TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD BY HARPER LEE
a y e a r 1 2 n o v e l s t u d y
Copy all headings and subheadings. Copy the notes as indicated and complete all tasks on your own paper/in your books.
S E T T I N G
1 Copy these notes: Lee wrote the novel during the beginning of the Civil Rights era (1955 to 1958). Alabama was very much in the news at this time with the Montgomery bus boycott, Martin Luther King’s rise to leadership, and Autherine Lucy’s attempt to enter the University of Alabama’s graduate school.
2 Ask your teacher for a map of the USA, and on it shade in the state of Alabama. Highlight the town of Monroeville – it is thought that this town, where Lee grew up, was the model for the fictional town of Maycomb.
3 Make your own copy of the street map of Maycomb below. Be sure to label all the relevant buildings.
CHECKPOINT ONE – CHECK IN WITH YOUR TEACHER NOW!
4 Copy these notes: There are many parallels between the trial of Tom Robinson on TKAM and one of the most notorious series of trials in US history. On March 25 1931 a freight train was stopped in Paint Rock, a small community in northern Alabama, and nine young African American men who had been riding the rails were arrested. As two white women – one underage – descended from the freight cars; they accused the men of raping them on a train. Within a month the first man was found guilty and sentenced to death. There followed a series of sensational trials condemning the other men solely on the testimony of the older woman, a known prostitute, who was attempting to avoid persecution for taking a minor across state lines for immoral purposes like prostitution.
5 Complete the table below, so you can see the parallels between the Tom Robinson case and that of the Scottsboro boys.
The Scottsboro Trials / Tom Robinson’s TrialTook place in the 1930s / Occurs in the …
Took place in Nthn Alabama / Takes place in …
Begins with a charge of rape made by a white woman against African American men / Begins with …
The poor white status of the accusers was a critical issue / The poor white status of ______is a critical issue
A central figure was a heroic judge, a member of the Alabama Bar who overturned a guilty verdict against African American men / The central figure is ______, lawyer, legislator, a member of the Alabama Bar, who defends an ______man
This judge went against public sentiment in trying to protect the rights of the African American men / (who?) arouses anger in the community trying to (verb) (proper noun)
The first juries failed to include any African Americans, a situation which caused the US Supreme Court to overturn the guilty verdict / The verdict is rendered/come to by …
The jury ignored evidence, for examples, that the women suffered no injuries / The jury …
For example, …
Attitudes about Southern women and poor whites complicated the trial / Attitudes about Southern women and poor whites complicated the trial of …
6 Compare the town of Maycomb to the place where you grew up, or currently live, noting similarities and differences. You might present this material in the form of a table, or a Venn diagram.
CHECKPOINT TWO – CHECK IN WITH YOUR TEACHER AGAIN.
S T R U C T U R E
7 Copy these notes: Many chapters or parts of chapters could be lifted out of the book and read in their own right as short stories. For example: the story of Atticus and the rabid dog, and the chapter dealing with Mrs Dubose.
The novel has a circular structure. That is, it starts with “When he was nearly 13, my brother Jem got his arm badly broken at the elbow.” (p3) and then goes back in time to cover two years (Scout aged 6 – 8) leading up to Jem’s broken arm - “Jem’s arm was dangling crazily in front of him” (pg 263/ Ch 28).
Part one is an account of Scout’s early years. In part one, Scout, Jem and Dill are wrapped up in childish games and fantasies mostly based around Boo and the Radley house.
The second part shows Scout becoming more able to understand the adult world, which is mirrored by the more serious events that occur at this point in her life. The change is shown by Calpurnia addressing Jem as “Mister Jem” at the start of Ch 12
In the conclusion, Lee brings the two narratives/stories together. While Scout and Jem have been thinking more about the trial and less about Boo Radley, Arthur has not forgotten them. His appearance in the final chapters is almost miraculous. However, it is believable because it is so understated. There is no direct account of Arthur’s attack on Bob Ewell. It is inferred from the sounds that Scout hears and what Heck Tate discovers at the scene.
