Oberlander 1

Tommy Oberlander
Ms. Ingram
English 1 Honors
16 February 2016
Social Influences in TKAM
Many lives can be changed by the community someone lives in. How the people are, the
society, etc. Peoples lives have been changed in To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Scout is
a main character that is affected but there were others. Scouts life is affected by families, the
society she lives in, and her friends.
Families have greatly influenced Scouts life. Her own family has the biggest affect on
her. Atticus teaches Scout many different lessons but always wants her to climb into his skin
and walk around in it (Lee 39). This is the greatest lesson Scout learns. As she grows older, she
got better at this life lesson. Scout walks in Boos shoes and sees what Boo has seen. Also at the
trial she walks around in their shoes. Scout is impacted by this by seeing a different side of the
story that she is looking at. Therefore Scout becomes a better person. Aunt Alexandra and
Calpurnia shows Scout how to be a woman. Calpurnia shows Scout how to do lady-like actions
and chores while Aunt Alexandra could be a lady at a time like this, so could [Scout] (318).
Aunt Alexandra makes Scout dress nicer and more like a lady. She also shows Scout how to act
like a lady. Alexandra makes her be with the the ladies of Maycomb to see how they act. Scout is
impacted by this because she becomes more lady-like as she watches them go about their days.
Although her family did impact her a lot, so did other families. The Radley family also affected
Scout. The Radleys are different from everyone in Maycomb. They are not social and do not do
what most families do. Arthur Radley was locked in their basement because of what he did. Also

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Nathan shoots a shotgun at Scout, Jem, and Dill thinking that they are negroes. The Radleys
impact Scout by showing her that many people are different and have different ways. She does
walk around in their shoes and sees what they see. Scouts life changes after what she sees with
the Radleys. Families all around have taught Scout many lessons and has impacted her life.
Society can impact a variety of aspects. The society Scout lives in impacts the way she
thinks and acts. Class distinctions is a very big part of the society. Scout describes Walter as one
of the Cunninghams and that is the way they compare each other (26). The Cunninghams are
poor and live on a farm. Plus they never take what they cannot pay back. There are also the
Ewells who are mean and dirty. With these distinctions Scout sees how there are different types
of people. Scout is told that she is a Finch so she should be well mannered. Scout is impacted
because she learns equality by thinking that everyone is the same, just as Atticus teaches her.
There is also a lot of racism going on at the time towards black people. Tom Robinson is accused
of rape even though he actually did not. Because he is black, the jury convicts him guilty. Scout
sees the trial happen and sees that it is unfair. This impacts Scout because she sees that a nice
town can be very racist at times. This leads Scout to change her views on certain aspects of
peoples lives. One aspect is after seeing Heck Tate say Tom raped Mayella and later says he
should have told the actual truth, she thought he is not their friend anymore. Therefore Scout
becomes more empathetic. Another way Scout is impacted by society is by how people act. Mrs.
Dubose is bawling at Scout that she should be in a dress and camisole showing Scout the way
girls should properly dress (135). Also when Miss Maudies house burns down, she says that she
does not like the house and does not care that it is gone. This shows positivity and being relaxed.
Another person is Miss Crawford. She is a loud mouth that always has to say something about
the news and add a twist to make it better. How all these people act impacts Scout because they

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show her different ways to act. Mrs. Dubose teaches her to dress nicer and more lady-like, Miss
Maudie teaches her that even when something terrible happens everything will be okay, and Miss
Crawford teaches her how ladies act. With the society that Scout lives in, she learns many
different traits that she should have.
The friends that Scout have along with her friends friends influence her. One friend of
hers is Walter Cunningham. Although she is mean to him she learns from him. As Walter is
eating with the Finches and Scout says a rude comment, Calpurnia fiercely tells her that theres
some folks who dont eat like us (32). Walter is not actually as high living as the Finches, so
him getting a lot of food is crazy for him. Usually he eats small meals, along with other families
like the Ewells. From this point on Scout is empathetic towards her friends. Her friends teach her
a different way of life. One major friend, that is her fiance, is Dill. Dill is fun to be around. He
will play and make up stories with Jem and Scout. He even gets Jem to go up and touch the
house (18). What Dill does to impact Scout is he shows her bravery. When there is a problem,
Scout can go through it by being brave. Especially the whole time before the Tom Robinson trial.
Cecil Jacobs is another good friend of Scout. Even though he is a jerk to her for awhile, he is still
nice to her. For example when Scout and Cecil are at the pageant, Cecil is hanging around with
Scout while they wait for their time to go perform. Even Calpurnias friends impact Scout by
paying back Atticus for helping Tom. Heck Tate also helps cover up what Arthur did. With all of
her friends, Scout eventually becomes a better person. Scouts friends have truly made her more
empathetic and stronger.
Communities impact everyone and everything. Scout is definitely impacted by friends,
family, and society. Scout learns the ways of empathy and how to be a better person in general,
all because of the community she lives in.

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Works Cited
Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. Philadelphia: Lippincott, 1960. Print.