We never learn the first name of Atticus' wife, Scout's
mother. What Scout does reveal is this in the firs chapter after she tells us all about
Calpurnia's presence in their home:
readability="7">
Our mother died when I was two, so I never felt
her absence. She was a Graham from Montgomery; Atticus met her when
he was first elected to the state
legislature.
Heritage was
very important in Maycomb County. You will find as the book continues that Aunt
Alexandra feels that Jem and Scout were carefully bred by a process called
gentle breeding. This means since Atticus was a well-to-do man, his
wife was from a high class family too, they were from Montgomery and her last name was
Graham.
I think Lee never reveals a first name for a couple
of reasons. First, the death of the mother is a fact, a detail and a circumstance of
life. I don't think Lee wanted another persona hanging around the storyline. Jem thinks
of her enough. Also, having a greater identity of this dead woman would certainly bring
her into the story among the women of the town and certainly Scout. To have explained
her anymore would be more detail than this already jam-packed novel could
handle.
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