To Kill A Mockingbird Complete Notes

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Context

-Takes place in a town in Alabama, USA

-Published in 1960 which was just before the black civil rights movement in America

American Slavery

- 17th-19th centuries = black people bought from Africa to America and sold as slaves to work on sugar and cotton plantationsin the Caribbean and North America.

- Slavery abolished in 1865, but things were not equal between black's and whites

The Great Depression 1929-1940's

-Tradgedy that placed millions of Americans out of work

- Was the beginning of government involvment in the economoy and in society as a whole

Roosevelt and the New Deal

-Hebert Hoover = president during Great Depression

- Roosevelt won in 1932

- He began new programmes, shut banks down until they were stable to try and sort out the economy

The Civil Rights Movement 1950s/60s

- Challenging social prejudice

- The changes in attitude and law that occured highlighted injustice and press the cause for change

- Lots of people of all races risked their standing in the community and their lives for racial equality

Activism for Equal Opportunity

- The Movement was occupied by African-Americans, college students and religious leaders of many races

-Took on tactics of legal challenges, civil protests and other initiatives in their efforts to see equality

Narrative Perspective

- Written in hindsight

- Looking back on the past/her childhood

- Scout as an adult

- Mix of emotions and thoughts as she reflects

- Significant event that has shaped her as an adult

- She is 5 when the story begins, 8 by the ending

- Written from a childs perspective - as she understood the events at the time

Effect of this narrative

- Childs point of view = innocent, naive and not tainted by experience

- Writing as an adult = she relates experiences Scout did not understand = this contributes to the reader's engagement and humour

- Injustice stands out. Only the children realise the prejudice making the whole idea of racial predjuice absurd

Key quotations for the setting

- "Tired, old town"

- "Rainy weather"

- "Grass grew on the sidewalks"

- "Maycomb county has nothing to fear but fear"

"Tired" and "old"

- Used to show the contrast between the adults and children

- These adjectives are chosen instead of positive ones to represent the hard times and reflect how different parts of society react

"Maycomb county has nothing to fear but fear"

- Represents the conflict

Why does Harper Lee use Scout to narrate the novel?

- To create humour

- Emphasise the theme of child innocence

- To show how innocence is corrupted by scoiet

1. Create humour:

"fruitless efforts to teach me group dynamics"

"my teachers thought essential"

2. Child innocence

"I examined my loot"

"What you reckon... Jem?"

"Lived a malevolent phantom"

"Why couldn't I mash him?"

"I think there's one under my bed. Can you come look?

"How does a snake feel?"

3. Innocence corrupted

"He's just a Cunningham"

"Thats nigger talk"

"Well Dill, after all he's justa Nego"

Context

Narrative Persepective

Setting and Location

Belonging- Atticus, Tom, Boo. (refer to essay)