Theme Of Compassion In To Kill A Mockingbird

Words: 622
Pages: 3
Open Document
In To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee tells a story of Scout and Jem Finch growing up in Alabama during the 1930’s. Scout and Jem learn lessons and the truth of the residents of their own town, Maycomb, themselves, and even their own father. There are many themes Lee demonstrated in this novel, such as prejudice, empathy, hypercity, love and many others. Harper Lee, illustrates compassion in To Kill a Mockingbird through the use of Jem’s hospitality, Scout’s compassion, and the black community's generosity
. One way, Harper Lee demonstrates the theme of compassion is through Jem, Scout’s older brother who matures throughout the story. Jem sees Scout fighting with Walter Cunningham at the playground. Jem breaks up the fight and acknowledges Walter has no lunch. Jem suddenly grinned at him “Come on home to dinner with us, Walter,” he said (Lee, 30). Walter is unsure because he doesn’t want to owe them anything. “We’d be glad to have you,”Jem said(30). Walter finally agrees and eats as much as he can. This shows how Jem understood Walter had no food and had enough compassion to offer him some of his own. Jem’s actions are certainly compassionate, and Walter is grateful for the dinner. …show more content…
When Atticus Finch took the Tom Robinson he knew it would be difficult. He knew people would talk about him and would threaten his family. Even though the townspeople would treat Tom Robinson with such disrespect he still worked his hardest. The morning after the trial, Atticus was because of the verdict. The black community showed compassion through the use of bringing food to the Finch family. “The kitchen table was loaded down with enough food to bury the family: hunks of salt pork, tomatoes, a jar of pickled pigs feets” (Lee, 286). The black community was very grateful of Atticus and wanted to show their support to him. The black community demonstrated compassion through rounding up food and showing their support of
Show More

Related Documents: Theme Of Compassion In To Kill A Mockingbird

how to kill a mocking bird Essay

To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel by Harper Lee published in 1960. It was immediately successful, winning the Pulitzer Prize, and has become a classic of modern American literature. The plot and characters are loosely based on the author's observations of her family and neighbors, as well as on an event that occurred near her hometown in 1936, when she was 10 years old. The novel is renowned for its warmth and humor, despite dealing with the serious issues of rape and racial inequality. The narrator's…

Words 396 - Pages 2

Examples Of Femininity In To Kill A Mockingbird

Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee portrays evident themes of racism, familial love, justice, and compassion. One of the lesser discussed themes, however, is femininity. In the beginning of To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout is determined to embrace her tomboy side for a great deal of time as she grows up, fearing any type of femininity. She seems defiant and set against maturing into a beautiful young woman. In her mind, boys get to have all of the fun, and girls are destined to wear dresses and do…

Words 378 - Pages 2

Adversity In To Kill A Mockingbird

face and even tougher to fight, amazing all when beaten. Unfortunately, the fight against adversity is not always won, but the progress made in surviving all twelve rounds and going the distance can still have a great effect. In the novel To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Mr. Atticus Finch is at odds with own town and the society within it. Faced with an insurmountable task, Atticus is left with two choices, step down and become what he resents, or take on an emotionally testing battle that will…

Words 1091 - Pages 5

To Kill A Mockingbird Social Injustice Essay

The theme of social injustice is central to Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird and the lessons the novel teaches about compassion and understanding are still relevant today. Harper Lee used the setting of a small town in rural Alabama in the 1930’s as a backdrop to explore several different forms of social injustice, among them racial prejudice and social ostracism. Racial prejudice was best illustrated through the character of Tom Robinson, a black man who was on trial for the rape of a white woman…

Words 654 - Pages 3

Theme Of Prejudice In To Kill A Mockingbird

Harper Lee’s enduring and well-respected novel To Kill a Mockingbird uncovers the malicious social entities of prejudice, racism and power within Southern America during the 1930s. But why are we, Australians today, still finding relevance in the issues exposed in this novel? The 1930s was the prime time for discrimination and white supremacy worldwide. Southern Alabama was a place where water fountains labelled “coloured” didn’t burst with colourful water as a naive child would imagine, but instead…

Words 887 - Pages 4

To Kill A Mockingbird Rhetorical Appeals Essay

use rhetorical appeals, which are appeals to emotions, credibility, and logic that persuade audiences to relate to a message. The novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee and Robert F. Kennedy’s “Statement on the Assassination of Martin Luther King Jr.” both exemplify the use of rhetorical appeals in order to gain empathy from an audience. To Kill a Mockingbird includes many rhetorical appeals that the author uses to influence readers and cause them to empathize with the topics of racism and discrimination…

Words 1822 - Pages 8

Robert F Kennedy Speech Analysis

evokes empathy when she writes about misjudged and misunderstood characters in her book, To Kill a Mockingbird. Robert F. Kennedy expresses a compelling form of empathy by stating how important integrity is in his speech regarding the immortal words of Martin Luther King Jr.. Both Harper Lee and Robert F. Kennedy both express socially crucial forms of empathy in their writings. When reading, To Kill a Mockingbird, the reader empathizes with the characters that Scout empathizes within the novel,…

Words 640 - Pages 3

Theme Of Social Inequality In To Kill A Mockingbird

To Kill a Mockingbird was written in the 1940’s, which was the prime of social inequality. Social Inequality is the most relevant issue but is still overlooked majorly. In Harper Lee’s Novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Social Inequality was shown through the novel numerous times. This book had social inequalities from gender to class to race. Harper Lee talks about gender throughout her novel. Scout lost her mother at an early age, but does not fret over the lack of femininity. Her Aunt Alexandra does…

Words 1093 - Pages 5

Scout Finch Hero

are also essential to the plot. In the book To Kill a Mockingbird, the author Harper Lee took time to thoroughly describe and give life to her characters. The historical fiction novel follows the maturity and growth of the protagonist, Scout Finch, as she grasps the racial injustices of her town and learns to treat everyone with empathy and equality, no matter who they are. Although in most novels there is one clear hero, in To Kill a Mockingbird, the three most prominent heroes are Atticus, Arthur…

Words 1286 - Pages 6

To Kill A Mockingbird Essay

It would probably help greatly in times of conflict, as one would understand another’s reasoning. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, not one character can read minds. Jem, Scout, and Dill are growing up in a world where bias and prejudice is plentiful. Luckily, they have an honorable figure like Atticus guiding them on how to deal with conflict. In To Kill a Mockingbird , Harper Lee expresses through fear leading to misconceptions; influences of environment and society; and the trial of Tom Robinson…

Words 1499 - Pages 6