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In To Kill a Mockingbird, how do Aunt Alexandra and Calpurnia have a positive influence on Scout?

Scout is a little rough around the edges at the beginning of To Kill a Mockingbird. She feels as though the best way to handle a conflict is to beat the person up or and call out a guest's idiosyncrasies. Calpurnia is the first motherly influence in Scout's life and she does not put up with any of the above-mentioned behaviors. For example, when Scout abruptly and loudly asks Walter Cunningham why he has drowned his vegetables in syrup the day he comes for lunch, Calpurnia pulls her into the kitchen right away and says the following:


"Hush your mouth! Don't matter who they are, anybody sets foot in this house's yo' comp'ny, and don't you let me catch you remarkin' on their ways like you was so high and mighty! Yo' folks might be better'n the Cunninghams but it don't count for nothin' the way you're disgracin' 'em--if you can't act fit to eat at the table you can just set here and eat in the kitchen!" (24-25).



Calpurnia shows tough love in this situation. She teaches Scout what is right without allowing her to make excuses for Walter's insufficiencies. Scout tries to get Cal fired because of this, but it doesn't work.


Next, Aunt Alexandra is just tough, and Scout has an emotionally difficult time with her. Whether she likes it or not, though, Scout learns to act like a lady from Aunt Alexandra. Since her aunt hosts so many tea parties, Scout is able to see how women dress and act in social situations. She never would have known that women get dressed up, and put on hats, just to cross the street to have refreshments if it were for her aunt teaching by example. But Scout also learns to put on a good face in front of guests even when she might be going through emotionally charged situations. For example, Aunt Alexandra is hosting a tea party when Atticus comes home with news that Tom Robinson was killed escaping from prison. She becomes overwhelmed with the news, but then puts on a good face, controls herself and continues on with the party so that her guests have no clue that she is upset. Scout follows suit and says the following:



"Aunt Alexandra looked across the room at me and smiled. She looked at a tray of cookies on the table and nodded at them. I carefully picked up the tray and watched myself walk to Mrs. Merriweather. With my best company manners, I asked her if she would have some. After all, if Aunty could be a lady at a time like this, so could I" (237).



Scout was upset and shaking when she heard the news about Tom's death, too. This passage shows that Scout learns to calm herself and act like a lady as well. From chapter 3, when Scout was rude to a guest, to chapter 24, when she shows poise and hospitality, she certainly grows in a positive way because of the two motherly women in her life.

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