8 Make your own copy of the plot line below. Then place the events from the novel in the correct order on the line.
Events from the novel:
A S and J meet Dill 1
B Boo starts to leave gifts in the tree 3
C Scout starts school 2
D A agrees to defend Tom 5
E Miss M’s house burnt 4
F Guilty verdict 9
G Tom dies 10
H A shoots rabid dog 6
I The trial begins 8
J The night of the pageant/attack/Bob’s death11
K A lynch mob is formed 7
L Boo is responsible for Bob’s death and for saving kids 12
M Scout walks Boo home 13
CHECKPOINT THREE – CHECK IN WITH YOUR TEACHER.
P O I N T O F V I E W / N A R R A T I V E T E C H N I Q U E
9 Ask your teacher for a copy of the Cloze exercise and complete the notes on the narrative technique.
10 W.E.B. Duboise speaks of a “double-consciousness”—the sense of having to look at oneself through the eyes of others. (These answers may be used for a class discussion and expository/formal writing.)
a Do you believe that this sense of double-consciousness is present in today’s society? That is, to what extent are people of different ethnicities, social classes, genders, and age levels essentially defined by others? Give examples to illustrate your thoughts.
b To what extent do you feel that you are forced to behave according to others’ views of you? Give examples – think gender, race, family connections, etc.
c Where is this concept present in the characters in To Kill a Mockingbird? Which character(s) are/is forced to look at him/her/themselves through the eyes of others? What are the results?
S T Y L E
11 COLLOQUIALISMS Ask your teacher for the notes on Lee’s use of colloquialisms and complete the questions below.
1 List the three reasons Harper Lee uses colloquialisms.
2 Initially what conclusion does the reader come to about Walter Cunningham, as compared to Jem, based on his language?
3 How is Walter’s style of speech when discussing farming matters described?
4 Looking at the lines quoted, what are the features of Walter’s dialogue?
5 Why does Atticus treat Walter “both as an equal and an adult”?
6 What picture does Lee seek to build of Burris Ewell?
7 Why does she seek to build this type of character/personality?
8 Looking at quote 2, what are the features of Burris’s dialogue?
9 Discuss the features of the quote from Bob Ewell.
10 What picture do we build of him because of his manner of speaking?
11 Discuss the features of the quote from Mayella Ewell.
12 What picture do we build of her because of her manner of speaking?
13 Make a continuum of language ranging from informal to formal and place the aforementioned characters on it. (Maybe it’s not just a continuum of language but also of something else – express your thoughts!)
12 CALPURNIA’S LANGUAGE
In Chapter 12 of To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout and Jem attend church with Calpurnia. They notice that she uses language differently at church than she does in their home. Scout describes Calpurnia as "having command of two languages."
Re-read the conversation between Jem, Scout, and Calpurnia at the end of Chapter 12, page 125. Respond to the following questions, using quotes from the novel to help explain your responses.
a) How do Scout and Jem describe the way Calpurnia uses language in church?
b) What explanation does Calpurnia give for using language differently at church than in the Finch's home?
c) Can you think of examples from your own life where you speak one way in one situation and one way in another? Give concrete examples and explain why differences exist.
d) Because we, somewhat educated people, generally choose to speak differently in different situations is it fair to judge a person by the way they speak? Explain your Yes or No.
e) Revise Jem's description of his adventures with Boo Radley into "proper" English, then read the revised passage aloud. What written changes did you make? How does the revised passage sound when spoken? When you hear the passages read, do you prefer the original or your revised version? Explain your answers.
Jem describing his adventures with the Radleys to Atticus:
"Mr. Nathan put cement in that tree, Atticus, an' he did it to stop us findin' things-he's crazy, I reckon, like they say, but Atticus, I swear to God he ain't ever harmed us, he ain't ever hurt us, he coulda cut my throat from ear to ear that night but he tried to mend my pants instead...."
