representation – The New Conventional Way

Atticus Finch

Published on November 28, 2018November 28, 2018 by beauty_of_the_universeLeave a comment

In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Atticus Finch is best represented by a pair of glasses, because he sees the problems regarding treating others and racism in Maycomb, and tries to show others how to fix them. One example is when Atticus tells Jem:

“‘…son, I told you that if you hadn’t lost your head I’ve have made you go read to her. I wanted you to see something about her- I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see through it no matter what.'” Chapter 11

In this way, Atticus attempts to teach his son that to respond to violence with more violence is wrong. He wants to show his children that they should have reacted to Mrs. Dubose’s mean comments with respect because she was dealing with something that not many other people know of and was trying to get past her addiction so that she could die free. atticusfinch

Additionally, he sees how racism plays an important role in how things are run in Maycomb, because he takes on the role of being a lawyer for Tom Robinson, a Black man. Not only does he defend Robinson because it was his duty to, he defended him to the best of his ability because he knew that Robinson was being pulled into the Ewell’s mess simply because Mayella was guilty for what she did, and because Tom was Black. Therefore, Tom was blamed and guilted heavily, simply because of his skin color, and Atticus was trying to show Maycomb that all men were supposed to be treated equal, regardless of race.

In conclusion, Atticus can be best characterized as a pair of glasses because he sees Maycomb’s issues that need to be fixed when nobody else is aware of them, and aims to break the town’s traditions that linger on these problems.

Written by Alessandra Nguyen

Mrs. Dubose

Published on November 26, 2018November 30, 2018 by genasblogLeave a comment

In the eleventh chapter of To Kill A Mockingbird, a crucial character was introduced. Her name was Mrs. Dubose.

Mrs. Dubose was an old woman addicted to morphine living in the town of Maycomb. She knew everyone and everything in the town and always made blunt, snarky comments to mostly everyone that passed by her porch. Jem and Scout were hollered by her until they realized that people are more than their looks. They have beliefs and personalities.

Jem runs home after crushing Mrs. Dubose’s award-winning camellias after name calling Atticus. Atticus then orders him to read to her every afternoon for 2 weeks.

Mrs. Dubose cuts her morphine addiction and starts to have fits due to withdrawal. She soon dies and Atticus explains to Jem and Scout that Mrs. Dubose was very brave because she cut off her addiction knowing she could get even sicker than she already was.

“I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand. It’s when you know you’re licked before yo begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do. Mrs. Dubose won, all ninety-eight pounds of her. According to her views, she died beholden to nothing and nobody. She was the bravest person I ever knew.” (Lee 149)

Atticus’ plan the whole time was to teach Jem and Scout what real courage is by watching Mrs. Dubose on her deathbed. Mrs. Dubose showed a lot of courage when handling her drug addiction and was just misunderstood. All she wanted was for people to respect her.

Written by Gena

White Camellias and Addiction

Published on November 14, 2018November 30, 2018 by beauty_of_the_universeLeave a comment

Chapter 11 of To Kill a Mockingbird is especially vital and important to the story and its message. In this chapter, Jem and Scout encounter the terrifying lady known as Mrs. Dubose who insults them and their father every time that they pass by her front house, and who has a hidden struggle under the surface that is the cause of her actions.

This chapter is important because of its symbolism. When Atticus punishes James by telling him to go read to Mrs. Dubose every day for wrecking her camellias, this stands for responding to violence and anger with acceptance and education. Mrs. Dubose herself symbolizes old tradition and racism. Therefore, when she dies at the end of the chapter, this demonstrates breaking the norm and putting an end to the racism that is the main cause of conflict in the small town of Maycomb.

Mrs. Dubose’s death also may signify the loss of innocence. This was the second death that Jem had experienced in his life, after his mother’s, and this was Scout’s first death that she could recall, because she was too young to remember her mother’s death. The two siblings are also introduced to adult problems and a harsher, real world where people are not all that they may seem on the outside. For instance, the two realize that Mrs. Dubose was fighting against drugs, morphine in particular, and they never knew that until after she had died. They learn that Mrs. Dubose had Jem read to her every day because it was a way to distract her from the pangs of addiction. In this way, they also learn that people aren’t all as they seem, because they thought that all Mrs. Dubose did was insult them, when in reality, her actions were influenced from attempts of breaking out of addiction.

This chapter is important to learn more about because it represents Maycomb breaking free of its traditions of racism and discrimination. This is similar to the situation of Mrs. Dubose because she was trying to fight her addiction to drugs. This representation can prove to be true because Atticus tells Jem that even if Mrs. Dubose didn’t punish him by telling him to come over everyday to read to her, he would tell Jem to do the same thing, Atticus said that this showed people getting rid of old habits when they didn’t have to, but when they did it anyway, even with the knowledge that it might be a lost cause.

Chapter 11 of To Kill a Mockingbird is important because it demonstrates the Finch children acknowledging a world that is bigger than their childhood imaginary fantasies. Mrs, Dubose’s death and her addiction is a way of showing them that that people aren’t all that they may seem, and that they may be fighting an internal battle that nobody knows about. All in all, the symbolism and analysis of this particular chapter is vital to understanding the message behind the book, and will prove to be key in the children’s adaptation to the world as they grow up and mature.

Written by Alessandra Nguyen