1. To kill a Mockingbird

2. Publication Author: Harper Lee (1926-2016) Published: 1960
Immediate and continued success

3. Harper lee (1926-2016) Born and died in Monroeville, Alabama.
Only published two novels:
To Kill a Mockingbird (1960)
Go Set a Watchman (Published in 2015; written in 1950s as part of drafting process for To Kill a Mockingbird)
Assisted with research for childhood friend Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood (1966) and then mostly disappeared from the public eye.

4. Harper Lee on writing When asked why she didn’t publish more novels…
“Two reasons: one, I wouldn’t go through the pressure and publicity I went through with To Kill a Mockingbird for any amount of money. Second, I have said what I wanted to say, and I will not say it again.”

5. Autobiographical Elements
Rural Alabama (Monroeville vs. Maycomb)
Protagonist and narrator, Scout Finch, is loosely based on Lee
Father was an attorney (Same as Scout’s dad Atticus)
Dill is based on Truman Capote
Lee mostly downplayed autobiographical elements in interviews

6. Historical Context Novel was set in 1930s, written in late 1950s
Set during The Great Depression ( ), written during The American Civil Rights Movement (typically dated from Brown vs. The Board of Education ((1954)) to the Fair Housing Act ((1958)))
Keep in mind: Plessy vs. Ferguson (1896) and other Jim Crow laws set the tone for race relations in the first half of the 20th century (Ruled “separate but equal”- reality = not so equal)
Many cases may have had an influence on the courtroom drama in the novel
Scottsboro Boys
Emmett Till