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By Harper Lee
BOOK REVIEW
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Rosales, Twinkle Anne G.
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STEM-2 St. Maria Goretti
TITLE:

INTRODUCTION

About the Author:

Harper Lee is best known for writing the Pulitzer

Prize-winning bestseller 'To Kill a Mockingbird' (1960)
and 'Go Set a Watchman' (2015), which portrays the later
years of the Finch family.

Writer Harper Lee was born on April 28, 1926, in

Monroeville, Alabama. In 1959, she finished the
manuscript for her Pulitzer Prize-winning bestseller To
Kill a Mockingbird. Soon after, she helped fellow-writer
and friend Truman Capote wrote an article for The New
Yorker which would later evolve into his nonfiction
masterpiece, In Cold Blood. In July 2015, Lee published
her second novel Go Set a Watchman, which was written
before To Kill a Mockingbird and portrays the later lives of
the characters from her Pulitzer Prize-winning novel. Lee
died on February 19, 2016, at the age of 89.

Many aspects of To Kill a Mockingbird are

autobiographical. Monroeville served as the model for Maycomb, and Lee was dubbed
"Queen of the Tomboys" by at least one friend; Lee gave all three of her mother's names
to various characters in the novel. There is at least anecdotal evidence that Boo Radley
was based on an actual neighbor. Finally, Lee has stated that Atticus Finch was based
largely on her own father.

To Kill a Mockingbird was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1961, and was made into a
major motion picture starring Gregory Peck in 1962. Lee was so impressed with Peck's
portrayal of Atticus Finch that she gave him her father's pocket watch at the end of the
movie's filming.
 In the early 1960s, shortly after publication of To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee
accompanied her childhood friend Truman Capote — the basis for the Dill Harris
character — to Holcomb, Kansas, and served as a research assistant for Capote's 1966
novel, In Cold Blood.

Lee also published three articles in the '60s: "Love — In Other Words" in Vogue
(1961), "Christmas to Me" in McCall's (1961), and "When Children Discover America" in
McCall's (1965). President Lyndon Johnson named Lee to the National Council of Arts in
1966. She has received several honorary doctorates, including one from the University of
Alabama and another from Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama. She attended both
ceremonies, but spoke at neither and gave no interviews.

In 1998, the Harper Lee Award for a Distinguished Alabama Writer was unveiled
by the executive committee of the Alabama Writers' Forum. This award recognizes an
accomplished writer who was born in the state or who lived in Alabama during his or her
formative years.

Never married, Lee continued to divide her time between New York and Monroeville,
where she lived with her sister Alice. Known for her wit and charm, Lee granted only a
handful of interviews since To Kill a Mockingbird's publication. Her family and friends
remained protective of her privacy.

Major Topics:

The main topic presented is about Racial Discrimination and the existence of
Social Inequality. Racial Discrimination is seen from the barrier between the white men
and the black Negroes in the story. There is something that separates them apart even if
we know that all men are equal. The white men consider themselves superior than those
black Negroes who work as slaves throughout their lives. It is clear that color and race
can either make or break a community. But in this case, difference ripped the community
apart and grouped the people into two completely opposite worlds. Social Inequality is
also presented in Lee’s work. Those that are well-off like the Finch family are on top of
social hierarchy. Below them are ordinary town people. Next to them are the country
farmers like the Cunningham. Resting below the Cunninghams are the white trash Ewells
and below them were the black community. This social division is clearly shown in every
situation in the novel.

Author’s Purpose:

Harper Lee wanted the readers to see that there are people born essentially good
and essentially evil. She wanted the readers to explore a child’s perspective about what is
happening in the novel. She also wanted to show that even children, at their young age,
can be greatly affected by what is happening to other people even if how serious it may
seem. The novel has shown the transition of Jem and Scout from being innocent toward
having a grown-up moral perspective.
SUMMARY:

It was then that summer, Scout Finch recalled how her brother, Jem Finch got his
arm badly broken at the elbow. They live in a tired old town---Maycomb, Alabama
together with their widowed father, Atticus Finch and their black cook, Calpurnia. Their
mother died when Scout is just two years old due to a sudden heart attack. Atticus is a
prominent lawyer and their ancestors are reasonably well off in comparison to the rest of
the society. They usually spend their summers together until Dill, Miss Rachel’s nephew,
came straight from Meridian, Mississippi. They became friends and spent their time in
playing outside. Until Dill became curious and fascinated about the Radley Place jutted
into a sharp curve beyond Finch’s house. The house was owned by Mr. Nathan Radley
and his brother, Mr. Arthur “Boo” Radley who never had a look outside for years, even a
glance. He was confined inside that spooky house and no sunlight kissed his skin for
years.

