I think important theme(s) that shows up in this section is try stay true to yourself, or staying true to yourself can be difficult. I think Harper Lee is trying to show that part of Scout that every child has, the part where they want to be like someone older that they admire, but they know that what they are about to do is probably not a good thing. I think she shows it, first by showing how she was when she trusted Jem. Then she visits Miss Maudie's, which in a sense is her staying true to herself and it shows a change in her, but then at the end of the section you see that she starts to want to play with Jem and Dill again. She knows that she shouldn't because she knows that they are up to no good, but she can't help the feeling of rejection and being called a girl. This shows that it is hard to stay true to yourself, and when you don't, in the end, you will pay for it.
Charlotte: chapters 4,5 Scout is being intentionally left out from Dill and Jem's friendship, but that's not the only way she is being picked on in this section. It seems like a big theme has been "Don't let sexist ideas define who you are". Jen calls Scout "so girly is mortifyin'" when she doesn't want to go retrieve the tire from the Radley's yard, Dill had told her earlier that she was the only girl he loved and claimed her as his property (until he neglected her), and ,when Atticus hears about their play, Jem says Scout is wrong about them getting in trouble because girls always imagine things. Harper Lee is trying to show what kind of messages Scout was hearing about girls because it's important because it is the base of a lot of different conflict she faces in this section. Since the book is written in first person, the slight references to sexism show that Scout is starting to notice how it is wrong.
William, Chapter 8 One theme of this section and the book as a whole is that you can't always assume things about people just based on stereotypes or what you have heard. In this section, Boo Radley, who is said to be almost demonic, gives Scout a blanket when she is out in the cold. If you are sitting in your warm house on a cold night, you are not likely to go out and give someone a blanket, even you are moderately nice. This shows that Boo isn't what people say he is. Also, in previous sections, Dill and Jem have stereotyped Scout as a girl, and excluded her. Harper Lee also shows this in a way that makes sense. She doesn't just say "Everyone said Boo was mean, but he was really a nice guy." She builds up the legend of Boo and makes the house seem scary, then gives Boo an actual appearance, and makes his first action a good one, to show some of his nice side.
A theme that arises in this section is Family Names. I think Harper Lee is trying to show how in Maycomb people are expected to act and behave in certain way just because of their name and it unsettles and causes tension with the other town folk when they do things that are unexpected. By doing this I think that Harper Lee is foreshadowing how important race and family reputations will be when the trial begins and also because this idea of reputation and family names relates to how people like Mrs. Dubose think that Atticus is brining disgrace to their family by defending Tom Robinson. As with the trial coming closer and closer to home, now the judgement of Atticus is first coming from school and then neighbors and now even from Aunt Alexandra, so most of the emphasis on family names has been coming from Aunt Alexandra, but even before her it has becoming more and more of a focus point and I believe with climax and transition during the trial and all of the racial and family tensions surrounding it.
Chapters 15 I think an important theme in this section is that even you're closest friends can turn into your enemies when you disagree with their opinions. I think Harper Lee is trying to show the type of town Maycomb is. It's the type of town that everyone can get along great with each other when everyone agrees with the same way of life. Harper Lee shows you how they are close by emphasizing how small of a town they are and then how everyone knows everyone. Everyone in the town is known for something and there's just this routine of living. It wasn't a big surprise when the town turned on Atticus for helping Tim Robinson you can understand know. He upset the way of living in Maycomb. His family's closest friends have turned into enemies.
Charlotte: Chapter 17 A theme for this chapter is, "Don't be too sure about anything." Scout says she never heard Atticus raise his voice in her life, except to a deaf witness. Now, she hears him plow his way through a seriously heated court room. The people arguing against Atticus on the case thought they had it in the bag, now they are not so sure. As a reader, there were also times when I felt I was being tricked by Harper Lee. Jem tells Reverend Sykes that Atticus is too far away to see them up in the balcony, and for a while I thought the author was trying to foreshadow Atticus looking up and seeing them.
Alice Chapter 17 I think an important theme for this section is, "No matter how many people oppose you, if you know that what you're fighting for is right, then there will always be a way." This chapter consists entirely of trial, and in some sense, this is what the author has been leading up to throughout the entire book. We have seen Atticus' belief been tested by family, friends, and strangers, but he knows that what he is doing is right, and not even is delightful sister can shake him of it. During this chapter, we see for the first time how Atticus may in fact be right about Tom Robinson. Before, it didn't seem as though he had any sort of proof to back up his intuition, but now...Mr. Lefty is going to find himself in some hot water.
