Subject
Chapter 2
CHAPTER 3
Body
TKAM Chapter Two Summary Quotes and Themes:
In this chapter Scout attends her first day
of school, a day she had been anticipating very highly. All this build-up would be for nothing, however,
as her teacher (Miss Caroline) turns out to be quite cruel and actually criticizes Scout for knowing how to
read.
Just before lunch, it becomes apparent that Walter Cunningham has no lunch or money, and when Miss
Caroline offers the young boy a quarter, he refuses. When Scout tries to explain to the teacher that he
wouldn’t be able to repay the debt, nor bring lunches in the future, Miss Caroline grows increasingly
frustrated and whips Scouts’ arm with a ruler.
“Your father does not know how to teach, you can have a seat now” (P17)
The Theme of this chapter is that of the way society works in Maycomb. Miss Caroline is a very
educated lady, but is unaware of the way society works in this area. Scout tries to educate her on the
ways of the community, but does not take this act kindly.
-Simon
At lunch, Scout rubs Walters nice into the dirt for getting her into troubles, but when Jem stops Scout he
decides to invite Walter over for lunch. When they arrive home, Walter and Atticus discuss farm
conditions and talk “like two men,” over lunch and while Walter devourers his meat and vegetables,
Scout does not understand why he has no table manners and makes a nasty comment but Calpurnia
does not tolerate and takes her into the kitchen to scold Scout and make sure she was respectful and
tells her how to be a better hostess. When they arrive back at school, Scout walks into the classroom to
Miss Caroline screaming because she was terrified when a “cootie,”
crawls out of Burris Ewell’s hair,
who's a member of the Ewell family, which is even more poor and less respectable than the
Cunninghams’s. Burris only turns up to the first day of school and never again for the rest of the year
just to make sure he doesn't get into trouble with the law. He says some very nasty comments to the
teacher, “Ain’t no snot-nosed slut of a school teacher ever born c’n make me do nothin’!” and leaves the
room after making Miss Caroline cry. When Jem and Scout get home Atticus asks Scout if somethings
wrong and she says she is not feeling well. She says that she doesn't think she will go to school
anymore and suggest that Atticus could teach her instead. Atticus says that the law requires her to go to
school but he promised to keep reading to her, as long as she doesn't tell her teacher.
Quotes
You never really understand a person until you . . . climb into his skin and walk around in
it.” “You’re bigger’n he is,” “I went all the way up to the house once,”
“But he's gone and
drowned his dinner in syrup,”
“Theres some folks who don't eat like us… If he wants to eat up
the table cloth you ket him, you hear?”
“Little chuck was another member of the population who
didn't know where his next meal was coming from,”
“Something wrong, Scout?”
“Listen Atticus, i don't have to go to school… Burris Ewell… He just goes to school the first day… I don't
see why i have to when he doesn’t.”
Themes Growing up Prejudice Good and
Human dignity Courage
CHAPTER 4
Key Moments </strong>
The rest of the school passed painfully for Scout who undergo’s a
curriculum that moves too slowly for her and leaves her constantly frustrated in class. After School one
day when she was walking home she passes the Radley Place and sees something sticking out of the
knothole in one of the Radley’s oak trees. She finds two pieces of of chewing gum and chews both
pieces until she tells Jem and he panicked and made her spit it out immediately. On the last day of
school they find two old “Indian-head pennies hidden in the same knothole where Scout found the gum
and decide to keep them.
Finally summer comes, school ends, and Dill returns to Maycomb.
Scout, Jem and Dill all begin their games again. They decide to roll each other in an old tire but on
Scouts turn she rolls infant of the the Radley’s house and they all panic. Except this gives Jem the idea
for their next game, called “Boo Radley.” As the summer passes, this game gets more and more
complicated, until they are acting out the whole Radley families life. Although, eventually Atticus catches
them and asks if their game has anything to do with the Radley’s. Jem lies and Atticus leaves them
alone, and the kids debated whether to continue playing their game
Quotes </strong>
“Don’t eat thingsyou find, Scout…. Spit it out right now!”
“Don’t you know you're not supposed to
even touch the trees over there? You’ll get killed if you do!”
“Reckon old Dill’ll be coming home
tomorrow.”
“Indian heads… Nineteen-six and Scout, one of ‘em’s nineteen-hundred. These are
real old.”
