What Does Coming Of Age Mean In To Kill A Mockingbird

Furthermore, Lee also demonstrates how Mrs Dubose’s camellias are growing back out, this shows us that Jem’s plan had failed to destroy Mrs Dubose’s camellias and is a symbol and a lesson as shown here, “Thought you could kill my Snow-On-The-Mountain, did you? Well, Jessie says the top’s growing back out. Towards the end, Mrs Dubose appears to give Jem a kindly gift of one of her camellia since Jem had been reading to her everyday. This could also show how memorable the event could be to Jem as he would never forget

Mrs Dubose is represented as a mean old lady but in reality she’s just struggling with her health. Mrs. Dubose has suffered many years with addiction and is trying to take care of her health but the kids do not believe that because she is a mean person. Jem and Scout try to avoid walking by her house because she’s really rude to them. One day when Scout walked by, she said: “ ‘Hey Mrs. Dubose,’ I would receive for an answer, ‘Don’t you say hey to me, you ugly girl! You say good afternoon Mrs. Dubose!’ she was vicious” (pg 115). Scout judges Mrs. Dubose based on how she behaves towards her without getting to actually know her, this is seen when Mrs. Dubose uses the word ugly to describe Scout. However Scout similarly describes Mrs Dubose negatively by calling her vicious, although Scout has never made the effort to understand her personal struggles. Likewise After Mrs. Dubose’s death, Atticus said to Jem “I wanted you to see something about her--I wanted you to see something about her--I wanted you to see what real courage is, instead of getting the idea that courage is a man with a gun in his hand.” (pg. 112). Atticus wanted his kids to see the side of Mrs. Dubose that he knew himself. Atticus wanted them to see the courage she had and how strong she was in reality. The kids thought she was just a mean old lady, but behind closed doors, she was a hero. Jem and Scout thought that Mrs. Dubose was a mean old lady. They did not believe or see what Atticus saw in Mrs. Dubose.

“You can’t understand someone until you walk a mile in their shoes” is a saying that will always hold truth to it, even in this day and age. In Harper Lee’s, To Kill A Mockingbird, where two children are living in a racially segregated town in the 1930’s, this is demonstrated a lot. Through the use of point of view and coming of age, Lee proves that you can never understand how someone is feeling without imagining yourself in their perspective.

Harper Lee makes Jem’s actions extravagant when talking about Mrs. Dubose to express how he doesn’t understand the way Mrs. Dubose acts. When Jem is forced to help Mrs. Dubose for damaging her yard Jem is disappointed because he knows from previous experiences how unfair she is. After Jem’s first day repaying Mrs. Dubose for what he has done he complains to Atticus saying, “She’s so nasty. She has fits or something” (Lee 90). Jem thinks Mrs. Dubose uses disgusting language and that she doesn’t act like a proper

Dubose at first glance, is a bad woman doing nothing but spending her days sitting on her porch criticising people or hiding indoors. Everyone in the book can agree that she is cruel and bitter towards everyone. However, Mrs. Dubose isn’t grumpy because of Atticus, the children or even that her flowers are ruined. She is battling a morphine addiction, that leaves her feeling mentally broken. Her struggle is discovered and she shocks everyone because all she’s trying to do is be brave until she dies. “...neighborhood opinion was unanimous that Mrs. Dubose was the meanest old woman who ever lived” (35, Scout). In this quote, the entire neighbourhood thinks that Mrs. Dubose is just a mean, rude and unenjoyable old woman. Jem and Scout especially depict her as nothing more than heartless and a huge insult to their father. Later it is evident that Mrs. Dubose suffers from a morphine addiction that is slowly ending her life. According to Atticus she is very brave, despite her rotten attitude and deserves plenty of sympathy. Prior to knowing about her addiction, Scout is mildly annoyed with Mrs. Dubose constantly pointing out the smallest flaws in her behavior. “‘Don’t you say hey to me, you ugly girl! You say good afternoon, Mrs. Dubose!’”(103, Mrs. Dubose). Scout experiences first hand Mrs. Dubose’s rude and cruel manner. She, again, seems to be an extremely evil and horrific old lady. Mrs. Dubose, although slightly cruel and mean has been extremely affected by her

Mrs. Dubose quitting her addiction proves to the kids they should do what's right. Mrs. Dubose’s was so weak that, while others would’ve taken an easier, painless death, she “meant to break herself [of the drug] before she died...to leave this world beholden to nothing and nobody” (Lee 148) out of pride. By Mrs. Dubose deciding to take the hard way of death, she established that just because something might be easier to do, it doesn't make it right. Relating to Jem and Scout by revealing to them that they shouldn’t become like the other people on town and start to think negatively about the trial just because it's easier to hate instead of defend. Mrs. Dubose had such a strong courage that it made Atticus “want [Jem and Scout] to see what real