Camille Chapters 20-22 I think a theme for this section should be, "don't jump to conclusions or be too sure of yourself because you never know what is going to happen." I think this because in this section you learn that Mr. Dolphous Raymond is actually drinking coca cola, not whiskey. This is a small example, but it shows that everyone is jumping to false conclusions and now everyone thinks he is a drunk, even though they have no proof. Another example in this section is when Jem keeps saying, "we've won" before the verdict came out. He was so sure, for good reason too, that Atticus had won the case, but you never know what might happen and the exact opposite of Jems idea happened.
Daywe Chapters 20-22 A theme that comes up in this section is that children aren't racist. I think Harper Lee is trying to show that racism is purely societal. Children have yet to form their opinions about things and tend to see things as they are. “Because you're children and you can understand it,” he said, “and because I heard that one—” He jerked his head at Dill: “Things haven't caught up with that one's instinct yet. Let him get a little older and he won't get sick and cry. Maybe things'll strike him as being—not quite right, say, but he won't cry, not when he gets a few years on him.”(pp. 205) and "They've done it before and they did it tonight and they'll do it again and when they do it—seems that only children weep." (Pp.219) show how children are innocent to the prejudice of adult views. This also shows Scout's loss of innocence because of her prejudice.
One theme I found in this section was hypocrisy, or the inability to see your own mistakes. While Scout's teacher hated Hitler for persecuting Jews, which is not a bad thing, she also hated and persecuted black people. When asked why Hitler hated Jews, she said that she had no clue because they contributed to every society they lived in. This made me wonder, because black people contributed a great deal in Macolmb, with lots of very low wage labour, yet they were persecuted too. The other reason Scout's teacher said that they were persecuted was because Jews are religious people, but so are the blacks in Macolmb. What she failed to realize is that she and Hitler both persecuted people for the same reason, they are different.
Carly (28-29) I think a common theme in this section is "good things can come from people who are expected to be bad." I think this really shows when Boo Radley is revealed. Harper Lee has done a great job of making Boo seem like a person who should be feared to the point that the kids were afraid of the house, but in this section, you see that he is actually a caring man. You see that he isn't a scary creature, but just a kind-hearted man. This is important because throughout the whole book, boo has been feared and expected to be bad, but I really like him now.
One theme I found in this section was the dark and supernatural. This section was set on Halloween, and also most of the action happened in the pitch dark. Aunt Alexandra had talked about how she had a feeling like someone had walked over her grave, and during the walk to the school for Halloween, Jem had mentions haints, which means ghosts. Also, to me, Boo Radley is very similar to a ghost, in that he never goes outside, and he is sneaky and almost invisible, like when he gave Scout the blanket. Also, his discription, "They were white hands, sickly white hands that had never seen the sun, so white they stood out garishly against the dull cream wall in the dim light of Jem's room," is very ghost or ghoul like. And in addition to all of that, this chapter is on Halloween, and most of it is spent in the dark alone, setting a dark creepy tone.
Nailah Chapters 30-31 I think that one of the themes in this section was let people be who they are and respect there way of living. In chapter 30, Mr.Tate didn't want to tell the town that Boo had killed Mr.Ewell. He felt like it would ruin Boo's way of living, and he didn't want to do that. Although Atticus was confused and thought Jem had stabbed Mr.Ewell, I think he understood what Mr.Tate meant when Scout said, “Well, it'd be sort of like shootin‘ a mockingbird, wouldn't it?” I think Harper Lee is trying to show that Boo has never done anything wrong. He gave Scout and Jem things and then he saved their lives. They didn't have a right to tell the town and then make him go out in the open when he wanted to be left alone. This theme could also connect to how Mr.Raymond wants to live with black people. Both Boo and Mr.Raymond live how they want to, and if someone disturbed them, it would be like shooting a mockingbird when they hadn't done anything wrong.
