To Kill A Mockingbird Honors English I (9th grade) Reading Assignment
Essays You must complete these two essays in MLA format. Each essay should be typed, and at least two pages in length. Include examples and details from the novel to support your points. 1. Explain, using good details and examples, what type of parent Atticus was to his children.
2. Explain, using good details and examples, the theme of prejudice as it was shown in the novel. Remember, there can be more than one type of prejudice.
Literary Terms
Review the following list of literary terms. Find an example of any 5 literary terms in the text. Write the specific lines and page number. Write a paragraph explanation as to how the literary term is represented. Literary Terms
1. alliteration ­ repetition of the initial sounds of several words in a group; (example: The baby boy bawled his eyes out.)
2. antagonist – the chief opponent of the main character
3. assonance – the repetition of vowel sounds, but not consonant sounds (example: The sleet beat on the street this week.)
4. characterization ­ the method a writer uses to reveal the personality of a character in a literary work: Methods may include (1) by what the character says about himself or herself; (2) by what others reveal about the character; and (3) by the character's own actions.
5. characters – the individuals participating in the story
6. Climax – moment of highest intensity; when emotions and actions reach their highest point (example: when Darrell and Tyray fight in the cafeteria)
7. conflict – the problem in a story; the issue or situation the main character must overcome (example: The Big Bad Wolf blowing down the pigs’ houses in The Three Little Pigs)
8. consonance – the repetition of consonant sounds, but not vowel sounds (example: She packed the dark, thick jacket.)
9. dialect – the way a character speaks (example: “He ain’t nuthin’ but trouble.)
10. dialogue – words a character says in a story; the lines in quotation marks that are said out loud in the context of a story
11. exposition – the background information that helps us understand the characters and conflict
12. external conflict – the struggle between a character and an outside force (such as another character)
13. flashback – an interruption in the action to show an event that happened at an earlier time (example: When the narrator first introduces us to Aunt Charlotte in Pretty Ugly, there is a flashback about a previous event that shows us why Jamee doesn’t like her Aunt Charlotte.)
14. foil – a character that contrasts another character (often the antagonist), highlighting certain traits by showing the differences (example: Kevin (the wrestler) would be a foil for Tyray in The Bully because of the way they each treat Darrell.)
15. foreshadow – a hint an author gives about what might happen later in the story (example: Little Red Riding Hood commenting on the big eyes on the wolf, and him saying, “The better to see you with, my dear.” This gives us a clue about the ears and teeth, and the final outcome.)
16. imagery ­ a word or group of words in a literary work which appeal to one or more of the senses: sight, taste, touch, hearing, and smell; descriptions that create a mental picture of what the author is trying to convey
17. internal conflict – struggle within a character; struggle with himself
18. irony – contrast in what is expected to happen and what actually happens
19. main idea – the topic or subject
20. metaphor – a figure of speech wherein a comparison is made between two unlike quantities without the use of the words "like" or "as." (example: John never sleeps. He is a machine.)
21. mood – feeling or atmosphere the writer creates for the reader; how the writing makes the reader feel
22. personification – giving human characteristics to inhuman objects (example: The thunder roared angrily.)
23. plot – the action of a story; what is happening in the story
24. point­of­view – the perspective the author uses to tell the story; the narrator of the story (example: First person – the story is told by the main character, using “I” and “me”; Third person – the story is told by an observer, using “he” and “she”)
25. protagonist – main character of a story
26. resolution (denouement) – the way the conflict is resolved after the climax, tying up loose ends
27. rising action – the action(s) leading up to the climax; when conflict intensifies or gets stronger
28. setting – time and/or place of the story; where the story takes place
29. simile – a figure of speech which takes the form of a comparison between two unlike quantities for which a basis for comparison can be found, and which uses the words "like" or "as" in the comparison (example: She was like a tornado, ripping through the house and destroying everything in her path)
30. style – the way in which a piece of literature is written (voice, use of flashbacks, dialogue, etc)
31. symbol – a person, place or object that represents something else
32. theme – central idea or message in a piece of literature, or the lesson learned
33. tone – attitude writer takes toward his subject
34. voice – writer’s unique use of language; the way a writer shows her personality
Answer three of the following discussion questions in 2­3 paragraphs. Be sure to include direct examples from the text.
1. How do Scout, Jem, and Dill characterize Boo Radley at the beginning of the book? In what way did Boo's past history of violence foreshadow his method of protecting Jem and Scout from Bob Ewell? Does this repetition of aggression make him more or less of a sympathetic character?
2. In Scout's account of her childhood, her father Atticus reigns supreme. How would you characterize his abilities as a single parent? How would you describe his treatment of Calpurnia and Tom Robinson vis a vis his treatment of his white neighbors and colleagues? How would you typify his views on race and class in the larger context of his community and his peers?
3. The title of Lee's book is alluded to when Atticus gives his children air rifles and tells them that they can shoot all the bluejays they want, but "it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." At the end of the novel, Scout likens the "sin" of naming Boo as Bob Ewell's killer to "shootin' a mockingbird." Do you think that Boo is the only innocent, or mockingbird, in this novel?
4. Scout ages two years—from six to eight—over the course of Lee's novel, which is narrated from her perspective as an adult. Did you find the account her narrator provides believable? Were there incidents or observations in the book that seemed unusually "knowing" for such a young child? What event or episode in Scout's story do you feel truly captures her personality?
5. To Kill a Mockingbird has been challenged repeatedly by the political left and right, who have sought to remove it from libraries for its portrayal of conflict between children and adults; ungrammatical speech; references to sex, the supernatural, and witchcraft; and unfavorable presentation of blacks. Which elements of the book­if any­do you think touch on controversial issues in our contemporary culture? Did you find any of those elements especially troubling, persuasive, or insightful?
6. Jem describes to Scout the four "folks" or classes of people in Maycomb County: "our kind of folks don't like the Cunninghams, the Cunninghams don't like the Ewells, and the Ewells hate and despise the colored folks." What do you think of the ways in which Lee explores race and class in 1930s Alabama? What significance, if any, do you think these characterizations have for people living in other parts of the world?
7. One of the chief criticisms of To Kill a Mockingbird is that the two central storylines—Scout, Jem, and Dill's fascination with Boo Radley and the trial between Mayella Ewell and Tom Robinson—are not sufficiently connected in the novel. Do you think that Lee is successful in incorporating these different stories? Were you surprised at the way in which these story lines were resolved? Why or why not?
8. By the end of To Kill a Mockingbird, the book's first sentence: "When he was thirteen, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow," has been explained and resolved. What did you think of the events that followed the Halloween pageant? Did you think that Bob Ewell was capable of injuring Scout or Jem? How did you feel about Boo Radley's last­minute intervention?
9. What elements of this book did you find especially memorable, humorous, or inspiring? Are there individual characters whose beliefs, acts, or motives especially impressed or surprised you? Did any events in this book cause you to reconsider your childhood memories or experiences in a new light?
(Questions issued by publisher.)