“Jem, you reckon thats somebody's hidin’ place?”
“You reckon we ought to keep
‘em Jem?”
“Make us up one, Jem… I’m tired of makin’ ‘em up… Lets roll the tyre.”
“Scout
get away from there, come on!… Come on Scout, don't just lie there!… Get up, can’tcha?”
“Go on,
it ain’t far inside the gate… You even touched the house once, remember?”
“I swear, Scout,
sometimes you act so much like a girl, its mortifyin’.”
“I know what we are going to play…. Boo
Radley… Scout you can be Mrs Radley.“
“What are you all playin’?… Nothing… Does this by any
chance have anything to do with the Radley’s?”
Themes </strong> <ul> Growing
up Prejudice Good and evil Human dignity Courage
Chapter 5
Major Points 1. Jem and Dill grow closer while leaving Scout alone 2. Miss Maudie tells Scout she
believes that Boo Radley is alive but is the victim of his harsh father 3. Miss Maudie claims that most
of the rumours about Boo are false, but informs Scout that he probably is crazy. 4. Jem and Dill plan
to try get Boo Radley to come out via IceCream 5. Atticus stops their game and tells them to leave
Boo alone.
Major Themes Conspiracy is a large theme in this scene, as Miss Maudie informs us
of all the false rumours that are said about Boo Radley. A theme of Understanding is also important as
Scout beings to understand what happened to this man and why he does not appear to step outside.
Quotes
1. Scout: "You think he's Crazy?" Miss Maudie: "If he's not, he should be by now."
2.
Miss Maudie: "You're too young to understand"
Chapter 6
Chapter 7 and 8
Major Points 1. Jem and Dill sneak over to Boo Radleys house 2. They hear a shotgun, and Jem
loses his pants 3. Mr Nathan Radley shot a "Negro" in his yard 4. Jem sneaks out and takes back
his pants
Major Themes Themes in this scene include treachery, a sense of rule breaking and
punishment/violence. These themes are evident by the actions of Jem and Nathan Radley, who
allegedly makes violent claims.
Quotes
1. Jem: "Why don't you go home Scout?"
2.
Miss Maudie: "Say's he's got the other barrel waiting for the next sound he hears"
Chapters 7 and 8
Key Moments
Chapter 7:
- Scout starts second grade
Jem reveals that when he returned to collect his trousers, they had been mended and folded
Scout and Jem continue to find things in the knothole in the tree
- Jem suggests that they write a
letter and leave it in the knothole
- The next day, the knothole is cemented up by - Nathan Radley,
who says the tree was dying
Chapter 8:
- Snow falls in Maycomb for the first time since 1885
- Scout and Jem use snow to cover dirt to make a snowman, that coincidently looks like Mr Avery
Because of the cold weather, fires are kept running to keep the houses warm. As a result of this, Miss
Maudie's house catches fire.
- Scout and Jem are told to wait in front of the Radley house down the
street
- The village pitches in to try to save what they can from the house, but ultimately, it burns
down completely.
- Scout and Jem return to their house. Scout discovers that someone has draped
a blanket around her shoulders. Jem suggests that it was Boo Radley.
Quotes
Chapter
7:
- "We went home. Next morning the twine was where we had left it. When it was still there on the
third day, Jem pocketed it. From then on, we considered everything we found in the knot-hole our
property."
- "When we went in the house I saw he had been crying; his face was dirty in the right
places, but I thought it odd that I had not heard him."
Chapter 8:
- "Look like all of Maycomb
was out tonight, in one way or another."
- "Always wanted a smaller house, Jem Finch. Gives me
more yard. Just think, I'll have more room for my azaleas now!"
- "Miss Maudie puzzled me. With
most of her possessions gone and her beloved yard a shambles, she still took a likely and cordial
interest in Jem's and my affairs."
- "Jem said he didn't now what was wrong with her - that was just
Miss Maudie."
Themes
Chapter 7:
Growing up: Jem realises that it's Boo Radley
who is leaving the gifts in the knothole, and whats to communicate his thanks. He also starts to
understand the struggles of Boo's attempt at communication. Scout realises neither of these
things.
Morality: Jem realises that it is Boo Radley who repaired his trousers, and from this point
forwards in To Kill a Mockingbird, he doesn't torment Boo.