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ReplyDeleteHope
ReplyDeletechapters 4 and 5
I think important theme(s) that shows up in this section is try stay true to yourself, or staying true to yourself can be difficult. I think Harper Lee is trying to show that part of Scout that every child has, the part where they want to be like someone older that they admire, but they know that what they are about to do is probably not a good thing. I think she shows it, first by showing how she was when she trusted Jem. Then she visits Miss Maudie's, which in a sense is her staying true to herself and it shows a change in her, but then at the end of the section you see that she starts to want to play with Jem and Dill again. She knows that she shouldn't because she knows that they are up to no good, but she can't help the feeling of rejection and being called a girl. This shows that it is hard to stay true to yourself, and when you don't, in the end, you will pay for it.
Charlotte: chapters 4,5
ReplyDeleteScout is being intentionally left out from Dill and Jem's friendship, but that's not the only way she is being picked on in this section. It seems like a big theme has been "Don't let sexist ideas define who you are". Jen calls Scout "so girly is mortifyin'" when she doesn't want to go retrieve the tire from the Radley's yard, Dill had told her earlier that she was the only girl he loved and claimed her as his property (until he neglected her), and ,when Atticus hears about their play, Jem says Scout is wrong about them getting in trouble because girls always imagine things. Harper Lee is trying to show what kind of messages Scout was hearing about girls because it's important because it is the base of a lot of different conflict she faces in this section. Since the book is written in first person, the slight references to sexism show that Scout is starting to notice how it is wrong.
William, Chapter 8
ReplyDeleteOne theme of this section and the book as a whole is that you can't always assume things about people just based on stereotypes or what you have heard. In this section, Boo Radley, who is said to be almost demonic, gives Scout a blanket when she is out in the cold. If you are sitting in your warm house on a cold night, you are not likely to go out and give someone a blanket, even you are moderately nice. This shows that Boo isn't what people say he is. Also, in previous sections, Dill and Jem have stereotyped Scout as a girl, and excluded her. Harper Lee also shows this in a way that makes sense. She doesn't just say "Everyone said Boo was mean, but he was really a nice guy." She builds up the legend of Boo and makes the house seem scary, then gives Boo an actual appearance, and makes his first action a good one, to show some of his nice side.
Griffin - Blog Post #5 - Themes
ReplyDeleteA theme that arises in this section is Family Names. I think Harper Lee is trying to show how in Maycomb people are expected to act and behave in certain way just because of their name and it unsettles and causes tension with the other town folk when they do things that are unexpected. By doing this I think that Harper Lee is foreshadowing how important race and family reputations will be when the trial begins and also because this idea of reputation and family names relates to how people like Mrs. Dubose think that Atticus is brining disgrace to their family by defending Tom Robinson.
As with the trial coming closer and closer to home, now the judgement of Atticus is first coming from school and then neighbors and now even from Aunt Alexandra, so most of the emphasis on family names has been coming from Aunt Alexandra, but even before her it has becoming more and more of a focus point and I believe with climax and transition during the trial and all of the racial and family tensions surrounding it.
Chapters 13 and 14
DeleteChapters 15
ReplyDeleteI think an important theme in this section is that even you're closest friends can turn into your enemies when you disagree with their opinions. I think Harper Lee is trying to show the type of town Maycomb is. It's the type of town that everyone can get along great with each other when everyone agrees with the same way of life. Harper Lee shows you how they are close by emphasizing how small of a town they are and then how everyone knows everyone. Everyone in the town is known for something and there's just this routine of living. It wasn't a big surprise when the town turned on Atticus for helping Tim Robinson you can understand know. He upset the way of living in Maycomb. His family's closest friends have turned into enemies.
Charlotte: Chapter 17
ReplyDeleteA theme for this chapter is, "Don't be too sure about anything." Scout says she never heard Atticus raise his voice in her life, except to a deaf witness. Now, she hears him plow his way through a seriously heated court room. The people arguing against Atticus on the case thought they had it in the bag, now they are not so sure. As a reader, there were also times when I felt I was being tricked by Harper Lee. Jem tells Reverend Sykes that Atticus is too far away to see them up in the balcony, and for a while I thought the author was trying to foreshadow Atticus looking up and seeing them.
Alice
ReplyDeleteChapter 17
I think an important theme for this section is, "No matter how many people oppose you, if you know that what you're fighting for is right, then there will always be a way." This chapter consists entirely of trial, and in some sense, this is what the author has been leading up to throughout the entire book. We have seen Atticus' belief been tested by family, friends, and strangers, but he knows that what he is doing is right, and not even is delightful sister can shake him of it. During this chapter, we see for the first time how Atticus may in fact be right about Tom Robinson. Before, it didn't seem as though he had any sort of proof to back up his intuition, but now...Mr. Lefty is going to find himself in some hot water.
