This is why, especially on the day of Robinson’s trial and in the weeks after, Scout and Jem begin to think that Maycomb is uglier than they thought, as their friends, neighbors, and even their teachers show themselves to be shockingly racist and callous. Maycomb is a segregated town and, Scout discovers, cares little for its black residents, especially when someone like Atticus demands that white residents treat their black neighbors with the same kind of compassion and civility shown to white people in Maycomb. More sinister is the way in which many in Maycomb, adults and children alike, take issue with Atticus’s choice to take defending Tom Robinson seriously. This can be as benign as local children taking advantage of a set of adult sisters’ insistence on having a cellar, a peculiarity in Maycomb, by moving all their furniture into it one Halloween as a prank. She, like many in the community, finds the Radley family odd because they don’t socialize or attend church-a way of thinking ultimately exposes a variety of other ways in which Maycomb may be safe and close-knit, but also vehemently punishes those who violate social codes and Maycomb traditions. Until the novel begins, Scout doesn’t see anything wrong with the way that Maycomb is, and indeed, doesn’t believe that there’s anything negative about it. In her experience, everyone would look out for her if a threat of some sort were to arise. For these reasons, Scout always knows what to expect when she encounters someone and feels safe playing in her neighborhood and around town. This also leads to the development of, an open-door community in the town, in which everyone spends time on their porch and visiting with their neighbors, thereby building community through this essentially required element of social engagement. In this sense, there’s a degree of truth to the idea that each family in Maycomb has a “streak” of some sort, or some defining quality that separates it from other families (though Atticus also notes that most people in Maycomb are somehow related to each other, muddying this assessment). Being an isolated community, in addition to being the county seat, led to the development of a number of eccentricities and of an extremely insular community. Because of some questionable dealings during attempts to establish the county seat, Maycomb became the county seat for no good reason-indeed, it was far away from any rivers, the only real mode of transportation at the time, and so it became an island of civilization in a sea of wilderness and agriculture. In part, this is because of Maycomb’s specific history. It is intimate, tight-knit, and for the most part, safe. In many ways, Scout isn’t wrong about her perceptions of Maycomb. ![]() Thus, the town should not be idealized as a picturesque small town, but considered more like the individuals who live in it: something that contains both good and bad. While they’re not entirely wrong about the truth of this, as the novel progresses, it goes to great lengths to encourage both the reader and its young protagonists to understand that Maycomb is composed of a variety of individuals. Throughout the first part of the novel, these qualities cause Scout and Jem to believe that Maycomb is nothing more than an insular, safe, intimate community. Most notably everyone knows everyone else’s business, which leads mostly to endless and generally harmless gossip-but more importantly, it makes the community extremely intimate and close-knit. The moral voice in ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ is embodied by Atticus Finch is unique in the novel because he understands people without loosing faith when evil occurs.Ītticus accepts people for what they are good and bad qualities included.Ītticus accepts these points and tries to see life through other people’s eyes.Ītticus can admire Mrs Dubose’ s courage whilst in deplores her racism.Maycomb is a small town with all the stereotypical characteristics of small-town life. Scout is able to sustain her faith in human nature. These themes show how innocent people can be betrayed by ignorance.Įven Jem is victimized to an extent by his discovery of the evil of racism during and after the trial. ![]() The novel explores this idea through using Scout and Jem movement from childhood innocence to mature understanding adults.Īs a result of this transition from innocence to experience, one of the important themes involves threat, hatred, prejudice, racism and ignorance. ![]() It is a exploration of whether people are essentially good or essentially evil. ![]() The main theme in the novel is the exploration of moral nature of humans.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |