In Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, we follow Jean Finch (Scout) and her older brother Jem growing up in Maycomb, Alabama. Their father, Atticus Finch is a lawyer and takes a case for a black man (Tom Robinson) who allegedly raped a white girl. During the case, it is clearly evident that tom could not have raped her because the claims conflict with Tom's only good arm. The town then becomes hostile toward the Finch family. Throughout the novel, we get symbols and implicit and explicit racism that foreshadows many further events in the book and in the rape case. In “To Kill a Mockingbird”, Harper Lee uses Snow, the Snowman, and White Camellias to foreshadow further events in the book.
To begin, Harper Lee uses Snow to foreshadow Tom’s
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Duboses White Camellia to show white supremacy and the people trusting a white person's word over an African American person just because of one person's skin color. In Maycomb, there is an old woman named Mrs. Henry Lafayette Dubose. She is a gardener who grows white flowers and is battling an addiction to morphine. Whenever Jem and Scout walk by her house she harasses them and one day Jem snaps and destroys her flowers, because of this, he has to basically babysit her and when she dies she gives him a White Camellia. Lee writes, “Jem opened the box. Inside, surrounded by wads of damp cotton, was a white, waxy, perfect camellia.” (Lee 128). This quote symbolizes her passing racism down to Jem and him rejecting it and later on talking to Atticus about how racism is unfair. After the trial of Tom Robinson Jem is unsatisfied with the results. He even notices how Tom is innocent and mad that just because of skin color Tom is convicted. Lee writes, “This was not good enough for Jem. “No sir, they oughta do away with juries. He wasn't guilty in the first place and they said he was.” (Lee 251). This quote is portraying how Jem rejected the flower (racism) from being passed down by Miss Dubose (racial bias) and how white supremacy is present in the
Atticus Finch every time they walk by her house. She is an old sick lady and every time they pass, Atticus tells Jem to just hold his head high and be a gentleman which he then passes on to Scout. When it is just Scout and Jem walking home, Jem suddenly goes off and destroys Mrs. Dubose’s camellia bush. #3 SIGNIFICANCE This quote was significant because Scout couldn’t fathom why Jem would do what he did.
In court, Tom Robinson was declared guilty and sentenced to death. Atticus discusses the outcomes with Jem, stating that whites will always win over blacks. However, Jem argues by saying it “‘doesn’t make it right’”
Atticus says this so that some people may form a new opinion if Tom is guilty or not guilty. After Atticus’s closing argument prior to the verdict, Jem was very confident based upon the evidence presented that Tom would be not guilty, after the trial Jem was very upset and crying about the harsh reality of the case case, while he is talking to Atticus about this he says, “It ain’t right, Atticus”(Lee 242). Jem is finally maturing and realizing the harsh reality of Maycomb and the racism and prejudice in people's minds throughout their society. Jem learns that just because of the way you were born you are not given the same opportunities that others have just because of one factor, the color of your skin, not the way you act, or your reputation, but the color of your skin, something so little, but has such a massive impact on everyday life.
Foreshadowing is seen everywhere--in the world of today, and in To Kill a Mockingbird. In every story there's foreshadowing--hints of future events. Seemingly every page of the novel consists of foreshadowing in some form. Even the first page that is read gives clues of the ending to this story.
In part II of the book When Atticus is talking to the Jem after the trial, he says that ‘…whenever a white man cheats a black man, no matter who he is, how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that white man is trash.’ Lee’s quote shows the reality of systemic discrimination that black people for many years have faced. Focusing on the point that regardless of a white person’s status or background discrimination towards black people is morally wrong. The quote is a call to action that racial injustice must be addressed, and realisation that racial discrimination is wrong but also shows lack of human
‘It ain’t right,’ he muttered, all the way to the corner of the square where we found Atticus waiting . . . ‘It ain’t right, Atticus,’ said Jem” (242). Jem’s original reactions to the case are confusion, shock, and anger. Lee flawlessly contrasts Jem’s anger with the cheerful crowd to help highlight his immaturity and show that he is the only one upset with the ruling. Lee also illustrates Jem repeatedly saying that the result is not right, portraying that Jem does not yet recognize the prejudice within the jury.
