. ,tticus was right. 3ne time he said you ne!er really know a man until you stand in his shoes and
walk around in them. 4ust standing on the *adley porch was enough.
'his passage from (hapter /1 is $co"t&s e?ercise in thin!ing abo"t the worl% from <oo :a%ley&s perspective After she wal!s him home, $co"t
stan%s on <oo&s porch an% imagines many of the events of the story ;Attic"s shooting the ma% %og, the chil%ren fin%ing <oo&s presents in the
oa! tree= as they m"st have loo!e% to <oo $he at last reali0es the love an% protection that he has silently offere% her an% 6em all along 'he
blossoming of $co"t&s ability to ass"me another person&s perspective sympathetically is the c"lmination of her novel2long %evelopment as a
character an% of To Kill a Mockingbird#s moral o"tloo! as a whole
3
)2hen they finally saw him, why he hadn#t doneany of those things . . . ,tticus, he was real nice. . . .+ His hands were under my chin, pulling up
the co!er, tucking it around me. )Most people are, .cout, when you finally see them.+ He turned out the light and went into 4em#s room. He
would be there all night, and he would be there when 4em waked up in the morning.
'hese wor%s, from (hapter /1, concl"%e the novel As $co"t falls asleep, she is telling Attic"s abo"t the events of The 5ray 5host, a boo! in
which one of the characters is wrongly acc"se% of committing a crime an% is p"rs"e% >hen he is finally ca"ght, however, his innocence is
reveale% As $co"t sleepily e?plains the story to Attic"s, saying that the character was *real nice, when *they finally saw him,, Attic"s gently
notes the tr"th of that observation .n this way, Lee closes the boo! with a s"btle remin%er of the themes of innocence, acc"sation, an% threat
that have r"n thro"gho"t it, p"tting them to rest by again ill"strating the wise moral o"tloo! of Attic"sA if one lives with sympathy an%
"n%erstan%ing, then it is possible to retain faith in h"manity %espite its capacity for evilDto believe that most people are *real nice, A%%itionally,
this passage emphasi0es Attic"s&s strong, loving role as a parent to $co"t an% 6emDhe t"c!s $co"t in, then goes to sit by 6em&s be%si%e all
night long 'hro"gh Attic"s&s strength, the tension an% %anger of the previo"s chapters are resolve%, an% the boo! en%s on a note of sec"rity
an% peace
Key &ats
&/LL TI TL* J To Kill a Mockingbird
A/T,OR J Harper Lee
G*NR* J (oming2of2age storyB social %ramaB co"rtroom %ramaB $o"thern %rama
TI M* AND PLAC* 0RI TT*N J Mi%21934sB New -or! (ity
DAT* O& &I R$T P/BLI CATI ON J 1964
NARRATOR J $co"t narrates the story herself, loo!ing bac! in retrospect an "nspecifie% n"mber of years after the events of the novel ta!e
place
POI NT O& AI *0 J $co"t narrates in the first person, telling what she saw an% hear% at the time an% a"gmenting this narration with
tho"ghts an% assessments of her e?periences in retrospect Altho"gh she is by no means an omniscient narrator, she has mat"re% consi%erably
over the intervening years an% often implicitly an% h"moro"sly comments on the naEvetK she %isplaye% in her tho"ghts an% actions as a yo"ng
girl $co"t mostly tells of her own tho"ghts b"t also %evotes consi%erable time to reco"nting an% analy0ing 6em&s tho"ghts an% actions
TON* J (hil%li!e, h"moro"s, nostalgic, innocentB as the novel progresses, increasingly %ar!, forebo%ing, an% critical of society
T*N$* J +ast
$*TTI NG B TI M*C J 19//L19/3
$*TTI NG B PLAC*C J 'he fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama
PROTAGONI $T J $co"t #inch
MA! OR CON&LI CT J 'he chil%hoo% innocence with which $co"t an% 6em begin the novel is threatene% by n"mero"s inci%ents that
e?pose the evil si%e of h"man nat"re, most notably the g"ilty ver%ict in 'om :obinson&s trial an% the vengef"lness of <ob 9well As the novel
progresses, $co"t an% 6em str"ggle to maintain faith in the h"man capacity for goo% in light of these rec"rring instances of h"man evil
RI $I NG ACTI ON J $co"t, 6em, an% )ill become fascinate% with their mysterio"s neighbor <oo :a%ley an% have an escalating series of
enco"nters with him Meanwhile, Attic"s is assigne% to %efen% a blac! man, 'om :obinson against the sp"rio"s rape charges <ob 9well has
bro"ght against him >atching the trial, $co"t, an% especially 6em, cannot "n%erstan% how a 1"ry co"l% possibly convict 'om :obinson base%
on the 9wells& clearly fabricate% story
CLI MAD J )espite Attic"s&s capable an% impassione% %efense, the 1"ry fin%s 'om :obinson g"ilty 'he ver%ict forces $co"t an% 6em to
confront the fact that the morals Attic"s has ta"ght them cannot always be reconcile% with the reality of the worl% an% the evils of h"man nat"re
&ALLI NG ACTI ON J >hen wor% sprea%s that 'om :obinson has been shot while trying to escape from prison, 6em str"ggles to come to
terms with the in1"stice of the trial an% of 'om :obinson&s fate After ma!ing a variety of threats against Attic"s an% others connecte% with the
