...To Kill A Mockingbird Essay What is Empathy? Empathy is the ability to step into another person’s shoes and understand what they did, or why they choose to do something. Not everybody can have empathy, only people who are willing to open their minds to different opinions and see what they might not have seen before. While showing empathy you can change a person's life for the better. In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee reveals that showing empathy can give hope to someone in despair. Empathy can simply mean making somebody’s day or it can have a deeper meaning like trying to save somebody's life. In the beginning of To Kill a Mockingbird, there are a lot of examples of empathy simply just making somebody’s day. For example, “Jem suddenly grinned at him. ‘Come on home to dinner with us, Walter,’ he said. ‘We’d be glad to have you’” (Lee 23). Here, Jem knows that Walter doesn’t get the three meals a day. So Jem, being the way he was brought up by Atticus, politely asks Walter if he would like to enjoy a meal with the Finches. Another example of empathy making somebody’s day would be when Dolphus...
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...To Kill a Mockingbird Essay The story To Kill a Mockingbird takes place in Maycomb Alabama in the 1930’s. The Great Depression was in effect so not a lot of people had any money. However, this was not the only thing they had to worry about. There was a lot of Racism, class prejudice, and sexism that all lead up to not only the kids, but also adults facing the destruction of innocence. One example, is the mockingbird. This represented innocence because Atticus stated it was a sin to kill a mockingbird. Mockingbirds never do anything but sing beautiful music for us to listen to. They are peaceful animals that don’t hurt you. Innocence was taken away from Tom Robinson. He was accused for raping a white girl Mayella because he was black. Tom was innocent until they made him guilty. He tried to help her but it backfired. She told him to come inside and tried to have sex with him but her dad came in and Mayella blamed Tom. This was taken to trial and Tom was announced guilty because of destruction of innocence. Another example, is Boo Radley. Just like Tom the town made him seem like the bad guy from rumors and town gossip. Boo was locked inside his house most of his life and everyone thought he was scary and shouldn’t trust him. In reality he...
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...Why was prejudice invented? Arguably the most ghastly side of human nature, the act of ostracizing and relentlessly condemning social or physical deviation is the cause of so much strife. And yet, it has endured since the beginning of written history. Wherever or whenever someone differs from the norm too much, people have a tendency to move in like a pack of hyenas. What is it that causes people to act this way? Is it insecurity? Is it fear? Whatever prejudice is at its core, it makes people lose control. They give up individual thought to be part of the group. Maybe they feel safer. But there is one thing that causes this mob mentality to fall apart: empathy. If someone puts themselves in another person’s shoes, looks through their eyes,...
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...“To Kill a Mocking Bird”: Teaching Tolerance Through Empathy Mary Ellyn Fogarty December 8, 2012 America in the mid 1950’s and 1960’s was undergoing a profound social metamorphosis. Events such as, in 1954, the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, with the Supreme Court ruling public school segregation illegal, which many believe sparked the civil rights era, in 1956 Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat on a bus to a white man, “precipitating the Montgomery bus boycott, led by Martin Luther King Jr.” (To Kill a Mockingbird: Civil Rights Era, 2012), in 1957 federal troops were sent to Little rock Arkansas to protect nine African American students who were going white high school, per the court ordered desegregation of school, were challenging and for some forcing the way in which Americans lived, their beliefs and their treatment of African Americans that had been indoctrinated into their consciousness from the time they were born and many did not understand why this treatment was inappropriate, prejudice and unconstitutional. For some these changes were viewed as not an intrusion or criticism of their way of life but as...
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...To Kill A Mockingbird Final Essay Today in society, many people empathize so they can further understand another's point of view. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee shows how empathy is the key to understanding somebody. Atticus really supports the theme of empathy. He wants Jem and Scout to live by empathizing for other people. Atticus and Scout use empathy to understand another character's point of view. Empathy is more than just saying sorry, it actually helps someone feel what another is feeling. Atticus really supports this throughout the novel. This is shown through the quote on page 39.“You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view … until you climb into his skin and walk...
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...Why is it that society is self centered? People always accumulate themselves as the right individual during conflict. They never consume the information being presented in front of them. This is also the main reason why racism is highly prevalent within society. The novel, ¨To Kill a Mockingbird,¨ that was well written by the author, ¨Harper Lee,¨ accurately demonstrated how people easily lose their sense of empathy and become very prejudice. Within Tkam, empathy is greatly influence through the characters Atticus, Scout, and Dolphus Raymond by including the primary issue of racism and how it affected them within their home town, Maycomb County. First and foremost, In the novel, ¨To Kill a Mockingbird,¨ empathy is first presented by the character,...