CHECKPOINT FOUR – CHECK IN WITH YOUR TEACHER AGAIN.
13 DESCRIPTIVE LANGUAGE
Read the following and note how Harper Lee builds her images.
A Copy these notes and quotes: In just or three sentences, she gives enough detail for us to see vividly what she is describing:
“The house was low, was once white with a deep front porch and green shutters, but had long ago darkened to the colour of the slate grey yard around it. Rain rotted shingles dropped over the eaves of the verandah; oak trees kept the sun away.”
(pg 13)
Lee appeals to a reader’s sense of sight. (Highlight all the words to do with colour.)
The descriptions of actions - the verbs she uses - are really precise and vivid. The house is made to sound as if it’s actively decaying. (Highlight the verbs in the quote.)
“He was the filthiest human I had ever seen. His neck was dark grey, the backs of his hands were rusty, and his fingernails were black deep into the quick. He peered at Miss Caroline from a fist-sized clean space on his face.” (pg 31)
Again Lee appeals to a reader’s sense of sight. (Highlight all the words to do with colour.)
Burris is so dirty he has to “peer” as though the dirt makes it difficult for him to see. (What part of speech is “peer”?)
B Ask your teacher for the descriptive style handout. Analyse the extracts, commenting on the type and choice of language – in particular the underline words/phrases.
C Copy these notes on the language used to describe the female characters in the novel: Throughout the book women are often describe in relation to sweet things. For instance, in Ch 1 they are described as “soft teacakes with frostings of seat and sweet talcum”, Miss Caroline is described as looking like a peppermint drop, and the ladies gathered at the Finch household are said to smell heavenly and make many remarks about Aunt Alexandra’s dainty tarts. Even Miss Maudie is best known, outside of her gardening, for her pound cake, and Aunt Alexandra is famous for her Christmas dinner.
14 IDIOMS
Copy this definition of an idiom – usage that is natural to native speakers of a language.
Copy the following notes and examples of idioms from the novel and explain what each one means. You could also supply an alternative idiom from our own variety of English!
Lee’s use of idioms helps set her novel in a particular time (the 1930s) and place (the Southern state of Alabama).
Chapter 5
acid tongue in her head
get Miss Maudie's goat
Chapter 9
as sure as eggs
Chapter 11
slow fuse
Chapter 17
counting his chickens
guests of the county
Chapter 19
looked daggers
CHECKPOINT FIVE – CHECK IN WITH YOUR TEACHER AGAIN.
C H A R A C T E R
15 Copy these notes on Atticus and answer the question:
Atticus makes two errors of judgement:
§ trusting the Old Sarum mob not to try to lynch Tom (Ch 15) and
§ trusting Bob Ewell not to carry out his threats of revenge (Ch 23).
1 What do these errors tell us about Atticus?
Atticus lives in a racist and sexist society, yet he shares neither prejudice. He respects people of color – he give Calpurnia complete discretion in the running of his household. Atticus respects women – he extends this respect to Mayella Ewell, whom Scout depicts as pathetic and friendless.
16 Match the characters with the role(s) they fulfil in the novel. Note that each role may be used more than once and one character may have more than one role.
JEM SCOUT ATTICUS BOO
AUNT ALEXANDRA CALPURNIA THE EWELLS
THE CUNNINGHAMS TOM DILL
Hero narrator protector teacher best friend
Outsider mother figure father antagonist protagonist
Innocent poor white trash neighbour friend human goodness
link between black and white worlds Southern lady
17 Compare the characters Tom Robinson and Boo Radley using these sub headings: property, assumed guilt, rumours, the ‘outsider’, and generosity. It is up to you how you present this information.
CHECKPOINT SIX – CHECK IN WITH YOUR TEACHER.
18 Each small group will be allocated an important character from the novel – Scout, Jem, Atticus, Boo, Tom Robinson, Dill, Aunt Alexandra, Calpurnia, and The Ewells.