trial, <ob 9well assa"lts $co"t an% 6em as they wal! home one night, b"t <oo :a%ley saves the chil%ren an% fatally stabs 9well 'he sheriff,
!nowing that <oo, li!e 'om :obinson, wo"l% be mis"n%erstoo% an% li!ely convicte% in a trial, protects <oo by saying that 9well trippe% an% fell
on his own !nife After sitting an% tal!ing with $co"t briefly, <oo retreats into his ho"se, an% $co"t never sees him again
$EMBOL$ J Moc!ingbir%sB <oo :a%ley
&OR*$,ADO0I NG J 'he 7othic elements of the novel ;the fire, the ma% %og= b"il% tension that s"btly foresha%ows 'om :obinson&s trial
an% tragic %eathB <"rris 9well&s appearance in school foresha%ows the nastiness of <ob 9wellB the presents 6em an% $co"t fin% in the oa! tree
foresha%ow the event"al %iscovery of <oo :a%ley&s goo%2hearte%nessB <ob 9well&s threats an% s"spicio"s behavior after the trial foresha%ow
his attac! on the chil%ren
$t"(y @"estions
1 )isc"ss Attic"s&s parenting style >hat is his relationship to his chil%ren li!eM How %oes he see! to instill conscience in themM
Attic"s is a wise man, committe% to 1"stice an% e@"ality, an% his parenting style is base% on fostering these virt"es in his chil%renDhe even
enco"rages 6em an% $co"t to call him *Attic"s, so that they can interact on terms as e@"al as possible 'hro"gho"t the novel, Attic"s wor!s to
%evelop $co"t&s an% 6em&s respective consciences, thro"gh both teaching, as when he tells $co"t to p"t herself in a person&s shoes before she
1"%ges them, an% e?ample, as when he ta!es 'om :obinson&s case, living "p to his own moral stan%ar%s %espite the harsh conse@"ences he
!nows he will face Attic"s is a !in% an% loving father, rea%ing to his chil%ren an% offering them comfort when they nee% it, b"t he is also capable
of teaching them harsh lessons, as when he allows 6em to come with him to tell Helen :obinson abo"t 'om&s %eath At the en% of the novel,
when Attic"s believes that 6em !ille% <ob 9well, he tries to tal! Hec! 'ate, the sheriff, o"t of calling the %eath an acci%entDAttic"s&s stan%ar%s
are firm, an% he %oes not want his son to have "nfair protection from the law
2 Analy0e the trial scene an% its relationship to the rest of the novel
To Kill a Mockingbird e?plores the @"estions of innocence an% harsh e?perience, goo% an% evil, from several %ifferent angles 'om :obinson&s
trial e?plores these i%eas by e?amining the evil of racial pre1"%ice, its ability to poison an otherwise a%mirable $o"thern town an% %estroy an
innocent man, an% its effect on yo"ng 6em an% $co"t <eca"se the point of a trial is to %iscover g"ilt or innocence, 'om&s trial serves as a "sef"l
mechanism for Lee to lay o"t the arg"ment against racial pre1"%ice in a %ramatic framewor! s"ite% to the larger themes of the novel
A%%itionally, beca"se a trial is essentially abo"t the presentation of facts, it serves as a laboratory in which the e?tent of the town&s pre1"%ice can
be ob1ectively meas"re% Attic"s presents a soli% case that leaves virt"ally no room for %o"btA 'om :obinson is innocent, an% if he is fo"n%
g"ilty, then it is only beca"se of the 1"ry&s racism >hen 'om is fo"n% g"ilty, the o"tcome of the trial presents a crisis of confi%ence, partic"larly
for 6emA if the law fails, then how can one have faith in 1"stice, an% if the people of Maycomb fail, then how can one have faith in the goo%ness
of h"manityM Altho"gh these @"estions are e?plore% to some %egree before the trial, they %ominate the novel after the trial #rom a str"ct"ral
point of view, the trial serves to bring the narrative&s main iss"es into foc"s
/ )isc"ss the a"thor&s portrayal of the blac! comm"nity an% the characters of (alp"rnia an% 'om :obinson Are they realistic or i%eali0e%M
'he blac! comm"nity in Maycomb is @"ite i%eali0e%, especially in the scenes at the blac! ch"rch an% in the *colore% balcony, %"ring the trial
Lee&s portrayal of the blac! comm"nity isn&t "nrealistic or "nbelievableB it is important to point o"t, however, that she emphasi0es all of the goo%
@"alities of the comm"nity witho"t ever pointing o"t any of the ba% ones 'he blac! comm"nity is shown to be loving, affectionate, welcoming,
pio"s, honest, har%wor!ing, close2!nit, an% forthright (alp"rnia an% 'om, members of this comm"nity, possess remar!able %ignity an% moral
co"rage <"t the i%eali0ation of the blac! comm"nity serves an important p"rpose in the novel, heightening the contrast between victims an%
victimi0ers 'he town&s blac! citi0ens are the novel&s victims, oppresse% by white pre1"%ice an% force% to live in an environment where the mere
wor% of a man li!e <ob 9well can %oom them to life in prison, or even e?ec"tion, with no other evi%ence <y presenting the blac!s of Maycomb
as virt"o"s victimsDgoo% people ma%e to s"fferDLee ma!es her moral con%emnation of pre1"%ice %irect, emphatic, an% e?plicit