Is Boo Radley Linked to Jeff the Killer?
Though the two stories have major contrasts, the urban legends of Boo Radley. and Jeff the Killer, hold many resembling factors. Throughout the novel of To Kill A Mockingbird one of the main characters is Boo Radley , a creepy neighbor in Maybcomb County that most of the entire town fears. In the book the people of Maycomb have created myths about Boo, depicting him as someone who is crazy, and someone who should not be messed with. While Jeff the Killer is a popular modern urban legend, originating from the internet to scare people. His story centers around a troubled young teen who starts killing people. Like in many urban legends the descriptions of how characters look are typically exaggerated to create a more ominous theme for readers. Overall the story of Boo Radley can make readers intimidated from the six foot, squirrel eating, scissor stabbing maniac. In Boo’s description he supposedly has a long, jagged scar that runs across his face, yellow and rotten teeth, and drools most of the time. While in Jeff the Killer’s urban legend, he is “extremely pale from bleaching his skin, his eyes are surrounded in black skin, he also has a long red lipped smile which he carved into his face with a knife.” Like Boo, his height also reaches around six feet. The physical descriptions of
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In the opening of Jeff the killer’s story readers are thrown into a scene where Jeff is lurking in the shadows of a child’s room ready to kill him. Before he can, the child wakes up, screams, and alarms his parents before Jeff can hurt him. Meanwhile in Boo Radley’s tale the town gossip, Stephanie Crawford, tells the children that Boo had once been watching her sleep from the window in the middle of the night. Despite Boo never trying to hurt Miss Stephanie, the story makes Boo Radley out to be a creepy entity looming over people, similar to
In the book we see the Radley house which has over grown grass around the house and the area the house is in is all alone. The Geography of this house makes us then emphasize the fact that the people living in it are scary and mean. At the end of the book, we learn that Boo is not scary or mean. Although this is what the author intended to do in the beginning and make us confused in the end. Another big indicator is that the Radley’s yard has a broken fence which was used to sneak into Boo Radley’s yard and there is also tall
The Pulitzer Prize winning novel “To Kill A Mockingbird” written by Harper Lee portrays the life of a young girl, Scout, and her family who live together in Maycomb, Alabama circa 1930s. Scout lives next to some fascinating people that have legends and myths made about them because of their back story. One of them being Boo Radley. Boo was locked away in his house by his parents for most of his life after committing crimes that put him away for good. After the news got out about his vanishing into the Radley house forever many stories were made up about him.
Though he is an honest, hardworking man he is black, and a white woman claimed he raped her. In this time period a white person's word was always taken over a black person's word and though he had not been convicted yet he was still feared. Finally, both Boo and Tom were accused of deeds they had not done. For instance, Boo Radley has had many rumour spread about him even though he comes from a family of fine folks. Though the Radley’s socioeconomic status, Boo was still disrespected, and was the and was the prey of many gossips such as Miss
All one has to do is look around us and they can see that the world has a lot of Social inequalities. Think about in school or work. Is there a Boo Radley? Someone who is isolated because they may be different. We've all seen racism on TV with all of the shootings and protests.
None of the kids have saw him a day in their life, but they hear countless stories of how terrible he is and that he has been locked up for a very long time. Boo (Arthur) Radley has been getting locked up basically his entire life. Boo drove a scissors into his father’s leg it stated on page 9. This is the start to Boo Radleys life in solitude. After he was tried in court for the stabbing Boo was locked in the courthouse basement because no one had the heart to put him in jail with the Negros.
Boo Radley and Jane the Killer Urban legends are widely heard throughout the world. The Boo Radley legend is about this boy who stays locked up inside his house. Jane the killer is about a girl who befriends a guy and then hunts him for revenge. Urban legend Jane the Killer and Boo Radley share similar story elements. Jane the killer is about a girl who just so happens to be the neighbor of an out of the ordinary guy.
Just standing on the Radley porch was enough. ”(279). Scout uses her imagination to try and view all the past events that have occurred through Boo’s eyes. When she does this she realizes that Boo isn’t a bad person at all, he is actually kind of like a guardian angel. Boo Radley’s character proves a great point that we should never judge or assume things about another person that we know nothing
Boo Radley was an innocent man and was looking out for Jem and Scout. There is a difference between the truth and rumour. To know the difference between the truth and rumours, you need to think for
In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee many characters are victims of the harsh conditions of Maycomb County. Often those who are seen to be metaphorical mockingbirds are punished the most. A mockingbird is one who only wants and attempts to do good. Characters such as Boo Radley, Jem Finch and Tom Robinson are exemplars of mockingbirds in Maycomb. In the novel it is explained by Atticus that killing a mockingbird is a sin because they do not do anything to harm to us like nesting in corncribs, or eating up the gardens, they only sing for us.
Rumors swept through the town, ruining a man’s reputation and giving him no reason to step outside of his own home. In To Kill a Mockingbird, by Harper Lee, Arthur “Boo” Radley is the most complex of Maycomb’s residents. Many say Boo is a killer that should not be trusted near children. However, Scout thinks otherwise as she tries to understand Boo herself. She learns more than she figured, as Boo teaches her numerous lessons without even meeting her.
However almost everyday Jem finds toys or random objects in the tree out front of the Radleys house. This gives Jem the idea that Boo isn 't some horrible monster after all. “Atticus believes Jem killed Ewell in self-defense, but Tate makes him realize that Boo Radley actually stabbed Ewell and saved both children 's lives.”(lee 28) This quote shows that the children had been put in a situation where the so-called “monster” Boo Radley saved their lives and they now could look at him not as some maniac but a hero and regular person who stays inside to protect himself from the stereotypes and cruelty of the world because of something people had said and that had been spread throughout the
In Chapter 4 of To Kill a Mockingbird Jem and Scout find several things in the knot-hole of the old oak tree on the Radley house. The children are very curious about who left these things there. Later in the book they realize that it is Boo Radley is leaving the gifts. He is trying to show them his affection for them. Throughout the novel Jem and scout find 2 sticks of gum, a pack of gum, 2 old Indian head coins, gray twine, soap figures carved to like Jem and Scout, old spelling bee medals and an old watch on a chain and an aluminum knife.
In the beginning of the book Stephanie Crawford, the town gossiper, justifies that she knows everything about Boo Radley. Scout and Jem are frightened by Boo Radley because of all the stories they have heard. Scout is terrified of the Radley place and calls Boo, a “malevolent phantom.” According to Miss Stephanie Crawford, Boo Radley was sitting in the living room cutting some items from the newspaper and when Mr. Radley had passed by him, Boo drove the scissors into his leg.
In To Kill A Mockingbird Boo Radley is a man who always stays shut up inside of his house which causes many rumors about him to be spread around the town. For instance, at the end of chapter 14 it’s stated “Dill?”/ “Mm?”/ “Why do you reckon Boo Radley’s never run off?”/ Dill sighed a long sigh and turned away from me./ “Maybe he doesn 't have anywhere to run off to…” This shows how Boo Radley is emotionally struggling because people always are assuming things about him that can cause him to feel uncomfortable around others. At the end of the book Boo Radley acts afraid of everything like when it says “Will You take me home?’ He almost whispered it, in the voice of a child afraid of the dark.”
In the book, To Kill A Mockingbird, the author Harper Lee shows that we shouldn’t be too quick to judge another person’s character based on outward appearance and the stories and rumors we have heard. The character Boo Radley is a perfect example of why we shouldn’t be hasty to judge. On the outside, Boo looks like a scary neighbor that lives just a few houses away. “.....he had sickly white hands that had never seen the sun. His face was as white as his hands…..”