1)VocabularyBildungsroman
Recluse
2)Setting-Maycomb,
Alabama (1930s)
Bildungsroman
 This is a novel that traces the development of a character
from childhood to adulthood, a quest for identity that leads
him or her to maturity. The term bildungsroman comes
from the German for "formation novel," or "education
novel.“
Can you think of another novel that could be classified as
a bildungsroman?
As you read, consider how TKAM is a novel about Scout
and Jem growing up. Who is teaching them the most?
Recluse
 A recluse is someone in isolation who hides away from the
attention of the public, a person who lives in solitude or
seclusion.
What are some reasons why someone would become a recluse?
One of the main characters of this novel (and one of the greatest
literary characters of all time) is a recluse, the ghost-like Boo
Radley.
Harper Lee, the Pulitzer Prize winning author, became a recluse
after the worldwide attention from writing this classic. She
never wrote another book…
Maycomb, Alabama-1933-1935
Maycomb was an old town, but it was a tired old
town when I first knew it. In rainy weather the streets
turned to red slop…somehow it was hotter then . . . bony
mules hitched to Hoover carts flicked flies in the
sweltering shade of the live oaks on the square. Men's
stiff collars wilted by nine in the morning. Ladies bathed
before noon, after their three-o'clock naps, and by
nightfall were like soft teacakes with frostings of sweat
and sweet talcum. . . . There was no hurry, for there was
nowhere to go, nothing to buy and no money to buy it
with, nothing to see outside the boundaries of Maycomb
County. But it was a time of vague optimism for some of
the people: Maycomb County had recently been told
that it had nothing to fear but fear itself.
 Write down two observations you can make about the
setting from Harper Lee’s description of Maycomb.
 Write down one question you have.
Mrs. Schibillia’s Note:
 I read To Kill A Mockingbird every year. It is my #1
favorite book. However each time, I notice different
things-sometimes something funny Jem says or
foreshadowing about Mr. Ewell, the novel’s villain.
You don’t have to love it, but keep reading past the
difficult first chapter. Enjoy the mystery about who
Boo Radley really is. Laugh at the trouble Scout, Jem,
and Dill get into every summer! Also, don’t forget to
write notes in your book or on post it notes about the
characters and setting, especially your questions. 