Chapter 8:
Morality: Atticus protects
Mr Avery's reputation by asking Scout and Jem to disguise the snowman
Growing up: Following on
from chapter 7, Jem has grown out of seeing Boo as a monster, and can imagine him being kind enough
to put the blanket over Scout.
Town life vs Big city: The town bands together to try to save what
they can from Miss Maudie's house
Image:
Chapter 9
1:Scout nearly engages in a fight with cecil Jacobs after he says "Scout Finch’s daddy
defends niggers".
2: Atticus' brother, Jack comes to visit and Atticus, Jem, Scout and Jack all go to
visit Finchs landing where Aunt Alexandra and her husband live, here Scout meets Francis and claims
that he is the most boring child she's ever met.
3: Scout also has to put up with Aunt Alexanders
proper and perfect ways as she insists on Scout wearing a dress instead of wearing pants because she
wants her to learn the ways of a lady
4: One night Francis gets on Scouts nerves by calling Dill a
runt and atticus a Nigger lover and Scout ends up beating him up, Scout is not listened to and cops the
blame but then later when they return to Maycomb, she tells Uncle Jack what happened and he
becomes furious but Scout asks him to promise not to tell Atticus because he doesn't want Scout to fight
over what is said about him.
Themes:
1) Prejudice evident in the words of Francis
"Nigger lover"
2)Social realism evident in Scouts interactions with her family
Quotes
“if I fought cecil I would let atticus down”
Chapter 10
Jem and Scout think their father is super uncool, not to mention old. He can't even play football, like the
other kids' fathers do. kids at school are giving them grief about the Tom Robinson case, and Scout
can't even fight now that she's promised her dad not to. Atticus refuses to teach Scout and Jem how to
shoot their shiny new air rifles. Luckily, Uncle Jack steps up. Scout grumps about how their
neighborhood is all old people, and Miss Maudie acknowledges that there aren't any 20- or 30somethings around to be role models. One day Jem and Scout go off to find local wildlife to kill when
they see a dog acting kind of strange. The town telephone operator, to tell everyone else on the street
that they should stay out of the way of the rabid animal. The dog finally gets within range of Heck Tate's
rifle, but he wants Atticus to make the shot. See, if he misses, the bullet will hit the Radley Place. And
Mr. Tate knows he can't shoot that well. Atticus reluctantly takes the weapon, walks to the middle of the
street, aims, fires, and kills the dog. Miss Maudie tells Jem and Scout that Atticus "was the deadest shot
in Maycomb County in his time" and his nickname was "Ol' One-Shot" (10.137). So why have Scout and
Jem never heard their dad talk about it? Well, Atticus feels that his marksmanship is a God-given talent
that gives him an unfair advantage over other living creatures, and that he shouldn't use it unless he has
to. Scout wants to brag to everyone at school about her father's shooting skill, but Jem tells her not to,
because he thinks Atticus wouldn't want her to, since he's never mentioned it before.
Quotes;
1. Atticus tells Jem that "it's a sin to kill a mockingbird" (10.7). Although apparently
bluejays are okay
2. The Radleys don't have a phone, so Calpurnia runs over to their place, bangs
on their front door, and shouts, "Mad dog's comin'!" (10.72).
3. Miss Maudie tells Jem and Scout
that Atticus "was the deadest shot in Maycomb County in his time" and his nickname was "Ol' One-Shot"
(10.137).
4. Jem says that he wouldn't care if Atticus couldn't do anything, because, as he says,
"Atticus is a gentleman, just like me!" (10.152).
Themes:
Good and evil - the
mockingbird is all good and so it symbolises innocents and purity, anyone in the novel that is purely
innocent is a kind of m mockingbird.
Growing up - Jem is growing up, he understands that
honor and courage are about humility and service, not pride. Scout just wants to brag.
Chapter 11
- one day, Mrs. dubose, an old woman who harasses Scout and Jem
whenever they walk
past her house, condemns Atticus for defending Tom Robinson. Jem, enraged, rips the flowers off her
camellia bushes.
- as punishment Atticus makes Jem go and read to Mrs Dubose each afternoon.
Scout goes with him. At first, each reading session is cut short by Mrs Dubose's strange fits, but over the
month the sessions get longer and the fits slowly disappear.
- Soon after the reading sessions
end, Mrs. Dubose dies. She leaves Jem a single white camellia flower, Jem is horrified, but Atticus
explains that Mrs. Dubose was addicted to morphine and the reading sessions helped her kick the habit
before she died.
