kaTo Kill a Mockingbird TRIAL REENACTMENT

Dear Students,

During the next few days we will take a look inside the minds and hearts of all those people involved in Tom Robinson´s
trial. We know what was said in the trial because we read the book and we have everyone´s words and testimonies. Yet,
what was left unsaid? What did some characters want to say and couldn't or wouldn't? We will attempt to get under
their skin and understand what they were thinking during the trial and during the deliberation of the verdict. Our goal
here is to examine if this trial will or will not begin to make a difference in Maycomb, will it begin to broaden their
perspectives? Will this experience help the town take a first step to break barriers and overcome the obstacles that have
divided them so long?

In order to do this, you will write short reactions that will give us insight into their thinking. These reactions will attempt
to answer the question: How do the hearts and minds of individuals play a role in shaping justice?

DAY 1—LOOKING DEEPLY AT YOUR CHARACTER

1. Character background check: What do we already know? (5 min)

a. What do you know about the character? 🡪 Age, social class, race?
b. Where do they belong in Maycomb's Universe of Obligation?

2. Milling the Character🡪 Quick writes (12 min)

a. How does the character talk?  

b. What is he/she wearing during the trial? What do their clothes say about them?  
c. Who does this person admire the most? Why?
d. How does this character feel about Atticus defending Tom?
e. How does this character feel about Tom’s chances of winning the trial?

3. Interview🡪
a. What questions would you like to ask your character? (10 min)
i. Generate a list of questions--SEVEN--you would like to ask your character...questions to which
you desperately want to know the answers!
ii. Make sure that the questions you ask are not Yes or No answers, but that your character can
elaborate and explain what they want to say. Ex: Link Deas: In what way is Tom Robinson your
best worker?

b. Find your partner and go to your breakout room. (15 min)

i. Interview one another.
1. One person/character interviews—Using your questions
2. The other person responds—Becoming their character

c. Write a small reaction answering the following question: How does your character feel about the trial
before the doors open? (200-250 words) WRITE IN THE FIRST PERSON.

d. When done, upload your work to TAPIR. (10%)

DAY 2—The Facts

1. We have chosen a few HOT SPOTS throughout the trial. Looking at these closely will allow us all to do a deep
analysis of the tensions going on in the courtroom. Read over the following events and make sure you
understand what is exactly happening at that moment. (10 min)

HOT SPOT: places within the text that are ripe for creation, places that are ripe for filling out imaginatively.

i. Heck Tate’s testimony when he says he does not need to call a doctor: “‘Did you call a doctor, sheriff?
Did Anybody call a doctor?... I just wanted to make sure, judge,’ and the judge smiled.” (pg 224)

Since the moment I saw this kids in the courtroom, I thought it was a bad idea, a girl a little girl
like Miss. Jean luis , was on the trial, a trial like this one, nono, i must say Mr.Jem to take her
out, I’ll invite them to sit with me, maybe then I can have more control of what is being said,
and convice them to get out. I also remembered about the prayer I did before commmig here,
and I knew Mr. Hake, he was a good guy, he would tell the truth. Everytime it got even more
intense, Dear god! This man is lying, the way he is doubting every thing he says. If miss mayela
was that beaten up, then why wouldn’t anyone take her to a doctor, for godness sake!

ii. When Atticus cross examines Bob Ewell: “Mr. Ewell wrote on the back of the envelope. . . one man was
leaning forward with his hands over the railing.” (pg. 237)

What a good lawer, I said to myself, while listnening how Mr.Finch was cross eaxminating Bob Ewell, It was clearer, that
Tom was innocent. Atticus was making Bob so nervous about his answers, he kept questioning his testimony, and
Mr.Ewell got very unconfortable. I think it was clear to every single person on court room that Bob ewells testimony had
been manipulated by his own lies. At this moment, I gained a little bit more faith on winning the trial, I knew god would
help the innocent come clean and safe.

iii. When Atticus cross examines Myella Ewell: “Slowly but surely, I began to see the pattern of Atticus´s
questions: from questions that Mr. Gilmer did not deem sufficiently irrelevant or immaterial to object
to, Atticus was quietly building up before the jury a picture of the Ewells´ home life. . . Papa needed
them home.” (pg. 244)
iv.
Mayela Ewell, poor girl, she must feel so alone, I could almost feel her pain, while she was
speaking. God safe her and help her. I thought to myself, that she was the only one who could
turn things up, and safe Tom Robinson, maybe she will come around, and tell the truth. Maybe
this is Gods plan, he will get into her heart and make her tell the truth. She is the key to the
case, if she confeses and tells the truth then they do not have a case against Tom. But when she
finished, she didn’t told the truth, she lied the entire time. The trial wasn’t going as I espected.

