Views on Narration

There is something very appealing about the beginning of To Kill A Mockingbird. Harper Lee paints such an amazing picture of a small town. Although we are given a fairly static view of whom the main characters are, we also get interesting portraits of other individuals. Everyone within the novel seems to have their own distinct story and it provides a picturesque background of a small southern town. There is also a very charming atmosphere exuded through the eyes of Scout. There is a child like simplicity to her narration and at times I feel that that same simplicity allows us to observe individuals in a clearer light. For example Scout’s description of the Cunningham family on her first day of school is a very interesting view of the class distinctions that were present in Maycomb. Her innocent question of “Are we as poor as the Cunninghams?” (23) to Atticus is a great example of how many children learn about these distinctions. His simple answer is also fairly indicative of how most of the individuals in the town probably feel concerning the present situations of poverty during the depression.

From the scene in the school, and the almost universal knowledge concerning both the Cunninghams and the Ewells, we are easily able to garner that there is a shared consciousness between the individuals of the small town of Maycomb. Even children as old as Scout have a clear picture of the environment around them and the social norms that permeate it. This shared consciousness has a definite effect on the racial tensions that arise later in the novel and we are able to view how in some ways the Finch family is atypical from many of the other individuals in Maycomb. It is their departure from the shared consciousness that highlights its existence so well.

I suppose novels set in small towns are very appealing because the added simplicity allows us to easily discern the motives of various characters. This is a great trait concerning the themes of guilt and innocence that are the center of the plot later in the novel.

To Kill a Mockingbird

I remember reading To Kill a Mockingbird when I was in high school and I remember liking it, but I’d forgotten how funny this book is. Scout’s commentary, sometimes befuddled with the confused logic of children her age, is hilarious. I laughed out loud when she suggested to Miss Maudie that Boo Radley might have died and gotten stuffed up a chimney. And when she described having to beat up Dill twice because he reneged on their marriage agreement. I always wondered why Harper Lee chose such a young protagonist to tell such a serious story. Maybe her age disarms the reader in a way, and makes them expect a silly, fun story, that later takes a serious turn. I’m not sure if that is the reason at all, but I can imagine that Scout’s age in this book might be a factor in the attempts at censorship against it. It’s a little jarring to hear her describe her teacher as “that damn lady,” and use words like “son-of-a-bitch” when relating the story of her father’s first clients. This story is, of course, told from the viewpoint of Scout looking back on her childhood, and so a lot of the things that don’t seem relevant to a child’s viewpoint can be explained by this. An example of this is the fact that she describes Boo Radley’s friends as “the nearest thing to a gang ever seen in Maycomb.” If Maycomb has never seen a gang, she obviously would not know what that is, except by being exposed to the idea as an adult. Scout’s precociousness, even as a child, is evident though. The fact that she has been reading for as long as she could remember, and that she and her brother talk to their father almost like equals are examples of this. I think it’s interesting that she calls her father Atticus; I thought this might mean that she and her father are emotional distant, but the conversations they have, and the fact that they spend a lot of time together reading, don’t really support this. I suppose it’s another way for Harper Lee to know that Atticus respects his children as he respects other people and this serves as character development for him.

Mockingbird

The novel To Kill a Mockingbird has had great success as a text. Almost every child that goes through public high school in America reads it as a part of the curriculum. Additionally, the characters have inspired modern Hollywood in very interesting ways. The clothing line Atticus, for example I believe is inspired by the book. The logo, which you can find at this link http://www.atticusclothing.com/store_us/ is the name Atticus with a dead bird on top of the letters. The significance of this is that Atticus Finch has become such a legendary character that the American Film Institute voted him to be the greatest hero in American film (Wikipedia). Atticus is so popular that a clothing line has named itself after the characters.
Even celebrity baby names have been impacted by the novel. Although I cannot find concrete evidence that Scout Willis (Bruce Willis and Demi Moore’s daughter) is named after Atticus’ daughter in the novel. Even the movie adaptation of the novel was well thought of. When Gregory Peck died, the first line of USA Today’s story about his life said, “LOS ANGELES (AP) — Gregory Peck, who embodied saintly fatherhood in To Kill a Mockingbird and played a range of real-life figures from Abraham Lincoln to Josef Mengele, died Thursday at 87.” I find it interesting that the first line of the announcement of his death would include mention of his role related to the very popular novel. Gregory Peck had a long career with many very important roles. It is a testament to the popularity of the novel, and the impact that it has had on everyone who reads it.
Boo Radley has even made it to Urban Dictionary fame. The website that catalogs slang meanings for various words has a full ten entries about this particular name. The most relevant entry being, “Creepy person that has a certain charm to them. Also a stalker. From the book To Kill a Mockingbird,” (urbandictionary.com). Although this may not be the most credible source, it does show that the novel has permeated pop culture. A supporting character’s name has become a term that I have never actually heard used in everyday life, but that has been clearly considered and voted on as an entry in the dictionary.

