1. Revision for To Kill a Mocking Bird.
Pointers for your study and possible essay in the examination.

2. REMEMBER
You have to write one answer on POETRY, one on DRAMA and ONE a novel.
That means Mr. Kenny’s group have a choice between LOTF by William Golding and TKAMB by Harper Lee.
Read the questions carefully and select the one you know you’ll write on best.

3. The book’s title…..
The Mockingbird is known as “the American nightingale.” It is a song bird which often imitates the songs of other birds. It brings pleasure to all who hear it.
Therefore, to kill one is regarded as a sin.
The bird clearly refers to Tom Robinson.

4. The USA of Harper Lee….. The USA of 1960, when the book was published, was on the verge of huge change. The Civil Rights Movement was about to bring an end to racial segregation .

5. Racial segregation……
In that picture of Tom and Atticus in the law court you will see that Tom is the only black American on the first floor.
Why?......
All the other black Americans have to sit in the balcony. They could not sit in the same seats as white Americans on the buses, in movie theatres, and on park benches, for example.
Here 2 men drink from segregated water fountains.

6. So now……….
The novel is renowned for its warmth and humor, and racial inequality. Atticus Finch, the narrator's father,
has served as a moral hero for many readers, and a model of integrity for lawyers. One critic explained its impact by writing, “in the twentieth century, TKAMB is probably the most widely read book dealing with race in America, and its protagonist, Atticus Finch, the most enduring fictional image of
racial heroism."[

7. Symbolism……
In that last still from the movie, Atticus shoots dead a rabid dog.
What does this action symbolize? Why would Harper Lee place the incident in her narrative unless there was an ARTISTIC PURPOSE?
I think we can see that the rabid dog represents racial prejudice, and Attitus is the only man in town who can shoot the dog dead.

8. More symbolism – how do these 2 images relate to the book?

9. Mrs. Dubose
.'" Mrs. Dubose is addicted to the pain killer, morphine. She is dying, we suppose, from cancer, and she wants to die free of the drug.
Atticus makes Jem read to her to distract her from the withdrawal symptoms. She dies free and sends Jem a gift of an camellia.
Here are 2 important quotations from this incident, both spoken by Atticus, teaching his children lessons on life.
"'The one thing that doesn't abide by majority rule is a person's conscience.”
'It's when you know you're licked before you begin but you begin anyway and you see it through no matter what. You rarely win, but sometimes you do.'“ – Mrs. Dubose won.

10. Flowers in the book….
What do these others flowers represent/symbolize in the book.?
Harper Lee puts them in the narrative for a purpose………….
The geraniums Mayella Ewell keeps outside the shack where she lives in abject poverty?
The flowers in Miss Maudie Atkinson’s garden, which she defends against the insults of the Foot Washers?

11. Who is Boo Radley?
Boo Radley is a hidden character, a boy whose father’s over-zealous punishment subjected to years hidden away in the house, so that he cannot function in ordinary society any more.
His fate mirrors something of Tom Robinson’s fate, in that both are treated unfairly and Maycomb society accepts it.
The children make friends with him and he puts a blanket around Scout’s shoulders on the night of the fire that destroyed Miss Maudie’s house, and he saves Jem’s life the night he rescues the children from Bob Ewell. He is like a guardian angel, and the colour white is important in his description. He is a powerful symbol of goodness swathed in an initial shroud of creepiness, leaving little presents for Scout and Jem and emerging at an opportune moment to save the children. An intelligent child emotionally damaged by his cruel father, Boo provides an example of the threat that evil poses to innocence and goodness. He is one of the novel’s “mockingbirds,” a good person injured by the evil of mankind.

12. Who are the Ewells?
Bob Ewell -  A drunken, mostly unemployed member of Maycomb’s poorest family. In his knowingly wrongful accusation that Tom Robinson raped his daughter, Ewell represents the dark side of the South: ignorance, poverty, squalor, and hate-filled racial prejudice. He is the rabid dog, and dies at the end of the novel at the hand of Boo Radley.
Mayella Ewell -  Bob Ewell’s lonely, unhappy daughter. Though one can pity Mayella because of her overbearing father, who is probably sexually abusing her, as revealed by Atticus’ cross examination in the court house, one cannot pardon her for her treatment of Tom.

