An Introduction to Harper Lee’s TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD

To Kill A Mockingbird Set in the small Southern town of Maycomb, Alabama, during the Depression, TKAM follows the life of 6-year-old Scout Finch, her brother, Jem, and their father, Atticus. The story is punctuated by the arrest and eventual trial of a young black man accused of raping a white woman. Though the story explores big themes, Harper Lee chooses to tell it through the eyes of a child. The result is a tough and tender novel of race, class, justice, and the pain of growing up.

Author: Harper Lee Born on April 28, 1926 in Monroeville, Alabama Racial tension very high in the South Grew up during The Great Depression very hard economic times 1957 – submitted manuscript for her novel; was urged to rewrite it Spent over two years reworking it 1960 – To Kill a Mockingbird (her only novel) published 1966 - was one of two people named by President Johnson to the National Council of Arts

Main Characters Scout (Jean Louise Finch) – six-year-old narrator of story Jem (Jeremy Finch) – her older brother Atticus Finch – Jem and Scout’s father, a prominent lawyer who defends a black man accused of raping a white woman Arthur (Boo) Radley – a thirty-three-year-old recluse who lives next door Charles Baker (Dill) Harris – Jem and Scout’s friend who comes to visit his aunt in Maycomb each summer Tom Robinson – a respectable black man accused of raping a white woman Calpurnia – the Finches’ black cook and caretaker

SETTING – Where and When Maycomb, AL (inspired by the real Monroeville, AL) 1930s

Theme Central message or insight into life revealed through a literary work Themes in TKAM are based on the idea of racial prejudice, which was so much a part of society during this time period Lee stresses the need for human understanding to destroy the evils of racial prejudice

Images of Monroeville, Alabama The town that inspired Harper Lee’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel To Kill a Mockingbird

Monroeville County Courthouse, Monroeville, Alabama. Harper Lee’s father practiced law here in the 1930s.

A view of the courtroom from the balcony.

A view of the courtroom from the entrance hall

View of the jury box with the Judges’ bench

The witness stand (Judge’s bench behind)

View of the balcony from the bench. (This is where Scout and Jem watch the trial)

Judge Lee’s office in the courthouse. Much as Atticus’ would be.

Living in a World of Discrimination A cafe near the tobacco market. (Signs: Separate doors for "White" and for "Colored.“) North Carolina, 1940

Social Class in the Novel This is probably similar to how class structure existed during the 1930’s in the South. The wealthy, although fewest in number, were most powerful. The blacks, although greatest in number, were lowest on the class ladder, and thus, had the least privileges. Examples of each social class: Wealthy - Finches Country Folk - Cunninghams “White Trash” – Ewells Black Community – Tom Robinson

Quote to think about as we read. . . "Mockingbirds don't do one thing but make music for us 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 us. That's why it's a sin to kill a mockingbird." - Atticus Finch