Harper Lee's characters are realistic types of who have
populated many a small, sleepy town in the South. There is the town gossip, a few
cranky old women or men, a kindly older woman, and, of course, those that live on the
fringes of society. Then, too, there is a section where most of the white people live
and one where many of the black people dwell. In To Kill a
Mockingbird, Boo Radley is the mysterious recluse who lives near Scout and
Jem. When Scout asks Miss Maudie about him, Miss Maudie tells
Scout,
"...that is a sad house....He [Boo] always spoke
nicely to me, no matter what folks said he did. (5)
Prejudice
When
she refers to the severe, sanctimonious Mr. Radley, Miss Maudie simply
says,
"You
are too young to understand it, ...But, sometimes the Bible in the hand of one man is
worse than a whisky bottle in the hand of, oh, your father." (5)
Innocence
What
Miss Maudie means is that religious fervor can go too far, especially when
misinterpreting the Bible. Mr. Radley has been ridiculously strict with poor Arthur
Radley.
The trial of Tom Robinson is, of course, the climax
with its intensity. When Tom Robinson is on the witness stand, he is asked to describe
all that has occurred on the property of the Ewells. As Tom describes how Mayella called
him into the house and then her father appeared only to witness her trying to steal a
kiss from Tom. He yelled some obscenities at his daughter while Tom leaves the scene.
When Atticus asks, "Then you ran?" Tom says that he did, and he says that he was
afraid. Atticus, then, asks Tom, "Why did you run? Tom candidly
replies,
"Mr.
Finch, if you was a n---- like me, you'd be scared too." (19)
Prejudice/racism
This
statement of Tom's indicates the situation in which blacks lived in a Southern
community, one that operated with certain prejudices. Regarding racial prejudice,
Atticus Finch says,
Why reasonable people go stark raving man when
anything involving a Negro comes up, is something I don't pretend to understand (9)
Racism
After
some of the testimony in Tom's trial, Dill becomes ill. Then, Mr. Dolphus Raymond offer
Dill some of his drink in the paper sack. When Dill tells her it is nothing but
Coca-Cola, Scout is shocked. She asks Mr. Raymond why he pretends; she also asks, "Why
do you do like you do?" Mr. Raymond tells Scout something about people's
prejudices,
"Well, it's very simple...Some folks don't--like
the way I live....I try to give 'em a reason, you see. It helps folks if they can latch
onto a reason. (20)
Prejudices
When
the ladies of Alexandra's missionary tea hosts, there are several innuendos made
concerning the forthcoming trial of Tom Robinson. Afterwards, angered at the
townspeoples' treatment of Atticus, Alexandra says,
"... He doesn't show it much, but it tears him to
pieces. I've seen him when--what else do they want from...?" (24)
Prejudices
There
are numerous incidences in which Scout and Jem learn from their experiences, or those of
others.
"...Every mob in every little Southern town is
always made up of people you know—doesn’t say much for them, does it?”
(16) loss of
innocence
In
the final chapter, Scout stands on the Radley porch:
Atticus was right...he said you never really know
a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them. Just standing on the Radley
porch was enough. (24) loss of
innocence
Indeed,
there is much that both Jem and Scout learn in Lee's novel.
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