- Even though Mrs. Dubose ridiculed Atticus for defending Tom Robinson, he
calls her the most courageous person he ever knew, a person who knew she was beaten and still fought
no matter what.
Quotes;
1. "I certainly am. I do my best to love everybody... I'm
hard put, sometimes--baby, it's never an insult to be called what somebody thinks is a bad name. It just
shows you how poor that person is, it doesn't hurt you."
2. "Not only a Finch waiting on
tables but one in the court-house lawing for niggers!" (11. 112)
3. "Your father's no better
than the niggers and trash he works for!" (11. 113)
Themes:
1. Prejudice
2.
Growing up
3. Good and evil
4. Courage
Chapter 13
TKAM Chapter 13:
•Aunt Alexandra seemingly forces Atticus to let her stay with him,
saying Scout needs “feminine influence”, something Scout agrees not with, but keeps quiet on it. She
has struggle making conversation with her aunt
•Alexandra is heavily involved in feminism circles,
and is a strong believer in “streaks”. Scout doesn’t understand her obsession to heredity
•She
believes in family pride and tries to preach stories of heroic actions made by the family to the kids
•Atticus tries this but instead of making them proud, he scares them, as he usually speaks not in this
way to the children.
“Somewhere I had received the impression that fine folks were the
people who did the best they could with the sense they had” – Scout, opposition to pride in family history
“Your aunt asked me…son, you know you’re a Finch, don’t you?” – Atticus, to do with family pride
“I don’t want you to remember, forget it” –Atticus, when he realises he scared the children
- Simon
Chapter 14
CHAPTER 14: -The trial of Tom Robinson is closer and because Atticus is his lawyer Jem and Scout are
on the receiving end of the towns disapproval. -The children then go to Calpurnia’s church, Aunt
Alexandra annoyed tells them not to go back. -Later. Aunt Alexandra then tries to tell Atticus to get rid of
Calpurnia, saying that she is useless since herself is here, Atticus refuses. -That night, Jem tells Scout
not to annoy her or do anything that she wouldn't like. -Scout gets angry at being told what to do and
attacks Jem. Atticus breaks up the fight and makes them go to bed. -Scout later discovers something
under her bed. With Jem they discover Dill hiding there. -Dill had run away from home because his
mother and new father where busy and did not pay enough attention to him. -Jem then tells Atticus.
Atticus asks Scout to get more food for Dill, before going next door to tell Dill’s aunt about him.
QUOTES: -“Calpurnia's not leaving this house until she wants to.” - Atticus-“you'll simply have to accept
things the way they are.” - Atticus-“broke the remaining code of our childhood. “THEMES:-The town
disapproves of Atticus defending Tom Robinson. -Aunt Alexandra disapproves of Calpurnia being of her
skin colour-Dill needs attention and his new family doesn't give it to him.
Chapter 15
Chapter 15-Tom Robinson is to be moved to the Maycomb jail.-Alexandra accused Atticus of bringing
disgrace on the family by defending Tom. -The following evening, Atticus goes into town. -Jem, with by
Scout and Dill, sneak out of the house and follows Atticus to the town center, where they see Atticus
sitting in front of the Maycomb jail, reading. -They are about to leave when four cars drive into Maycomb
and park near the jail. -A group of men gets out and demand that Atticus move away from the jailhouse
door. -Atticus refuses, and Scout races out into the group and then next to Atticus, with Jem and Dill as
well. -Atticus tells Jem to go home, Jem stubbornly refuses.-Meanwhile, Scout looks into the mob and
recognizes Mr. Cunningham, the father of her classmate Walter.-She starts talking to him about his legal
problems and his son, and asks him to tell Walter she says hey. -Mr. Cunningham, ashamed, tells Scout
that he will tell his son hello for her and then tells the rest of the mob to clear out. -They then find out Mr.
Underwood was positioned with a shotgun, covering for Atticus.-They then go home.
QUOTES: “Had you covered all the time, Atticus.”-Mr Underwood.-“Flash of plain fear was going out of his eyes.”
THEMES:-Tom Robinson, now in town was in danger.-Alexandra disapproves of Atticus’s choices -A
mob of white men come to injure or kill Tom while in jail.-Atticus tries to defend him, but scout is the real
hero in making th mob turn around.