This shows us a deeper meaning of the theme because Jem is deeply upset about this ruling because he thought that it was self-explanatory that Tom was innocent, but he didn’t realize that the town would never let a black man win a case over a white man. Harper Lee uses effective ideas in this scene because Jem’s outburst of tears shows us how much it means to him instead of not showing how Jem felt at
In the book, it says “He did not begin to calm down until he had cut the tops off of every camellia.” (pg 106) In this case, the camellias represent time, showing that after what Mrs. Dubose said about Atticus Jem had no more time/patience for her. This also foreshadowed that Mrs. Dubose was going to die because the Camellias were her life and once they died, so did
Although it is often criticized and misunderstood, the foreshadowing used in To Kill A Mockingbird is much like the same technique used in various movies and literature today. There are many times when Harper Lee uses foreshadowing in her novel, which is to give clues about what is about to happen next. Part I of the novel is a large example of a foreshadow. While some people claim Part I of Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird is pointless, Lee uses specific events in Part I to highlight critical ideas in the novel through foreshadowing.
Dubose as a symbol to foreshadow Jem rejecting white supremacy. In chapter eleven Jem is gifted a box of white camellias after Mrs. Dubose’s death. She gave the flowers to him because Jem helped Mrs. Dubose battle her morphine addiction by reading to her after school in her final days. When Jem receives the flowers Scout describes, “Jem opened the box. Inside, surrounded by wads of damp cotton, was a white, waxy, perfect camellia.
Jem also opposes the town’s racism. He instead sees the incorrectness of the town in a logical standpoint. During the trial of Tom Robinson, Atticus brings up solid evidence that the attack was not from Tom, but her father Bob Ewell. Jem believes that there is no way that Tom would be declared guilty, he still believes that the town is not racist and thinks that the jury people will think logically about the case. “I peeked at Jem: his hands were white from gripping the balcony rail, and his shoulders jerked as if each “guilty” was a separate stab between them.”
This passage encapsulates the novel's central theme of empathy, compassion, and the importance of preserving innocence. Through the symbol of the mockingbird, Lee conveys a powerful message that resonates with readers, urging them to recognize and protect the vulnerable and innocent members of society. The passage's beauty lies in its simplicity and poetic imagery. By comparing mockingbirds to innocent beings that bring joy through their songs and do no harm, Lee emphasizes their purity and their inherent goodness.
In her novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee masterfully uses the symbolic significance of the snowman, the mad dog, and the white camilla flower to foreshadow events that occur later in the novel. To begin, Harper Lee uses the snowman to foreshadow how an innocent black man’s story is covered up and forgotten. Excited, Scout and Jem see snow for the first time. They decide to build a snowman with all the snow they can find.
The white camellia first shows up in the garden of the Finch family's racist neighbor, Ms. Dubose. One day, Jem destroys this garden, and as punishment, he is forced to help repair it and to read to Ms. Dubose for a month. At the end of this month, Jem gets a gift from Ms. Dubose after her passing, a small candy box with a white camellia inside. Upon seeing this, Jem is distraught at her. With the quote “Jem picked up the candy box and threw it in the fire” (Lee 149), Lee is saying that not only does Jem reject the gift from Ms. Dubose, but he also rejects his innocence, which is what the flower symbolizes.
To Kill a Mockingbird “As you grow older , you'll see white men cheat black men every day of your life, but let me tell you something and don't you forget it-whenever a white man does that to a black man,no matter who he is,how rich he is, or how fine a family he comes from, that man is white trash.” In To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee, Jem’s perspective is opened up to a more complex topic by Atticus after the events of the unfair trial. In the courtroom everyone is treated equal but the contrast between the blatant truth and the lies to cover it was so obvious , but it never mattered in the end. The literary elements of conflict internal and external with types of people help develop