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...In essence, empathy is defined as “the ability to understand and share the feelings of another.” During the course of the novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, the recurring lesson of empathy is learned through the experiences of characters, good and bad alike. Most specifically, Jean Louise (“Scout”) Finch embarks on a journey throughout the story in which she gains the ability to do just this. Living in the 1930’s town of Maycomb, she witnesses the harsh racism towards those of color, and experiences other strict societal norms that the time period entails, such as gender roles, which she doesn’t seem to abide by. As a risk-taking child, growing up under the influence of her older brother Jem, the two children attempt a fairly...
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...Society’s Impact On Growth And Understanding In her novel To Kill A Mockingbird, Harper Lee demonstrates how society shapes our understandings of others, but that this can be mitigated by strong role models. Scout Finch is strongly impacted by the “old traditions of the south” during her growth into womanhood and when she pushes against the stereotypes placed on her as a southerner and a young lady to find her gender identity. The beliefs of Atticus Finch and his involvement in the courtroom have had a big impact on Scout’s growth. Atticus’ beliefs were different than the beliefs of most people of Maycomb and he “bestowed a benevolent order on the Finch household by his example” which slowly shifted Scout’s views on their society’s division....
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...How symbolism can help you better understand To Kill a Mockingbird In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee uses symbolism to reveal an overall theme of human dignity. Maycomb County is a typical sleepy southern town that is blinded by the disease of racism. An innocent black man becomes a victim of the disease when he is accused of rapeing a white woman. Firstly the symbols Jem’s pants and the rolly-polly show the important theme of maturation. Furthermore the symbols Tim Johnson and the snowman highlight a theme of destroying racism. Lastly one-shot Finch and the perfect white waxy camellia symbolize true courage. Harper Lee uses Jem’s pants and the rolly-polly as symbols to convey a theme of maturation. Jem and Scout where in the Radley’s backyard trying to get a look at Boo Radley when Jem see’s a shadow the children immediately flee form the house. As the children were running through the collards as they hear the roar of a shotgun. As Jem and Scout are fleeing the scene Jem’s pants gets caught in the fence and he has to leave it in their backyard if he wants to survive. Later that night he says how he needs to go back and retrieve his pants not for him but for Atticus, “‘Atticus ain’t never whipped me ever since I can remember, and I wanta keep it that way.’” (Lee 75). He goes back to get his pants to keep his relation shit with Atticus. There is a evident theme maturation in Jem at this point, from when he thought turtles could not feel, too now when he is showing...
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...to trust based on the soul of a person; | |we are more comfortable making judgements based on skin colour.” | Prejudice, courage and unity… TEXT COMPARISON Are we always champions of tolerance, courage and receptiveness to others? By the very definition of humanity, we must be. Humanity: benevolence, understanding and kindness towards other people. It is, arguably, our very human nature to feel compassion, courage, understanding, unity and empathy towards our fellow man. Unfortunately, prejudice and judgement also cling to the human condition like tumorous stains – traits which society still finds hard to surmount. Despite the efforts of governments, groups and individuals, humankind still finds it difficult to trust based on the soul of a person; we are more comfortable making judgements based on skin colour. Nelle Harper Lee through her 1960 novel, ‘To Kill a Mockingbird,’ and Boaz Yakin through his 2000 film, ‘Remember the Titans,’ are text composers who tackle the ill-defined paradigms of ‘prejudice, courage and unity’ by painting a picture of the confronting face of racism. Prejudice, courage and unity are notions that are dealt with differently by both composers and, through their use of structural and linguistic features, each composer presents this concept in a manner which connects (or weakens a connection)...
