To Kill a Mockingbird
Themes
Theme: a universal idea that is relevant to any time or culture
There are several major themes that Harper Lee threads throughout the novel. As a class we will be
following these themes throughout the book.
Hypocrisy v. Integrity
“Atticus Finch is the same in his house as he is on the public streets.” p.46
Prejudice/Stereotypes/Tolerance
“He ain’t company, Cal. He’s just a Cunningham.” p. 24
“Yo’ folks might be better’n the Cunninghams but it don’t count for nothin’ the way you’re disgracin’ em.”
p. 24
Injustice v. Justice
“Our battles were always epic and one-sided. Calpurnia always won, mainly because Atticus always took
her side. She had been with us ever since Jem was born, and I had felt her tyrannical presence as long as I
could remember.” p. 6
Growing Up/Loss of Innocence
“She was always ordering me out of the kitchen, asking me why I couldn’t behave more like Jem when she
knew he was older.” p. 6
Courage
“You’re scared…You’re too scared even to put your big toe in the front lawn.” p. 13
Practice
______________"First of all," he [Atticus] said, "if you can learn a simple trick, Scout, you'll get along a
lot better with all kinds of folks. 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." p. 30
______________“Calpurnia’s tyranny, unfairness, and meddling in my business had faded to gentle
grumbling of general disapproval. On my part, I went to much trouble, sometimes, not to provoke her.” p.
34
______________“True [Miss Maudie] had an acid tongue in her head and she did not go around the
neighborhood doing good like Miss Stephanie Crawford. But while no one with a grain of sense trusted
Miss Stephanie, Jem and I had considerable faith in Miss Maudie. She had never told on us, had never
played cat and mouse with us, and she was not at all interested in our private lives.” p. 44
______________"As Atticus once advised me to do, I tried to climb into Jem's skin and walk around in it:
if I had gone alone to the Radly Place at two in the morning, my funeral would have been held the next
afternoon. So I left Jem alone and tried not to bother him." Page 57
______________Scout’s punishments on the first day of school. p. 17, 18, 22
Hypocrisy v. Integrity
Prejudice/Stereotypes/Tolerance
Injustice v. Justice
Growing Up/Loss of Innocence
Courage