To Kill A Mockingbird is narrated by
an adult Scout, whose entire narrative is a reflection of the events that took place
during her childhood in Maycomb. As the novel opens, Scout is 6 years old; she, Jem,
and Dill spend most of their days attempting to communicate with Boo Radley, the
neighborhood recluse. As the children are young and relatively insensitive to
boundaries, their behavior borders on harassment; they try to look into the Radley
windows, enact plays in which the children pretend to be members of the Radley family,
and even try to put notes into the Radleys' house by attaching them to a fishing-pole.
Repeatedly, Atticus warns the children to leave the Radley's alone, telling them that
the Radleys have a right to live their lives in peace and "free from the attentions of
inquisitive children." Despite these warnings, the children continue with their quest to
see Boo Radley and fail to understand the harm in their
actions.
Also in Part 1 of the novel, Atticus tells Scout
that "you never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of
view--until you climb into his skin and walk around in it." This, perhaps, is Atticus's
most important advice. Though in that instance, Atticus is referring to Scout's
teaching, Miss Caroline (she's new to the area and to teaching, and Scout is upset
because Miss Caroline doesn't understand Maycomb's ways or citizens). However, Atticus
tells Scout this advice in the hopes that she'll apply it to every experience she
has.
Part 2 of the novel centers around the Tom Robinson
trial, and as she is allowed to watch the proceedings, Scout gradually recognizes that
Tom is an innocent, respectable man whose life has been put on the line to cover up the
Ewell family's lie. Though Scout isn't as affected by the trial as her older brother
is, she does see the injustice that's present in her
society.
At the end of the novel, when the Finch children
are attacked by Bob Ewell and consequently saved by Boo Radley, Scout is finally able to
put herself in someone else's shoes--in this case, Boo Radley's. After she walks him
home, she stands on his front porch and observes the neighborhood from his perspective.
Doing so allows her to see things as Boo has seen them for so many years, and she is
finally able to see the value in Atticus's teachings. And at the end of the novel, as a
result of the experiences that she describes in her narrative, Scout is a more mature,
more tolerant, and more understanding young lady than she was at the
beginning.
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