To Kill A Mockingbird: Chap 16-End
- sarahej8
- Mar 27, 2018
- 5 min read
Hello! This is the last blog post on To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. My GHEnglish class just finished the novel and we are currently wrapping up our unit. Although the blog series has only been two posts, a creative project for this novel is soon to come.
~
Opening Thoughts
In my last blog post, I commented that TKAM is strategically written to lay out broken pieces to the reader and as the plot thickens, those pieces come together. Seeing the connections and the way each line was purposefully written to later tie together was incredibly pleasing and kept me engaged, something that rarely happens with school assigned readings.
Compared to other novels in the genre of realistic fiction — a genre I am not very familiar with — this book is most impressive and the perfect choice to ignite a readers appreciation and interest in realistic fiction. For someone like me, who has very little experience in this genre and prefers action packed, fanatical story lines, TKAM writes in a way that keeps the reader engrossed. This is due to the thought provoking plot, depiction of themes still relevant to today, and use of tangible characters that the reader can reach out and hold onto, even after flipping the last page.
As I mentioned earlier, TKAM is an incredible well written novel, with plot points and dialogue that seem insignificant, but are later referenced and connected to in other sections of the novel. This style of writing is overall an amazing experience to read, but also, incredibly pleasing to a writer who appreciates the craft and wants to improve, much like myself and other curators in my class.
Secret Lives and Human Beings
If there is one thing I learned while reading this novel, it is, secret lives are a part of every single person no matter how insignificant the secret. While journeying through the novel, we come across multiple secret lives, both small and big. For instance, Calpurnia presents herself differently when surrounding by the black community, Mr. Raymond uses alcoholism as a cover for preferring a life different from what is considered normal, Mayella lives a deprived and lonely life, Atticus has an unspoken of history, which is explained in the next book, and most importantly, Boo Radley, who is a secret life entirely of himself. Although these secrets are not clearly revealed, neither are the secret lives in real life. Throughout this book, it is obvious the secret lives people harbor do not need to be understood by others, since most of them are not; and clearly, people can not always understand the lives and beliefs of others. Some say, don’t fix something that’s not broken, and from what TKAM has taught me, secret lives do not necessarily need to come out if they are nothing more than an extension of oneself, which they’ve carried into society since the beginning.
Atticus Finch
Since the very beginning of this novel, I had an immediate interest in Atticus, who has been on quite a journey throughout the novel, in addition to influencing the direction of other essential characters. From what I’ve noticed, Atticus is the most wholesome and gentlemanly character in the entire novel. He is always directed the kids with moral views and being the prime example of goodness in society. Whether he turned the other cheek when community members looked down on him, or stuck to his guns even when the world was against him, Atticus has been a saint to the town and an vital influence to the entire novel’s direction.
Something not only the reader, but other characters in the novel point out is, Atticus does not wear a mask in any part of his life. On page 199, Scout comments, “He’s the same in the courtroom as he is on the public streets.” and on page 201, Mr. Raymond adds, “ Miss Jean Louise, you don;t know your pa’s no ta runof-the-mill man, it’ll take a few years for that to sink in — you haven’t seen enough of the world yet.” In both these quotations, one from Scout who is a young and observant child, and the other from a grown adult with respect for Atticus, comment on Atticus’s genuity in all situations. It is important to note Atticus is different from the rest of the people in Maycomb not because he is trying to be someone he is not, but because he is being true to himself and others at all times. On page 274, Atticus states what the people in Maycomb have already noticed, “I can’t live one way in town and another way in my home.”
As the father of Jem And Scout, Atticus must guide his children as they grow and learn about the world for themselves. This includes, proving himself to not only society, but his kids, who look up to him before anyone else. On page 273, Atticus says, “Before Jem looks at anyone else he looks at me, and I’ve tried to live so I can look squarely back at him... if I connived at something like this, frankly I couldn’t meet his eye, and the day I can’t do that I’ll know I’ve lost him. I don’t want to lose him and Scout, because they’re all I’ve got.” This quote struck me because we rarely see a vulnerable side of Atticus, which is surprising, especially after all the stress and overwhelming events from previous chapters. In addition, we see that above all else, Atticus's Children are the only people he needs to prove himself to. Even when having a mentor-like relationship, which is emphasized when his kids call him Atticus instead of father, sincere moments like this remind me that Atticus is, in addition to a symbol of goodness, a father raising two kids in a broken world.
Lit Circles
In our lit circles we discussed a range of topics from character development to situational allusions and the overall ending of the novel. One thing that struck me and surprised many other members was the ambiguous comment from Miss Maudie on page 233 stating, “His food doesn’t stick going down, does it?” In this quote, Miss Maudie makes a jab at the ladies gossiping at the get together, which highlights the hypocrisy of the group and how they insult Atticus at his own table, in his own home, all whilst eating the food he worked for. This conversation took up the majority of one of out lit circle discussions and opened up a new appreciation for Miss Maudie, as well as throw shade onto the rotten ladies in the neighborhood.
The other major topic we discussed was the ending of the novel and clarify who killed Bob Ewell. From what our discussion gathered, Boo Radley killed Bob Ewell to protect the kids. However, no one wanted to pin the killing on Boo because it was better to let the dead bury the dead and leave Boo to himself like he always wanted. In this instance, we see the complexity of Boo’s character and how society wants to leave his secret life in peace, like many people in modern society who chose to leave others to themselves.
Final thoughts
This novel is probably going to be the most enjoyable school assigned reading I receive. In fact, not only is this a book every person should read before they die, and maybe even rearead it a few more times, but the novel is timeless and discusses topics which still apply to modern society.
Links
This is a thorough and well-written response/reflection from a fellow GHEnglish student.
This is an aesthetic and thought provoking response/reflection from a fellow GHEnglish student.
Black Men and Public Space by Brent Staples
On a Certain Blindness in Human Beings by William James
An explanation of Miss Maudie’s comment, “His food doesn't stick going down, does it?”
An article explaining from an English teacher’s POV why schools should continue teaching TKAM.
Comments