Southern Belles

I’ve really enjoyed rereading to this novel. I first read it in middle school but am still enjoying it the second time around

Of course, To Kill A Mocking Bird is famous for it’s success in dealing the racial issues and the loss of innocence, but I think that Harper Lee does a lot of interesting things with gender roles as well. She very clearly represents what being a woman meant during the depression in the Deep South. Over the first 100 pages or so, there are so many instances of tension with scout and the idea of “being a lady.”

Whenever Jem and Scout argue, Jem’s response generally is something along the lines of, “you’re becoming more and more like a girl every day.” And we see a motherless Scout, battling with ideas of femininity by using her fists to defend her honor. Even at the holiday party, we see several instances of Scout’s extended family disapproving of Atticus’ parenting choices. Scout receives an air-rifle from Uncle Jack for Christmas, yet, her relatives criticize her for wearing pants and not speaking properly.

I think Harper Lee reveals a lot about gender roles and expectations in south during that time period. It’s interesting to watch Scout’s progression over a course of 2 or so years, especially considering she doesn’t have a mother.

Perspective

I read Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird in high school and remember not understanding why people didn’t like it. I’m not saying that this novel is my favorite, but I didn’t (and still don’t) dislike it. Likes and dislikes aside, I wonder what was the source of discontent. The town of Maycomb seems primarily white and (at least in part one) deals with the struggle of maturity and innocence in an adult world. The fact that the story is told from Scout’s perspective ensures that the reader is introduced to the social issues with the most basic understanding of the underlying principles. I found this perspective to be effective in so much that not only is the reader learning about the town’s affairs with different races, but also about a moral code that isn’t necessarily reflected in every member. Presented as a gentleman, Atticus‘ humbleness lends a certain mystery to his character. For instance, I find that Jem’s discovery of Atticus’ secret talent (a dead shot) both a foreshadowing and theme of the novel. No one is what he/she seems. We can see this in Boo Radley (whom we assume placed the trinkets for the children to find as well as the blanket during the fire) and through Mrs. Dubose via her snide comments and morphine addiction. Even the natural elements are somewhat off; the dog having rabies in February and the snow that fell for the first time in however many years. It says something about the town that they blamed the snow on the behavior of children, especially since Jem and Scout seem to be the only children in the neighborhood. Going through this journey with Scout, I was particularly struck by this one sentence in part one. Just after Scout was whipped by her Uncle after defending her father to Francis, Scout sneaks downstairs and listens to her father and Uncle talk, “But I never figured out how Atticus knew I was listening, and it was not until many years later that I realized he wanted me to hear every word he said” (101). Something about this sentence is so powerful, perhaps because it is the first insight into Scout’s character maturing. It could also be due to the fact that at all other times in the novel she never actually listens to him, this being the first. I don’t remember all of what happens in the end and look forward to reading on.

Censored Skirts?

Here's an interesting case of censorship I ran across today that's currently being taken up at Morehouse College, a very prestigious, all-male historically black college in Atlanta:

http://www.vibe.com/content/mean-girls-morehouse

and a response in Jezebel:
http://jezebel.com/5674560/who-are-the-real-mean-girls-of-morehouse?skyline=true&s=i

What does everyone think? Can a private all male college limit gender expression?

Leaving Giovanni's Room

Though I enjoyed reading Giovanni’s Room, I found that I wasn’t very moved by the supposedly tragic aspects of the ending. Though this could be partly because Giovanni’s fate is revealed so early on in the novel that I was expecting it and had accustomed myself to the idea of it, I think it is more than that. To me, for something to be truly considered tragic, the characters need to be losing something in their downfall, and I didn’t really feel like any of the characters lost anything of great value. I found David and Giovanni’s relationship to be a kind of disturbing one. They meet each other and immediately become involved with one another—clearly they were motivated by little more than lust at the beginning. Even though both characters claimed that they loved the other, to me it seemed to be quite an unhealthy relationship. Giovanni is completely obsessed with David, literally telling him that he would want to die if David ever left him—that’s not healthy. David claims that he loved Giovanni, but what we see of their relationship never really convinces me of that. Even the destruction of David’s relationship with Hella isn’t really something to be mourned (even though in some ways I was more convinced of their mutual affection than I was of David and Giovanni’s): the fact that they seemed to be settling for each other and David’s hidden preference for men would have soured their relationship in time anyway. Considering all these things, while Giovanni’s fate and the end of the novel were certainly sad, I wouldn’t call them tragic, simply because none of these characters had enough of value to lose.