v. When Tom Robison feels pity for Myella: “‘You did all this chopping and work from sheer goodness,
boy?’...Mr. Gilmer paused a long time to let it sink in.” (pg 263-264)

Anyone would feel bad for Mayela, she is very alone, she has no friends, when she asked what
friends were? Jesus my heart brokeTom Robbinson messed it up by saying, that he felt pitty for
Mayella, he just gave them a motive. All the hopes that I had on the trial being won, went down.
Maybe it wasn’t on gods plan to win this trial.
 vi. Atticus giving his closing argument: “ She has committed no crime, she has merely broken a rigid and
time-honored code of our society, a code so severe that whoever breaks it is hounded from our midst as
unfit to live with. She is the victim of cruel poverty and ignorance, but I cannot pity her: she is white.”
(pg 271-272)

Well said, Mr fich touched my heart, it had to be said and it was. It was Gods words. This speach
touched every single one of us in the courtroom. Specially from this side of the balcony, I
wanted to cry, It was a very emotional moment, but I couldn’t show my weakness in front of this
kids, it was their parent speaking. At this point I am grateful, I am grateful to Mr Finch, what a
good man he is. Although deep in my heart I knew it wasn’t going to happen, we were going to
loose, somewhere in my head there was a tiny bit of hope, that this speech would make the
judges come to their senses and take the right choice.

vii. The entire town waiting for the verdict: “‘What time is it Reverend?’ he asked.[...]I allowed myself a
short nap against Reverend Sykes’ comfortable arm and shoulder.”(280)

Poor kids I thought, they must be exhausted, this is no place for kids. I could see how tired they
were, Miss. Jean Louise, even fell asleep against my shoulder. What a great job Mr.Finch has
done with his kids, it is no easy job to raise kids nowadays, and even more raise them as he did
in a society like this. I was so nervous, what was going to happen, they had been inside since
forever. In the onely way that I could help, was praying: Dear God, please remeber my prayers,
and help this poor men, who has been incriminated.

viii. Maycomb’s reaction to the VERDICT: “What happened after that had a dreamlike quality:[...]
ix.
I knew it would come out like this, deep in my heart I knew it. Although I tried to raise my
hopes up, which I actually did, I always knew, it would come up this way. Mr.Finch made a great
job, he is a great man. Poor, Tom and his family, thats all I was thinking, they didn’t deserve it.
Why God? Why?, how do you explain this to a community? how do you explain this to the kids?
How do you explain this to Hellen?.
x.
xi.
He did not In thinking about your character, reread the Hot Spots, and write down the FACTS.

Go over the parts where your character either participates or is silently present and trace over
their feelings and thoughts. For each Hot Spot write a paragraph--120-150 words--reacting to
the events happening during that moment. Make sure you keep your character’s POV at all
times. This means that you write in the FIRST person. Use the following guidelines, to help you
write your reactions. (40 min) (30%)

a. PART ONE—The Facts

i. What happened in that “hot spot”?
ii. What factors influenced some of the choices/statements that were
done in this scene?
iii. By whom? Who was affected?
b. PART TWO—The Feelings/Thoughts
i. What do you think your character was feeling during this time?
ii. What were they thinking?
 xii. What did they want to say that they were not saying?look up.”(pg. 282-283)

2.

DAY 3—REENACTMENT

Today we will re-enact the trial. The idea is that Cata/Malu/Maria reads the scene where the Hot Spot takes place and
stops at key moments. ACTORS/Characters will then tell us how they are feeling or what they are thinking at that exact
moment. You must each PARTICIPATE in at least THREE Hot Spots to receive credit. You will be graded on your
interventions and insights. (60%)

CHARACTERS:

CHARACTER ACTOR ELA BARRERA ACTOR ELA URIBE

HECK TATE Mateo Rincon Mariana Guerrero

BOB EWELL Andres Santa Pablo Duzan

MYELLA EWELL Laura Pardo Manuela Henao

TOM ROBINSON Ana Maria S Maria Rodriguez

ATTICUS FINCH Nicolas Alonso Sofia Lizarralde

HELEN ROBINSON Katrina Maria José Uribe

MR. GILMER Nicolas Barrera Maria del Mar Sampedro

REVEREND SYKES Samuel Crane Manuela Carreira

LINK DEAS Amelia Cruz Susana Franco

JUROR # 1 Juan Andres V Sophia Florez

JUDGE Silvia Velez Maria Luisa Cordoba

DOLPHUS RAYMOND Cata Afanador Sofia Angulo

AFRICAN AMERICAN SPECTATOR Pedro Rueda Juliana Aguilar

MISS STEPHANIE CRAWFORD Yayo Camila Gamboa

JEM Camilo Salazar Elena Fonseca