That summer ended and Dill left them early in September. Scout started schooling
and discovered many things which she believes are beyond the values taught by their
father. Her teacher doesn’t want her father to teach her to read and that is what she can’t
completely understand. Everytime they walk home from school, they always pass the
Radley Place. There were two live oaks at the edge of the Radley lot and Scout was
attracted by a tinfoil sticking in a knot-hole in one of the trees when she once passed by.
She and her brother are able to find gifts inside that hole everyday and that fact makes
them more interested in that place. Dill came again that summer and they began to act
out the story of Boo Radley. They even wrote their scripts to make their play lively but
they’re careful to not let Atticus discover what they are doing. But on Dill’s last night that
summer, they planned to have a sneak-peek at Radley’s place. They created a note and
attached it at the end of the fishing pole aiming to put it by the window sill but they failed.
What they did is step in the Radley’s backyard and get closer to the house. Because it is
nighttime, it is easier to see what’s on the inside because it’s dim outside. What they saw
is the shadow of Boo Radley walking to their direction. They were frightened by a gun
shot and made their way out of that place as fast as they could. Jem got his pants loose
after struggling in the fence and ran to the oak tree in shorts. When he returned to get
them, they were folded across the fence. When the winter came, they found more
presents from the knot-hole and thought that it was somebody’s hiding place. Mr. Nathan
Radley filled the knot-hole with cement because according to him, the tree was dying
even if there’s no sign that it was and the leaves are still green. Because it’s winter time,
snow suddenly fell on Maycomb unexpectedly. Jem and Scout made a snowman in their
frontyard. Thereafter, Mrs. Maudie’s house broke into fire and during that incident;
someone slipped a blanket on Scout’s shoulders who they believed was Boo Radley.
They told Atticus about it and the presents that they got from the knot-hole in the Radley’s
place.
 Suddenly, Jem and Scout became subjects of abuse from other children in their
school. Atticus agreed to defend Thomas Robinson, a black man who was accused of
raping a white woman, Mayella Violet Ewell. It was a clear disgrace for a white man to
defend a negro and it seems like it is a sin if you’ve helped a one in the Maycomb county.
Scout always wanted to defend her father but Atticus told her she didn’t have to. He was
chosen by the courthouse to defend Tom because they know that Atticus is an excellent
lawyer and he did what he can to help Tom out of this case. Even when Scout and Jem
visited Finch’s Landing for Christmas, abuse didn’t let them escape. Mrs. Henry Lafayatte
Dubose, one of their neighborhoods, even called Atticus no better than the niggers and
trash he works for which made Jem and Scout unable to control their temper. Jem cut the
tops off every camellia bush Mrs. Dubose owned and littered green buds and leaves on
the ground. To pay for what he did, Mrs. Dubose ordered him to come every afternoon to
her house and read a good book out loud for hours which will last for a month. Days and
weeks passed until Mrs. Dubose finally finished her journey on land.

Jem turned twelve and his relationship with Scout, grew apart. He became difficult
to live with so Scout managed not to disturb him and turned to Calpurnia in the kitchen
instead. Summer came and Dill wasn’t there because he had to spend time with his new
father who planned to build a fishing boat. Since Atticus is out for an emergency session
by the state legislature for two long weeks, Calpurnia is in-charge for taking care of Jem
and Scout. She brought them to the First Purchase African M.E. Church where Negroes
worshipped every Sundays. The children were welcomed warmly by all of those who
attended the mass that morning.

Alexandra, Atticus’s sister, came to live with Jem and Scout the next summer. She
wanted the children to have a feminine influence especially Scout who prefers wearing
boyish clothes rather than floral dresses. Dill ran away from his father in Meridian and
came to Maycomb. Tom Robinsons’s trials began and he was placed inside the jail.
Atticus went to the local jail the night before the trial to face the mob. What he didn’t know
is that his children followed him that night because they are worried. Seeing their father
talking to the mob from a distance, Scout ran as fast as she can to her father. His face
looked very disappointed. They waited until the mob disappeared one by one and they
went home with Atticus.

