Skip to main content

How does Scout Finch deal with her classmates in To Kill a Mockingbird?

Scout has very few things in common with the majority of her classmates. Scout lives in town, and her father is a lawyer. Many of her pupils reside in the rural areas of Maycomb and come from families that make their living farming. Scout also comes a from a family that values education, and her classmates seem rather dismissive of the subjects they are taught in class. In Chapter 2, Scout comments that her classmates...

Scout has very few things in common with the majority of her classmates. Scout lives in town, and her father is a lawyer. Many of her pupils reside in the rural areas of Maycomb and come from families that make their living farming. Scout also comes a from a family that values education, and her classmates seem rather dismissive of the subjects they are taught in class. In Chapter 2, Scout comments that her classmates were "immune to imaginative literature" (Lee 22). However, Scout is the leader of her class and continually volunteers to answer questions that the teachers ask. She is rather supportive of her classmates throughout the novel and even tries to defend Walter Cunningham when he refuses to accept Miss Caroline's quarter. Scout tells her teacher, "Miss Caroline, he's a Cunningham" (Lee 26). Her classmates look up to Scout and follow her lead. Scout is also tolerant of her classmates both academically and socially. When Cecil Jacobs says that Atticus defends "niggers," Scout refrains from fighting him (Lee 99). She says, "I drew a bead on him, remembered what Atticus had said, then dropped my fists and walked away" (Lee 102). Scout is always bored in school, and when she is in Mrs. Gates' class, she has to listen to Chuck Little give a presentation about an advertisement instead of a "current event." Despite her differences with her classmates, Scout does her best to get along with them and help them in anyway she can, whether it be answering the tough questions or defending someone's character.

Labels

Labels:

Popular posts from this blog

In chapter one of The Great Gatsby, what advice does Nick's father give him? How does this make him a good person to tell this story?

Nick says that his father advised him that, before "criticizing anyone," he "remember that all the people in this world haven't had the same advantages" as Nick.  As a result, Nick claims that he is "inclined to reserve all judgments," presenting himself to the reader as a fair and dispassionate arbiter of character, and thus, a reliable narrator.   The problem is that Nick immediately reveals himself as anything but reliable, as he then launches... Nick says that his father advised him that, before "criticizing anyone," he "remember that all the people in this world haven't had the same advantages" as Nick.  As a result, Nick claims that he is "inclined to reserve all judgments," presenting himself to the reader as a fair and dispassionate arbiter of character, and thus, a reliable narrator.   The problem is that Nick immediately reveals himself as anything but reliable, as he then launches into a discussion of how pe...
Post a Comment
Read more

How did the United States become an imperial power?

"Imperial power" is a bit of a vague label. It tends to mean several things at once, so let's unpack it. In the sense of "this country was built on conquest by force," the "imperial power" part of America actually predates the United States proper. The territories that would become the United States were imperial colonies, established by the great European empires of the 17th and 18th centuries. Much of the US Constitution and American governance generally goes back to England, history's largest and most successful imperial power, but vital aspects of American culture come from other imperial powers, such as France and Spain. Much of American culture comes from sources other than the old empires, but they were key influences on what the United States became. In the sense of "this country treats conquest by force as a fundamental component of its culture, economy and politics," the United States has always been an imperial power. Even earl...
Post a Comment
Read more

How and why does James Gatz become Jay Gatsby? Describe the young Gatsby/Gatz.

James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune. It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune,... James Gatz, a poor Midwestern boy of probable Jewish lineage, becomes Jay Gatsby, a presumed WASP and wealthy socialite, when he moves to New York City and acquires his fortune. It is wealth that has allowed Gatz to transform himself into Gatsby. However, those who know his background (e.g., Daisy and Tom Buchanan) never allow him to forget that he is nouveau riche -- that is, an upstart who has just recently made his fortune, whereas they arose from well-to-do families. Gatz became Gatsby through determination and discipline. At the end of the novel, the narr...
Post a Comment
Read more