Chapter 16
Summary: -The day before the Court Trial -Crowds of people camp outside the town waiting Jem, Scout and Dill wait for the crowd to go in so they don't get seen by Atticus -The children end up
getting seats when Reverend Sykes lets them sit in the coloured section
Quotes: -"morbid,
watching a poor devil on trial for his life. Look at all those folks, it's like a Roman carnival." -"so it took
an eight year old child to bring them to their senses didn't it?"
Themes: -Innocence -Racial
intolerance -Injustice
Chapter 17
Chapter 19
Chapter 22
Summary: -In the Court Trial -Bob Ewell has done is testimony which was that Tom Robinson
had beaten Mayella and raped her -Atticus found it suspicious that no doctor was called -Mr Ewell is
left handed
Quotes: -"I seen that black nigger yonder ruttin' on my Mayella!" "There has been a
request," Judge Taylor said, "that this courtroom be cleared of spectators, or at least of women and
children, a request that will be denied for the time being." "Mr Gilmer's back stiffed a little and I felt
sorry for him... Mr Ewell was Mr. Gilmer's witness, and he had no business being rude to him and all the
people."
Themes: -Injustice -Racial intolerance -Social Realism
In chapter 19, Tom Robinson gives a personal recount on what happened. Tom admits that he had a
personal connection to Mayella as he sometimes does do basic chores for her. On the day in question,
he was at her house doing chores
but when he was there, Mayella’s father (Bob Ewell) came into the
house and began to shout rude, inconsiderate things towards her. Tom then ran awat in fear of being
taken to court on trial for
Quotes
“No suh, I’s scared I’d be in court,
just like I am now”
Themes
Prejudice
Key events:
• Jem is crying because Tom was found guilty even though the evidence proved
he was innocent.
• In the morning, Atticus tells his family that it's not over yet because there's still
the appeal process.
• Jem is upset with the people of Maycomb since no one stepped up to
support Tom Robinson.
•
The children (Jem, Scout and Dill) go to see Miss
Stephanie, who is talking to Miss Maudie and Mr very about the trial.
• Miss Maudie says, Judge
Taylor usually appoints an inexperienced local lawyer as public defender, but made an exception in Tom
Robinson's case to appoint Atticus instead.
• And even though Atticus didn't win, he made the
jury think about their decision for a long time, which is a step in the right direction.
Quotes:
"I ain't cynical, Miss Alexandra. Tellin' the truth's not cynical, is it?”
“The way you tell it, it is” <ul>
“Clowns are sad, it’s folks that laugh at them” “Mr Bob Ewell […] told [Atticus] that he'd get him if it took
the rest of his life “Did it ever strike you that Judge Taylor naming Atticus to defend that boy was no
accident? “It was Jem’s turn to cry”
Themes: <ul> Innocence: Miss Maudie accuses Dill of
being cynical because she expects him, and the other children to still have their childhood innocence.
Also, Jem cries due to the injustice of the court case because he still has the innocence of a fresh mind
that hasn't been vain washed into hating black people. Injustice (and the effects of injustice on people):
Injustice effects Jem very much as the chapter starts with him crying about the court case. It is also a
heavy point of discussion when the kids are talking to Miss Maudie.
Chapter 23
Key events:
• Atticus says that nothing can happen to Tom until the appeal, which might have a
better result than the original trial.
• Tom is now at the Enfield Prison Farm seventy miles away,
where his family can't visit him.
• Atticus tells Jem that if Tom loses the appeal, he'll go to the
electric chair unless the governor grants him a stay of execution.
• Jem and Atticus now have a
fairly long discussion about the law, justice and fairness.
•Scout decides to make friends with the
younger Walter Cunningham, but Alexandra tells he that he is from the “wrong class”.
• Jem says
the has figured out that there are four kinds of people. The ordinary (the Finches and their neighbors),
the ones who live in the woods (the Cunninghams), the ones who live by the dump (the Ewells), and the
African Americans.
• By the end of the conversation, Jem concludes that everyone is the same and
asks, if we’re all the same, why can’t we all get along? He says he understands that Boo Radley may
never leave his house, because he doesn't want to have to face humankind.