At the day of the trial, Jem, Scout and Dill, without Atticus knowing their presence
sat in the balcony together with Reverend Sykes and other colored people. Judge Taylor
was on the bench. The witness stand was to his right and saw Mr. Heck Tate on it. Mr.
Gilmer, the solicitor asked him to tell everything that he knew about the rape case filed
against Tom Robinson. Atticus, on the other hand asked Mr. Tate some questions about
what had happened as well. The next person who is placed in the witness stand is Mr.
Robert E. Lee Ewell, the victim’s father. Just like the first witness, he answered a series of
questions given by Mr. Gilmer and Atticus. It was Mayella’s turn to stand as the witness of
her own case. She was scared of Atticus doing what he did to his father. But as the
interrogation continues, Mayella covered-up herself with lies. She is blaming Tom
Robinson and telling everyone that it was him who took advantage of her. Atticus
provided strong evidences that Mr. Bob Ewell and Ms. Mayella Ewell are lying. It was
Mayella who went over Tom that evening of November twenty first and started to kiss him
even if he resisted. Mayella asked him to fix their door when in fact, nothing’s wrong with
it. It was completely a trap for Tom to come over their house and it was Mayella who is
madly inlove with him. Tom doesn’t want to hurt her and he couldn’t do anything to keep
her away from him until Mr. Ewell came and so them in that scenario. Tom get up
hurriedly and ran as fast as he could because he was afraid that Mr. Ewell will kill him
because of the fact that he was a Negro. But he didn’t take advantage of his daughter, he
is sure about that. On the other hand, Mayella’s injuries were because of her own father
who beat her upon seeing her with Tom. He called her a whore and beat her up. Despite
all of the evidences indicating Tom’s innocence, the jury who are all white men, decided
to put him in jail and said that he was guilty beyond reasonable doubt. He was convicted
even if how strong their evidence was. The next thing in the morning, Atticus was
shocked upon hearing the news that Tom was shot to death inside the prison where he
tried to escape. Jem was really affected by what happened and his faith in justice is badly
shaken. Atticus, together with Calpurnia went to Tom’s wife, Helen to tell what happened.
Good thing, Mr. Link Deas gave her a job after what happened to Tom.

Bob Ewell, despite winning the case vows revenge. He menaces Tom Robinson’s
widow, threatened Atticus and finally attacks Jem and Scout when they are walking home
from the Halloween party. Boo Radley showed up and saved the children from Mr. Ewell.
He stabbed him fatally and carried unconscious Jem to the Finch’s residence. Atticus
called Mr. Heck Tate and Dr. Reynolds. Mr. Tate, aiming to protect Boo told Atticus that
Ewell tripped tripped over a tree root and fell on his own knife. It wasn’t Jem who did it at
first. He’s just up to saving Scout and taking her home. Scout cannot believe the fact that
he is now sitting with Boo Radley, the person whom they are curious about. After bidding
goodbye to Jem, Scout escorted Boo to the Radley’s place and watched him disappeared
upon entering the door. Scout went home right after.

It wasn’t just an imagination for she had the chance to be with Boo Radley
personally. She ran to Jem’s bedroom and asked Atticus to read “The Gray Ghost” aloud.
The rain was so soft and the room was so warm and his voice was so deep and his knee
was so snug that made her fell asleep. Atticus carried Scout to her bed and turned out the
light. He went to Jem’s room and he would be there all night, and he would be there when
Jem woke up in the morning.
ANALYSIS

A. Strengths

To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee is very effective in showing the readers

how strong Racial Discrimination is during the Great Depression in 1930s. There is
a barrier between the black Negroes and the white people. Although it is clearly
stated in the story that a democratic country like Alabama has equal rights for all
and special privileges for none, still the story evolved in favor of those white men.
The discrimination is shown not only when it comes to their way of living, but also
in every little aspects of their lives.

Most of Negroes are hired as slaves by wise men and take advantage of them.
In the story, it is clearly shown that most of the household helpers were blacks. An
example is Calpurnia who is the Finch’s family cook. Although she was just a cook,
Mr. Atticus Finch and his children, Jem and Scout never made her feel that she is
not a part of the family. She didn’t feel that she’s different just because her skin is
colored black. Instead, she was given another family outside her own home.
Another example is Mr. Tom Robinson who works for Mr. Link Deas. When he was
accused of rape and needed a lawyer to help him out, Atticus was there. The fact
that Atticus agreed to defend him is unreasonable for other people in Maycomb. It
seems like for them, it was a sin when somebody helped a negro and it is such a
disgrace for the whites.

People are also afraid that the African Americans will make their way to the
world of whites through marriage thus, interracial marriage was outlawed in many
states. In the story, the main reason why Mr. Ewell beat up Mayella is that he
doesn’t want to be connected to a nigger. Seeing Mayella and Tom together is
enough for him to conclude that his daughter likes him that is why he hurt her. It
would definitely be a disgrace for his family if the news spread out that her
daughter took advantage of a Negro in their own house. This wouldn’t be a
problem if Tom is white but since he isn’t, Mr. Ewell can’t accept the fact that his
daughter did it especially to him.

