To Kill a Mockingbird Concluding Notes Historical Background The incidents in the novel occurred in the United States at a time of economic hardships and widespread racial prejudice against AfricanAmericans. Following the crash of the stock market in 1929, the Great Depression began. As conditions became worse, millions of people were out of work, and many were living in near starvation. When Franklin D. Roosevelt became president in 1933, he set up a variety of programs to provide employment and relieve the people of their terrible suffering. Times were particularly hard in the southern part of the United States, a section that had not fully recovered from the aftermath of the Civil War (1861-1865) Historical Background The Civil War began when the southern states seceded from the Union, primarily over the issue of the right to own slaves, which was the basis of the South’s economic prosperity. In 1863, President Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation, freeing all slaves living in Confederate territory. Historical Background At the time of To Kill a Mockingbird, the ‘Negro’ is no longer a slave of the large cotton plantations in the South. The Civil War brought defeat to the South, and freedom to the slave, but it left the black man as a symbol of that defeat, turning him into a social outcast, a subjugated and mistreated scapegoat for much of the Southerner's dissatisfaction. Many people in the South considered African-Americans inferior and continued to demand that they be segregated in separate schools and on trains and buses. To Kill a Mockingbird: The Story Set in the 1930’s, it is the story of “Maycomb” – a quiet southern (Alabama) town, similar to the town where the author grew up. Life is settled and unhurried and there is little that can happen to disturb the social hierarchy. Fundamentalist religious sects flourish, the atmosphere was close and ‘gossipy’ and almost everyone there is related to one another. The town is almost an island – isolated and narrow in viewpoint. To Kill a Mockingbird: The Story In the 1930’s – after the crash of 1929, nearly everyone was poor. Americans were not only not concerned about what was happening in the rest of the world – but they didn’t know what was going on in their own country. No one was concerned with civil rights for ‘Negroes’ – people only wanted to recover from the depression and mind their own business. At that time the South was completely segregated – whites didn’t allow ‘Negroes’ into their social institutions (churches, schools, clubs). The ‘Negro’ was a complete social outcast. To Kill a Mockingbird: The Story This is the story of Scout Finch, a little girl growing up in Maycomb, who tells the story of her childhood when she witnessed the trial of a ‘Negro’ falsely accused of raping a white woman. The ‘Negro’s lawyer is Scout’s father, Atticus Finch. He defends the ‘Negro’ vigorously, although he expects to lose the case. In addition to being the story of childhood, it is also the story of the beginning of the civil rights struggle of the American Negro and a study of the qualities of a true hero and the place of moral values in determining one’s life choices. Plot The novel To Kill a Mockingbird mainly revolves around a small family of three; Atticus Finch, an attorney, and his two children, Scout and Jem. As the novel proceeds, certain characters are linked with the three main characters to form a dramatic story of events, attitudes, prejudices and values. Plot The novel is set in the quiet town of Maycomb; but the serenity is only superficial. The town is comprised of three communities: the white folk, the ‘white trash’, and the black community. Outwardly there is peace among the three, but underneath prevails a combination of hostility, racial prejudices, and friendlessness. Plot (Structure) To Kill a Mockingbird is divided into 2 parts. The first part extends from Chapter 1 to Chapter 11, and the second part from Chapter 12 to Chapter 31. Part 1 and Part 2, though connected with events and actions, have separate identities. Part 2 is concerned mostly with Robinson’s trial and is well unified. Part 1 contains several episodes that are relevant to the issue dealt with in Part 2. Plot (Structure) Part 1 mainly deals with the characters of Jem, Scout and Atticus, and the innocent reactions of the children to the racial prejudices prevailing in their town. Scout is surprised that Walter Cunningham has learnt no table manners, yet, the fact that the family invited him for dinner exhibits their sense of equality. Jem’s growing admiration for his father is also depicted in the first few chapters. Part 2, which is longer than Part 1, focuses on the novel’s main theme: racial prejudice, still prevalent in the South, which denied equal status to the blacks and the whites. It entirely consists of the Tom Robinson trial. The trial begins from the middle of Chapter 16 and ends in Chapter 21. However, reference to the case is made before and after these chapters too. Theme(s): Racism and Acceptance Nothing more pervades the novel than the ideas of racism and acceptance. Atticus built a whole value system around the idea that a person must examine and respect who people are and where they come from. This includes the most unsavory characters like Bob Ewell and Mrs. Dobose. When others would rather forget about these people, Atticus takes the time to understand them. This is a value Atticus passes onto his own children as well. Atticus believes that all human beings must be accepted and treated equally. But Atticus must also live these beliefs, not just voice them, which is why he takes the case of Tom Robinson. When no one in the town will stand by Tom, Atticus defends him to the best of his abilities. Tom is an African-American in a small Southern town and very few people would act as Atticus does. Theme(s): Racism and Acceptance Racism is cultural and runs very deep in the town of Maycomb. Even those who believe in Tom’s innocence will not stand up for him. It would be against the social mores of most people to defend a black man, especially in a case that contradicts the word and honour of a white woman. But Atticus stands for what he knows is right, and his children learn from this. We watch them mature into people who look into a person’s soul and life and don’t make judgements based on race or social status. When Scout wishes to invite Walter Cunningham to dinner, we see that she has gained a new knowledge of acceptance. But Aunt Alex, a model of archaic Southern manners, doesn’t believe an individual of Walter’s standing should associate with them. She also disagrees with the way Atticus sees Calpurnia as part of the family. Alex cannot accept the presence of an African-American woman that transcends servitude in her home. Theme(s): Racism and Acceptance In the end, Scout and Jem become like their father. Although still young, they have become tolerant and accepting of all people and share their father’s discerning eye for looking deep into people before making a judgement upon them. The Symbol of The Mockingbird The idea of the mockingbird arises several times during the novel: When the children are given air rifles for Christmas, they are told that it is a sin to shoot the bird. Miss Maudie explains that the mockingbird’s function in life is to make beautiful music for our enjoyment. (Hence why it is a sin to kill it). The Symbol of The Mockingbird Tom Robinson and the mockingbird share many characteristics. He is a gentle person who has never done any harm and only tried to help someone who he thought needed help. He is gentle and innocent, just like a mockingbird. Boo Radley and the mockingbird also share many characteristics. He is shy and gentle, lives quietly and harms no one. His action of saving the children from Bob Ewell is similar to that of a threatened animal instinctively defending its young. The cruel treatment of Tom Robinson and Boo Radley is similar to the killing of a mockingbird. It is sinful. The Symbol of The Mockingbird The mockingbird is symbolic of other things in the novel as well: Justice, just like the mockingbird is fragile. Justice is sinfully killed by the all white jury, who wrongfully find Tom guilty of a crime for which he is obviously innocent. The fragility of childhood (Scout, Jem, Dill). The innocence of the children’s lives is destroyed by the knowledge that the world is often cynical and cruel. Their lives and outlook are changed forever; their trust and confidence in adults is killed.