Dubose, an older lady who is very nagging of Jem and Scout. Jem and Scout do not care for her that much, and yet Atticus never shies from being extremely kind to her. “ It was times like these when I thought my father, who hated guns and had never been to any wars, was the bravest man who ever lived. “ (Lee, pg. 115-116) This is an example of Atticus’ kind nature because even with someone who can be as difficult as Mrs. Dubose Atticus shows nothing but the utmost respect and kindness to her. In the eyes of Jem and Scout this is astonishing because they don’t understand how anyone could be kind to someone who is aggravating to them. They find Atticus so brave to have been kind to her, comparing it to something as difficult as being in a war, when really it is just how Atticus acts. Atticus returns from Mrs Dubose’s house with news of her passing, with him he brought a small candy box that Mrs. Dubose wanted Jem to have, inside was a camellia flower.. “... I told you that if you hadn’t lost your head I’d have made you go read to

Mrs. Dubose gives Jem a flower after she dies because it’s her way of saying thank you for reading to me and providing me with a distraction. When Atticus says, “ ‘She was the bravest person I ever knew’ “ (Lee 128), it was because she had to battle her illness bravely until the day she died. She had to lived everyday in pain, but she pushed through and preserved until the very end. When Mrs. Dubose gifted the flower to Jem, she is passing the bravery to him. She also could have meant for the flower to be a “forgive me” symbol. The color white often symbolizes innocence, purification, and a fresh start, which therefore represents Mrs. Dubose’s forgiveness towards Jem, due to his innocent behavior. She wanted him to know that she wasn’t angry

In to Kill a Mocking Bird the fictional town Maycomb shares a lot of similarities with Harper’s real-life hometown “Monroeville”. Prejudice was a big problem in Maycomb and the theme which was resented throughout story of racism came from their personal experiences. The main character Scout had multiple experiences of “coming to age” throughout the book, but more specify at Tom Robinson’s trail. At the trail of Tom Robinson, Jem and Scout learn of racial prejudice as Tom Robinson is unjustly accused and charged with physical assault upon Mayella Ewell. Even before the trail started, Scout and Jem saw the separation of blacks and whites, as the blacks were forced to view from the balcony and the whites sitting in the front of the court. Atticus

Lee used a situation that represents both sides, she had the kids think outside of what they would usually and have them expand on their normal conclusions. She did this when the kids were reading to Ms. Dubose and found out that she wasn’t as okay as Jem and scout had assumed. This put the kids into questioning what else they were unaware of and without them knowing they grew a little more mature. This showed through the choices and decisions they came up with after they did not have to vist Ms. Dubose. Lee used Ms. Dubose as Jem and Scout’s immaturity and childish ways, and them accepting their consequences as their way of slowly overcoming

She is a neighbour of the Finch household, and is described as “plain hell”, chapter 1, and “the meanest old woman who ever lived”, chapter 4. She was always shouting and yelling insults to Jem and Scout. However, Atticus saw her as a very brave woman, and was a winner, “You rarely win, but sometimes you do. Mrs. Dubose won all ninety-eight pounds of her. According to her views, she died beholden to nothing and nobody. She was the bravest person I ever knew”, chapter 11. Mrs Dubose was misjudged from many people because of her unkind attitude but the quote relates to her because she was a morphine addict and promised herself to die clean. Jem and Scout didn’t know this so they disliked her, but they didn’t know the pain she was going through. Mrs Dubose was in fact an underdog, a hero, and that took immense courage. This is how the quote “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view... Until you climb into his skin and walk around in it” applies to Mrs Dubose because nobody knew what she was going through and she died as a

Many authors use coming-of-age themes to show the progression of a character throughout a novel or story. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee has a continuing theme of coming-of-age throughout her novel. She knows how the characters’ perspectives change due to the maturing process. In the article “Beautiful Brains”, David Dobbs explains the science behind the growing-up process, and why people think the way that they do. Coming-of-age involves recognizing different perspectives.

Criticism comes easy to Ms. Dubose for she yells and degrades those around her. Jem and Scout look upon her as an evil woman with no respect for the society. Little do they know she is fighting her own battle each and everyday. As Atticus has said many times before “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” Children never quite understand the complexity of life as a whole. They see what the want to and choose what to believe. This is the case for Jem and Scout, understanding Ms. Dubose’s cruelty does not come easy. Atticus sees the light in her and was able to foresee what she put forth towards the children. Throughout the novel she unveils her true colors and proves she is not merely evil. Being a morphine addict turns her bitter and forces her to become somebody she is not.

Mrs. Dubose is a cruel verbally malicious old woman who was despised by everyone in the neighborhood. When she glanced at the Jem, Jem “would be raked by her wrathful gaze, subjected to ruthless interrogation regarding” the Jem’s behavior (99). The children, Jem and Scout, are instructed by Atticus to discount what is said, but eventually Jem breaks down and eradicates Mrs. Dubose’s flowers showing that Jem could not fulfill his father’s aspiration for him based on animosity found in the words of Mrs. Dubose.

Mrs. Dubose was talking bad about Jem and Scout’s father. Jem got into an external conflict with Mrs. Dubose. Once Jem herd Mrs. Dubose talk about Atticus he raged into conflict taking out his anger on Mrs. Dubose's camellia flowers. “Your father’s