Quotes: <ul> “It ain’t right. He didn't kill anybody even if he was guilty. He didn't take anybody life”
“There’s something in this world that makes men lose their heads - they couldn't be fair is they tried. In
our courts, when its a white man’s word against a black man’s, the white man always wins. They’re ugly
but those are the facts of life.” “If there’s just one kind of folk, why can’t they all get along with each
other?” “I think I’m beginning to understand why Boo Radley’s stayed shut up in the house all this time
… it’s because he wants to stay inside.”
Themes: <ul> Racism: Atticus tells Jem that no
matter what a black man says, if his words are against a white man, he will never win in the court.
Injustice: Jem understands that even if Tom was guilty, he only should've gotten 20 years in prison, yet
he got life.
Chapter 24
- Scout is at home in her Sunday dress while Aunt Alexandra hosts her missionary circle.
- Scout
helps Calpurnia in the kitchen before joining the ladies for the business part of the meeting. “This was a
part of her (Aunt Alexandra’s) campaign to teach me to be a lady”.
- The ladies eat and drink the
refreshments Calpurnia had made for them, while discussing things such as “those poor Mrunas”, who
are living in “nothing but sin and squalor” in “that jungle with nobody but J. Grimes. Everett”.
- They
eventually get on the topic of how the black people are being “sulky” because of Tom Robinson’s trial.
- Then Atticus comes home, far earlier than he usually does. “He stopped in the doorway. His hat was in
his hands, and his face was white.” - Atticus, Aunt Alexandra, Miss Maudie, Calpurnia and Scout all go
to the kitchen as Atticus delivers the news. “Tom’s dead”. - Tom tried to escape the prison and went
on “a blinding raving charge at the fence and started climbing over” before getting ”seventeen bullet
holes in him”. - Calpurnia and Atticus then leave to go tell Tom’s wife, Helen, the tragic news.
Aunt Alexandra then talks about how Atticus’ job “tears him to pieces” and Miss Maudie replies by
saying that the town “trusts him to do right.” - Once they all seemed alright again, they went back to
the missionary circle with more refreshments, as if nothing was wrong.
Key themes: - Growing up
and innocence
- Prejudice - Good, evil and morality
Chapter 25
- “A role-poly had found his way inside the house”, and Scout decides to kill it before Jem stops
her. Jem reasoned that “they don’t bother you”. Scout reckoned that Jem “was getting more like a girl
everyday”. - Scout went back to bed and thought of Dill. - Dill had left Maycomb on “the first of the
month” but was to “return the minute school was out”. Before he had left though, “Jem had taught him to
swim - ”. - This thought caused for Scout to become “wide awake”. She has remembered something
Dill had told her. - One day when he and Jim had gone swimming they were trying to get a ride back
home and managed to convince Atticus, who was on his way to Tom Robinson’s cabin, to take them
with him as long as they stayed in the car. - When they got to the cabin, Atticus found Helen and
before he even told her of Tom’s death she collapsed. “She just fell down in the dirt. Just fell down in the
dirt, like a giant with a big foot just came along and stepped on her” - Calpurnia and Atticus carried her
inside the cabin and “they stayed inside a long time” before “Atticus came out alone” and drove
home. - “Two days was enough for the information to spread through the country”. - “To Maycomb,
Tom’s death was typical. Typical of a nigger to cut and run.” - “Mr B. B. Underwood was at his most
bitter” and wrote of how “it was a sin to kill cripples, be they standing, sitting or escaping”. - Later Jem
had overheard and told Scout “that Mr Ewell said it made one down and about two more to go”.
Key
themes: - Growing up and innocence - Prejudice - Good, evil and morality
Chapter 26:
SUMMARY:- Jem starts high school and gets a place as the water carrier on the football team. Scout’s subdued curiosity on Boo Radley is revived again, as she can’t help but wonder what he looks
like, and starts to fantasise about meeting him. - Scout starts to query people and how they operate;
she comes to the conclusion that “people are just peculiar”. - Scout’s teacher appears to be very antiHitler and expresses her disgust at the prejudice shown towards the Jews. - Scout later brings up with
first Jem and then Atticus her confusion on how Miss Gates “can hate Hitler so bad an’ then turn around
and be ugly about folks right to home”. - Jem gets extremely angry and throws Scout out of his room,
yelling that he never “[wanted] to hear about that courthouse again”. - Atticus elaborates on how Jem
is having a really hard time at the moment in regards to the court outcome; and is struggling to come to
terms with the amount of injustice in the world, and his loss of faith in humanity.
