What are the important themes/ideas you will take from this book? / Do you think this book, written in 1960, is still relevant to us and our current culture/time? Greenup



There is a good reason this book is a staple of most American middle school curriculums.  In its
simplest form, the story tells of a young girl living in the deep south around the time of the Great
Depression. Yet the reason this book remains relevant sits deep within the books many lessons
and experiences.  Through the ebbs and flows of Scout’s childhood the reader is shown many
events which, while not necessarily similar to our own, are based on moment in the total human
experience. Everyone can see a little of themselves in Scout, whether it might be her over
curiosity, courage, intelligence, or little moments of greater understanding and empathy. 
This makes Scout a memorable and lovable character. You are drawn to trust her instincts
and reasoning, for better or worse. We see the entire story from the point of view of a young
child, biased in it’s own individual way. The narrative is not much swayed by race or politics,
but by stories heard from peers and those closest to Scout. It would be naive to claim the story
totally unbiased, as every human has biases whether or not they realize it.  Scout has been
brought up to strive to see the best in people, even though we see her struggle with this.
Each of Scouts little struggles represents something greater, something beyond her.
The simple lessons this novel preaches can be utilized in many real life situation. The novel
teaches that a mockingbird may sit at the center of a storm, shaped by judgment and fear. It
proclaims that people are not always who they seem, and the importance of making you own
judgement instead of blindly hooking on to others.  While someone may seem completely
extremist to you, you probably seem the same way to them. The hate that drove Bob Ewell to
attack Scout and Jem, in his mind were completely justified, despite being obviously gruesome
and petty. Harper Lee uses Scout as a way for each of us to look deeper into ourselves, and
uses a child's innocence to reveal to us the faults in the ways that we may have acquired.
Harper Lee’s word choice does not shove these ideas under your nose, but makes the reader
come to these revelations themselves, making the book completely relevant to each singular
reader.

What other lessons can be taken from this novel?
What experiences in this novel are similar to your own?

Why do you think this novel so important to two generations of middle schoolers?

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Chp. 28-29 Make a list of mistakes that Jem and Scout make on their way home from school.

           While Jem and Scout were very brave on their walk home from the pageant, being able to survive  an attack from a grown man with a knife, they made multiple mistakes that nearly cost them their lives.  The first was Scout forgetting her shoes. One part of their journey has them walk by a large tree, which  roots spread out onto the sidewalk These roots had already made Scout trip on the way there. If Scout  had her shoes, as soon as Jem realized something was wrong he could've had them run right away, but  they could go no faster than a walk because of Scout's lack of shoes. The second was not accepting a ride.  They knew it was dark, and that they were alone, but they chose to walk. As the person offering the ride  came from the pageant, and Maycomb is a small town, the kids probably knew the man at least by name,  so they could've trusted him to take them home. The biggest mistake was probably Jem'...
Read more

Discuss Atticus’ explanation for the case to Scout. What does Atticus mean when he says, “simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win…” - Rafaela Datel

Atticus’ explanation to Scout about the case consists of a softer, but still factual and informative, view of the position he’s in. He tells her about Tom Robinson and why he feels the need to defend him the best he can, while sparing her the details of what exactly people say that Tom did as well as the town’s begrudging talk. Being honest with Scout is something that Atticus always prioritizes, but he also turns the conversation into a lesson, acknowledging that to defend this man is his duty and that “if [he] didn’t, [he] couldn’t hold up [his] head in town.” (86) This can be read as Harper Lee furthering Scout’s growth, as having her father discuss the case with her is a pivotal moment in her coming of age. She learns about Atticus’ sense of empathy and duty, even if the case cannot be won. “Simply because we were licked a hundred years before we started is no reason for us not to try to win,” (87) Atticus tell her. The battle that they are fighting started long before them, and i...
Read more

1.)How does Scout end up with a blanket across her shoulders? Why would Harper Lee include this moment in the book? - Murray

Scout ends up with a blanket on his shoulders because of Boo Radley. While the fire was happening Boo Radley came out of his house and put the blanket of Scout’s shoulders. When Atticus points out to Scout that she wasn’t supposed to move from a specific spot Atticus questions that because of the blanket. Prior to Atticus pointing this out to to Scout she nor Jem has any idea how she got the blanket. They later figure out that it was Boo Radley. They know this because they were standing down by the Radley’s house when the fire was happening. They eliminated that the mystery person could not have been Nathan Radley because he was out helping with the fire. This leaves them with the only option of Boo Radley. I think that Lee includes this in the text because something else is happening in the book that is major. A house is on fire. But at the same time she includes this part in the novel because it shows that Boo Radley is still a mystery to Scout and Jem. It aso is going against the “...
Read more