Camille
ReplyDeleteChapters 20-22
I think a theme for this section should be, "don't jump to conclusions or be too sure of yourself because you never know what is going to happen." I think this because in this section you learn that Mr. Dolphous Raymond is actually drinking coca cola, not whiskey. This is a small example, but it shows that everyone is jumping to false conclusions and now everyone thinks he is a drunk, even though they have no proof. Another example in this section is when Jem keeps saying, "we've won" before the verdict came out. He was so sure, for good reason too, that Atticus had won the case, but you never know what might happen and the exact opposite of Jems idea happened.
Daywe Chapters 20-22
ReplyDeleteA theme that comes up in this section is that children aren't racist. I think Harper Lee is trying to show that racism is purely societal. Children have yet to form their opinions about things and tend to see things as they are.
“Because you're children and you can understand it,” he said, “and because I heard that one—”
He jerked his head at Dill: “Things haven't caught up with that one's instinct yet. Let him get a little older and he won't get sick and cry. Maybe things'll strike him as being—not quite right, say, but he won't cry, not when he gets a few years on him.”(pp. 205) and "They've done it before and they did it tonight and they'll do it again and when they do it—seems that only children weep." (Pp.219) show how children are innocent to the prejudice of adult views. This also shows Scout's loss of innocence because of her prejudice.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteJordy (chapters 25-26)
ReplyDeleteOne theme I found in this section was hypocrisy, or the inability to see your own mistakes. While Scout's teacher hated Hitler for persecuting Jews, which is not a bad thing, she also hated and persecuted black people. When asked why Hitler hated Jews, she said that she had no clue because they contributed to every society they lived in. This made me wonder, because black people contributed a great deal in Macolmb, with lots of very low wage labour, yet they were persecuted too. The other reason Scout's teacher said that they were persecuted was because Jews are religious people, but so are the blacks in Macolmb. What she failed to realize is that she and Hitler both persecuted people for the same reason, they are different.
Carly (28-29)
ReplyDeleteI think a common theme in this section is "good things can come from people who are expected to be bad." I think this really shows when Boo Radley is revealed. Harper Lee has done a great job of making Boo seem like a person who should be feared to the point that the kids were afraid of the house, but in this section, you see that he is actually a caring man. You see that he isn't a scary creature, but just a kind-hearted man. This is important because throughout the whole book, boo has been feared and expected to be bad, but I really like him now.
Jordy
ReplyDeleteChapters 28-29
One theme I found in this section was the dark and supernatural. This section was set on Halloween, and also most of the action happened in the pitch dark. Aunt Alexandra had talked about how she had a feeling like someone had walked over her grave, and during the walk to the school for Halloween, Jem had mentions haints, which means ghosts. Also, to me, Boo Radley is very similar to a ghost, in that he never goes outside, and he is sneaky and almost invisible, like when he gave Scout the blanket. Also, his discription, "They were white hands, sickly white hands that had never seen the sun, so white they stood out garishly against the dull cream wall in the dim light of Jem's room," is very ghost or ghoul like. And in addition to all of that, this chapter is on Halloween, and most of it is spent in the dark alone, setting a dark creepy tone.
Nailah Chapters 30-31
ReplyDeleteI think that one of the themes in this section was let people be who they are and respect there way of living. In chapter 30, Mr.Tate didn't want to tell the town that Boo had killed Mr.Ewell. He felt like it would ruin Boo's way of living, and he didn't want to do that. Although Atticus was confused and thought Jem had stabbed Mr.Ewell, I think he understood what Mr.Tate meant when Scout said, “Well, it'd be sort of like shootin‘ a mockingbird, wouldn't it?” I think Harper Lee is trying to show that Boo has never done anything wrong. He gave Scout and Jem things and then he saved their lives. They didn't have a right to tell the town and then make him go out in the open when he wanted to be left alone. This theme could also connect to how Mr.Raymond wants to live with black people. Both Boo and Mr.Raymond live how they want to, and if someone disturbed them, it would be like shooting a mockingbird when they hadn't done anything wrong.