The author did well in making the readers realize that there are two different
worlds for white and black men. She had influenced the readers’ minds by means
of showing them rather than telling them how savagely cruel the world is for men of
different race and color.
 B. Weaknesses

Upon reading the novel, I have realized that “Justice” was its weakness itself.
From the story, justice was not served for those who need it most. It is very
disappointing that despite of all the struggles, Tom Robinson wasn’t able to reap
the fruits of his fight for justice. No matter how strong the evidences are and how
prominent Atticus was, they still ended up losing the case. The decision made by
the jury, since they are all white men, is in favor of the Ewells who are also white.

Even if most of the people who watched the trial believe that Tom Robinson is
innocent, if the jury wasn’t, then he will be convicted and condemned guilty beyond
reasonable doubt. The trial seems to be very one-sided favoring the Ewell just for
the fact that they are white and no white people loses any case. They’re used to
this trend, convicting the innocent and having the sinful freed. Justice should not
be blind for those people who are right and just. It should give favor to who is right
and true. It shouldn’t be manipulated; instead, it should be fairly served regardless
of color, regardless of race.

The thing is, the author should’ve let Tom Robinson win the case to show the
white people that they are not superior. If this had happened, it will definitely cut
the chains of blacks and crash the wall between them and the white men. Things
would be a lot better if Tom wasn’t convicted. Atticus will not be called a nigger-
lover, Jem and Scout will no longer be abused and it could’ve saved Tom’s life.
The ending would be quite different and it would definitely be a relief for Jem and
Scout if their father had won. This will somehow put an end to the Racial
Discrimination between white men and black Negroes. But it didn’t happen the way
it should. Maybe because the author wants to show the readers that this novel is
really a mirror of what happens in reality. Not all things happen the way we want to.
Sometimes, we should accept everything and move on with our lives.

Harper Lee started the novel with an epigraph, “Lawyer’s, I suppose, were children
once.” by Charles Lamb. This is mainly the reason why she chose Jean Louisse Finch as
the narrator despite being a child. But this didn’t stop her in discovering and venturing the
world out there. Seeing everything based on her perspective is enough for the readers to
understand the meaning of the story itself. She was a good story-teller in her own means
and ways. The author presented the story objectively through Scout’s very own eyes. Her
innocence made the story more interesting and appealing to the readers.
CONCLUSION

To Kill a Mockingbird is a novel which is mainly about innocence. The story was
told from a child’s perspective as Scout Finch was the one who narrated the story. It is
her innocence that allowed us to dig deep within the story. She’s filled with questions that
refuse to take answers and all of them were answered as the story progressed for every
chapter. The title “To Kill a Mockingbird” carries a great symbolic meaning. The
mockingbird comes to represent the idea of innocence. Thus, to kill a mockingbird is to kill
innocence. Mockingbirds don’t do one thing but make music for people to enjoy. They
don’t eat up people’s gardens, don’t nest in corncribs, they don’t do one thing but sing
their hearts out for the people. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird. They are
completely harmless birds and killing them would definitely be unreasonable. From the
story, the characters of Tom Robinson, Jem, Dill, Boo Radley and Mr. Raymond can be
identified as mockingbirds because they were innocents and victims of evilness that ruled
over Maycomb, Alabama.

Scout Finch, being a child is like a mockingbird filled with innocence about the
world and its cruelness. She was a victim of different situations but she managed to
conquer them all with the help of her brother, Jem and her father, Atticus. There are a lot
of things that this world could offer but she was raised with the world rumbling just before
her very own eyes.

The author wanted the readers to realize what happened during the time that this
novel was written. She wanted them to realize that African Americans are treated with
discrimination before and even until now. The world is changing but this is something that
didn’t change over time. The fact that they have been experiencing this kind of treatment
from the white men for many years is very disappointing. Through this novel, we can
address what was really happening and we can understand their consequences by
putting ourselves in their own place and putting our feet in their shoes. Maybe this is the
author’s way of helping all the African Americans out there whatever situation they are on.

The author succeeded in affecting the readers through her story. Every ups and
down of the characters in the story is the same with the readers who learned to
appreciate every little character included. I, as a reader, also fall inlove with the
characters of Jem, Scout and Dill in the story. They are children and at their ages, they
should be enjoying their lives but they chose to understand and dive in the world of adults
in their place. Their curiosity brought them to many circumstances but in that way, they
always learn their lesson. This book is not something that everyone will be interested in
reading but it is something that will inspire us to live with a purpose, to live not only for
ourselves but also for other people.