This is a commentary on the classic novel by Harper Lee.
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee
To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee is considered to be a classic tale that is of a Southern town containing characters of many different walks of life that somehow represent the issues of people everywhere, even those of today. Despite its overall seriousness, I enjoyed the book because of the young narrator Scout�s na�ve, sometimes humorous view of life. Most readers will be able to connect with her thirst for proper knowledge in the midst of evasive adults and her struggles with comprehending the world�s bewildering characteristics. Luckily for Scout and her brother Jem, however, their father Atticus understands more about the world and children than most, and helps them through their ordeals.
This narration was published before the Civil Rights Movement, and although there has been much progress since then in dissipating the barriers between different races, religions, and cultures, those barriers still make a mark on society today. In To Kill A Mockingbird, nearly everyone has a skewed view of black people, causing them keep to themselves in a corner of town and expect nothing more than borderline tolerance. The book also states that it seems �only children weep� in response to prejudice. When I was younger, there were no walls between different ethnicities at school, but as we grew older people seemed to unconsciously create them. Although I am regretful of this, I can understand what they mean when they say children are born pure, innocent, and hence unbiased.
Atticus is the starting point of his children�s edification; Scout and Jem love and revere their father enough to �take being called a coward for him�, which is an unprecedented experience for Scout. Atticus is appointed defending attorney for the rape case of a black man because he is the only person who could sway the jury even the slightest bit. While some members of the community think he is a �traitor� to his race, some admire his upright, civil manner. Jem and Scout know they can always depend on him to try to make things equal and right.
A short conversation between Jem and Scout sums up the story�s message:
�Naw, Jem, I think there�s just one kind of folks. Folks.�
�That�s what I thought, too, when I was your age�If there�s just one kind of folks, why can�t they get along with each other? If they�re all alike, why do they go out of their way to despise each other?� � pg. 227
Some people evidently cannot overcome the prejudice rooted in themselves or find the courage to betray widely accepted social beliefs in favor of Jem�s original speculations. This conversation also emphasizes that social prejudices are learned as one grows up, because Jem is experiencing the inner confusion created as his own beliefs and society�s rulings start to clash.
Through the premature eyes of young Scout, Harper Lee created a world where the odd practices of adults are pointed out and the many sides of prejudice are revealed. Well-blended with humor and symbolism, this novel is indeed one to last through the ages.
Biography
Nelle Harper Lee, born on April 28, 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama, is well known for her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel To Kill A Mockingbird, her only novel to date. It was also adapted into an award-winning motion picture in 1962. Although she has always denied it, some critics say that the novel is an autobiography; as a child, she was a tomboy much like Scout, the narrator of the story, and she lived through the Scottboro Trial, which is similar to the fictional case of Tom Robinson. The character Dill was also based on her friend and childhood neighbor Truman Capote, the author of In Cold Blood. Despite the many honors and speech invitations, Lee prefers to live out of the public�s eye, declining to give speeches or interviews. She has only published several short essays in magazines since To Kill A Mockingbird.
Sources: http://www.gradesaver.com/classicnotes/authors/about_harper_lee.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harper_Lee