THEMES: Prejudice can be seen in this chapter, not only through the topic of Hitler and the oppression of the
Jews, but also through Miss Gates own racism. The theme of justice is also elaborated on through
Jem’s obvious lingering anger and sadness on Tom Robinson’s unjust conviction.
QUOTES:
“Over here, we don’t believe in persecuting anybody.” “They’re white aren't they.” “It’s not okay to
hate anybody.” “It’s not right to persecute anybody, is it” “He’s having a rough time these days.”
Chapter 27:
SUMMARY: - Bob Ewell acquires a job for a short period of time before losing it again. - Bob
Ewell tries to break into Judge Taylor’s house when he thinks that he’s not there. - Bob Ewell starts
harassing Tom Robinson’s wife- Helen on her way to work. - Helen’s employer; Mr Deas, threatens to
get Mr Ewell convicted for harassment. - Aunt Alexandra starts to thrive in the woman’s society of
Maycomb. - So that another incident doesn't happen, like the one involving Miss Tutti and Miss Frutti
last year, a carnival type Halloween celebration is being held. - Scout gets cast as a ham in Mrs
Merriweather’s pageant, and preforms her small part in front of her family at home as they do not want
to go to the actual event.
THEMES: - The theme of violence is evident through Bob Ewell’s
actions in threatening some of the key people involved in the court case. - Morality is showcased
through Mr Deas standing up for Helen and protecting her from Mr Ewell. The theme of social class is
elucidated through Aunt Alexandra’s push to be respected and ‘high up’ on the social hierarchy in
Maycomb’s society.
QUOTES:- “If Mr Ewell was as forgotten as Tom Robinson, Tom Robinson was
as forgotten as Boo Radley.” “If I hear one more peep outta my girl Helen about not bein’ able to walk
this road, I’ll have you in jail before sundown.” “You’re leanin' on [my fence] and I can’t afford fresh
paint.” “I ain’t touched her… and ain’t about to with no nigger!” “Very few people in Maycomb really
believe his and Mayella’s yarn. He thought he’d be a hero, but all he got for his pains… was, okay, we’ll
convict this Negro but get back to your dump.” “I proved him a liar, but John made him look like a fool.”
“I asked who killed [the National Recovery Act], [Atticus] said nine old men.” “Nobody but the Radley’s
locked up at night.” “Somebody just walked over my grave.”
ChApTeR 30
Important Scenes: <ul> Scout is formally introduced to Arthur “Boo” Radley She spends time with
him Meanwhile, Atticus and Tate talk about the case Tate makes up a story, saying Ewell fell on his
knife and got killed Atticus doesn't want to make it seem like he's bending the law He asks Scout if she
understands Scout replies: “Yeah, it would be like killing a mockingbird”
Quotes
“There's a black boy dead for no reason, and the man responsible for it's dead. Let the dead bury the
dead this time, Mr. Finch. Let the dead bury the dead.” Sheriff Tate suggests a different approach to
justice by letting Boo Radley go free without punishment.
“If I connived at something like
this, frankly I couldn't meet his eye, and the day I can't do that I'll know I've lost him. I don't want to lose
him and Scout, because they're all I've got.” Atticus speaking on how if his children know how Atticus
bent the law, his children would stop seeing him as a role model in terms of morals as it contradicts what
he'd been trying to teach them.
Themes
Justice and morality - Sheriff Tate’s decision
was maybe the more just solution
Prejudice, Understanding - Arthur Boo Radley is finally known
amongst the children as the “real nice” person he is
Innocence - Tate doesn't want to harm another
mockingbird (Boo Radley)
CHaPtEr 31
Important Scenes <ul> Boo meets Jem Scout walks with Boo arm in arm to the Radley Place Boo
go in and he is never seen by Scout again When she turns around and is about to leave, she sees
everything from the perspective of Boo and imagines how the events of the past couple of years would
have looked like to him. Scout asks Atticus to read The Grey Ghost to her She falls asleep but
mumbles a story similar to theirs, about “tormenting” Boo Radley, later realizing that he was a “real nice”
person.
Quotes
“Atticus was right. One time he said you never
really know a man until you stand in his shoes and walk around in them. Just standing on the Radley
porch was enough.” Scout finally learning the lesson that Atticus mentioned about empathy.
Themes
Empathy and Understanding - evident when Scout sees the events of recent years through
Radley’s eyes