1 / 28

To Kill a Mockingbird

To Kill a Mockingbird. Harper Lee. Harper Lee. Born April 28, 1926 Monroeville, AL Great Depression era Reclusive lifestyle. Harper Lee. Only published one book Still lives in Monroeville w/ her sister Never married Known to be pleasant and witty

trynt
Download Presentation

To Kill a Mockingbird

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. To Kill a Mockingbird Harper Lee

  2. Harper Lee • Born April 28, 1926 • Monroeville, AL • Great Depression era • Reclusive lifestyle

  3. Harper Lee • Only published one book • Still lives in Monroeville w/ her sister • Never married • Known to be pleasant and witty • Fought fiercely to stay out of the public eye

  4. Education • Attended Huntington College for one year • Exchange student at Oxford University in England • Law student at the University of Alabama (1945-1949) • Worked in New York City as an airline reservation clerk

  5. To Kill a Mockingbird • Won Pulitzer Prize in 1961 • Submitted in 1957; published in 1960 • Only novel Harper Lee ever wrote

  6. Historical Context of the Setting • Maycomb, AL (fictional) • Great Depression (1930’s) • Stock-market crash of 1929 • 13 million Americans had no jobs • 750,000 farmers had lost their land

  7. Social Context Although • in1863, President Lincoln signed the Emancipation Proclamation • and the South lost the Civil War… African Americans were still considered “second class citizens” years later

  8. Point of View • 1st person • Told in retrospect

  9. Novel of Maturation • Focuses on the maturation and coming-of-age of its central character • Scout, the six year old main character, learns from her experiences

  10. Themes: central ideas • Striving to reach adulthood • Overcoming/dealing with Prejudices: racial, social, and sexual

  11. Characters…in the family • Atticus Finch • Widower around 50 years old • An attorney appointed to defend Tom • Scout (Jean Louise) Finch • Atticus’ daughter • “tomboy” • Jem Finch • Atticus’ son • 4 years older than Scout

  12. …friends and foes • Calpurnia • Finch’s African American cook • Helps raise Jem and Scout • Aunt Alexandra • Atticus’ sister • Scout’s “foe” • Dill (Charles Baker Harris) • Scout’s “intended” • 7 years old

  13. …in the neighborhood • Boo (Mr. Arthur) Radley • Mysterious neighbor • Mr. Nathan Radley • Boo’s “unneighborly” brother • Miss Maudie Atkinson • Children’s mentor • Compassionate neighbor • Mrs. Dubose • Elderly neighbor of Finch's • Contrast of Miss Maudie

  14. …some of Maycomb’s finest • Mr. Walter Cunningham • One of Atticus’ clients (refuses to accept charity) • Heck Tate • Sherriff of Maycomb • Tom Robinson • Young African-American accused of raping Mayella Ewell

  15. …Maycomb’s not so finest • Bob Ewell • Head of a large family of “poor white trash” • Mayella Ewell • Bob’s eldest daughter • Accuses Tom of raping her

  16. Tomboy, feisty, and a creative girl Daughter of a lawyer Childhood spent in Monroeville, AL during Great Depression Mother died due to illness Harper Lee vs. Scout

  17. Respected attorney and state legislature Has genuine humility which lends him a natural humility Amosa Coleman Lee vs. Atticus Finch

  18. Often ill; died in 1951 Harper Lee used every part of her mother’s name in the novel Frances Cunningham Finch vs. Scout’s mother

  19. Harper Lee’s childhood friend Visited Monroeville during the summer Truman Capote vs. Dill

  20. Scottsboro boys were accused of raping two white women Everyone in Scottsboro came to view the trial out of curiosity Lawyer was appointed to represent the boys Scottsboro Trial vs. Tom Robinson Trial

  21. Ruby Bates, one of the white women came from a poor family “the lowest of the low” with a lifestyle of drunkenness and filth Ruby Bates followed Victoria’s lead for how to act in court …continued

  22. Scottsboro Boys

  23. Scottsboro Boys

  24. Outside the Court House

  25. To Kill a Mockingbird • Made into a major motion picture starring Gregory Peck in 1962 • Peck won an Oscar for his performance • Book was banned by Virginia’s county school system b/c it deals w/ the subject of rape • Lee defended her book as an example of honorable code of conduct and questioned whether the members were illiterate

  26. To Kill a Mockingbird By Harper Lee

  27. A Mockingbird is: • long-tailed grey-and-white songbird of the southern United States able to mimic songs of other birds

  28. QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER • What was America like during the time of this book? • What is the significance of the title with regard to the plot and symbolism? • What experiences and people did Harper Lee rely on in order to develop her plot and characters? • Is there still prejudice in America today?

More Related