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...To Kill A Mocking Bird BY HARPER LEE Novel Analysis I.BACKGROUND IN FORMATION ABOUT THE AUTHOR Nelle Harper Lee (born April 28, 1926) is an American author known for her 1960 Pulitzer-Prize-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird, which deals with the issues of racism that were observed by the author as a child in her hometown of Monroeville, Alabama. Despite being Lee's only published book, it led to Lee being awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom of the United States for her contribution to literature in 2007.Lee has also been the recipient of numerous honorary degrees, but has always declined to make a speech. Other significant contributions of Lee include assisting her close friend, Truman Capote, in his research for the book In Cold Blood. II.INFORMATION ABOUT THE NOVEL Classification- To Kill a Mockingbird is embodied by Atticus Finch, who is virtually unique in the novel in that he has experienced and understood evil without losing his faith in the human capacity for goodness. Atticus understands that, rather than being simply creatures of good or creatures of evil, most people have both good and bad qualities. The important thing is to appreciate the good qualities and understand the bad qualities by treating others with sympathy and trying to see life from their perspective. He tries to teach this ultimate moral lesson to Jem and Scout to show them that it is possible to live with conscience without losing hope or becoming cynical. In this way, Atticus is...
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...The empathy and heroism in one man can change not only the ones around him, but even the world around him. One of the most inspiring characters in American literature is Atticus Finch from Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird. Being a morally upright lawyer, a loving father, and a man committed to racial equality, Atticus is known to hold a sense of justice. When he appointed to defend Tom Robinson, a black man wrongly accused for raping a white woman, he strongly held his convictions and his empathy for all people and agreed to take the case Though he may bold decision may have opposed to the values of the vast majority of people in Maycomb, throughout the novel, Finch displays leadership through his qualities of integrity, courage to stand...
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...Petrina Chan Hr. 2 To Kill a Mockingbird Summer Work Characters Scout Jean Louise Finch, also called Scout, is the narrator and protagonist of the story. She is the sister of Jeremy (Jem) Finch and the daughter of Atticus Finch. She lives with her brother, father, and their black cook, Calpurnia, in Maycomb County. Being the main character, she is involved with all of the major events that happen during the course of the novel, including the Tom Robinson trial. While the story progresses, Scout’s views about life mature. Scout is different than most little girls at the time. She wears overalls instead of dresses and learns to climb trees with Jem and Dill rather than learning manners.She starts to understand how to look at things from someone else’s point of view, instead of only her own, and, “step into their skin,” as Atticus tells her, in order to understand people’s feelings. She progresses from a short-tempered tom boy to an empathetic young girl. Although she is still young, her understanding of the world is progressing rapidly. Jem Jeremy (Jem) Finch is the brother of Jean Louise (Scout) Finch, and the son of Atticus finch. He is four years older than Scout. He is Scout’s playmate and protector throughout the novel. Although he slowly weans himself from Scout’s little games, he remains her closest companion and guardian. He and his views on life are deeply affected by the Tom Robinson trial because of the amount of sheer prejudice and cruelty of the trial. Jem learns...
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...To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is a story of growing up and learning how to treat others. It takes place in a small southern town called Maycomb and is told from the perspective of Jean Louise “Scout” Finch, a young southern girl. Throughout the story, Scout and her brother, Jem, learn the ways of the world and that judging people is not always the best idea. All in all, this book illustrates why one should not judge others before walking in their shoes through the characters of Mrs. Dubose, Mr. Raymond, and Mr. Boo Radley. Near the beginning of the story, Jem and Scout judge their impertinent, elderly neighbor, Mrs. Dubose, very harshly until they get to know her and realize that their judgment is very wrong.. The kids walk by Mrs. Dubose’s...
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...(F.T.) 93 GCSE ENGLISH LITERATURE Higher Tier UNIT 1 Specimen Assessment Materials 2 hours SECTION A Question 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Of Mice and Men Anita and Me To Kill a Mockingbird I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings Chanda’s Secrets SECTION B 6. Poetry 12 Pages 2-3 4-5 6-7 8-9 10 - 11 ADDITIONAL MATERIALS Twelve page answer booklet. INSTRUCTIONS TO CANDIDATES Answer both Section A and Section B. Answer one question in Section A and the question in Section B. INFORMATION FOR CANDIDATES The number of marks is given in brackets after each question or part-question. You are reminded that assessment will take into account the quality of written communication used in your answers. JD*(S-2011 Higher) Turn over. 2 SECTION A 1. Of Mice and Men Answer part (a) and either part (b) or part (c). You are advised to spend about 20 minutes on part (a), and about 40 minutes on part (b) or part (c). (a) Read the extract on the opposite page. Then answer the following question: With close reference to the extract, show how John Steinbeck presents Curley here. [10] Either, (b) Steinbeck uses three specific settings on the ranch: the bunkhouse, the harness room and the barn. Choose one of these settings and show how it is important to the novel as a whole.[20] Or, (c) How is the character of Candy important to the novel...
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