13. Who are some of the others?
Miss Maudie Atkinson (and her flowers) represents the good silent folk of the town who want Atticus to succeed.
Sheriff Tate underwent a change. He did not question the accusation of rape against Tom (never sent for a doctor) but firmly decides not to lay charges against either Boo or Jem for the death of Ewell.
Mr. Underwood -  The publisher of Maycomb’s newspaper. Mr. Underwood respects Atticus and proves his ally.
Mr. Dolphus Raymond -  A wealthy white man who lives with his black mistress and mulatto children. Raymond pretends to be a drunk so that the citizens of Maycomb will have an explanation for his behavior. In reality, he is simply jaded by the hypocrisy of white society and prefers living among blacks.
Mr. Walter Cunningham -  A poor farmer and part of the mob that seeks to lynch Tom Robinson at the jail. Mr. Walter Cunningham displays his human goodness when Scout’s politeness compels him to disperse the men at the jail.

14. The Children….
Jeremy Atticus “Jem” Finch - Scout’s brother and constant play mate at the beginning of the story, is something of a typical American boy, refusing to back down from dares and fantasizing about playing football. Four years older than Scout, he gradually separates himself from her games, but he remains her close companion and protector throughout the novel. Jem moves into adolescence during the story, and his ideals are shaken badly by the evil and injustice that he perceives during the trial of Tom Robinson.
Jean Louise “Scout” Finch -  The narrator and protagonist of the story. She is intelligent and, by the standards of her time and place, a tomboy. Scout has a combative streak and a basic faith in the goodness of the people in her community. As the novel progresses, this faith is tested by the hatred and prejudice that emerge during Tom Robinson’s trial. Over time, Scout gains a more grown-up perspective that enables her to appreciate human goodness without ignoring human evil.

15. Some others……..
Charles Baker “Dill” Harris -  Jem and Scout’s summer neighbor and friend. Dill is a diminutive, confident boy with an active imagination. He becomes fascinated with Boo Radley and represents the perspective of childhood innocence throughout the novel.
Aunt Alexandra -  Atticus’s sister, a strong-willed woman with a fierce devotion to her family. Alexandra is the perfect Southern lady, and her commitment to propriety and tradition often leads her to clash with Scout.
She does defend Atticus from the gossip of some of the other ladies, and stands by her brother to help him and the children during the trial, although she wishes he had not agreed to defend Tom.
Calpurnia -  The Finches’ black cook. Calpurnia is a stern disciplinarian and the children’s bridge between the white world and her own black community. She and her son can both read. Atticus refuses to dismiss her when Aunt Alexandra wants him to let Cal go. She represents the goodness and the aspirations of the black community.

16. Atticus
Scout and Jem’s father, a lawyer in Maycomb descended from an old local family. A widower with a dry sense of humor, Atticus has instilled in his children his strong sense of morality and justice. He is one of the few residents of Maycomb committed to racial equality. When he agrees to defend Tom Robinson, a black man charged with raping a white woman, he exposes himself and his family to the anger of the white community. With his strongly held convictions, wisdom, and empathy, Atticus acts as the novel’s moral backbone. Although his children’s attitudes to him change, he never changes, and the Maycomb community still elect him as their representative in the Georgia Senate year after year.

17. Quotations…a few anyway
I think there's just one kind of folks.  Folks.  Chapter 23, Scout.
Why reasonable people go stark raving mad when anything involving a Negro comes up, is something I don't pretend to understand.  Chapter 9, Atticus.
Neighbours bring food with death, and flowers with sickness, and little things in between. Boo was our neighbour. He gave us two soap dolls, a broken watch and chain, a knife, and our lives. Scout .
There's a black boy dead for no reason, and the man responsible for it's dead.  Let the dead bury the dead this time, Mr. Finch.  Let the dead bury the dead.“ Sheriff Tate.
"Atticus had used every tool available to free men to save Tom Robinson, but in the secret courts of men's hearts Atticus had no case. Tom was a dead man the minute Mayella Ewell opened her mouth and screamed." Chapter 25. Scout.

18. Finally
There are many sites devoted to the book on the web, and Sparknotes is a good one to go to for IGCSE revision.
But best of all is to read the book, enjoy it and understand its message, and admire the way that Harper Lee uses humour, fond reflections of childhood, and her very accurately drawn variety of human characters to teach a very important political and social message.