To Kill a Mockingbird Reading Note

This is a novel published in 1960 by the American female writer Harper Lee. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1961. The book is widely loved, listed as a must-read book for primary and secondary school students in the United States, and is also a favorite book for British teenagers, even overwhelming the Bible in a poll.

This is a story about love and growth. The story takes place in the town of Meigang, Alabama, between 1933 and 1935. Scott's mother, who has died, lives with her father, Addix, her brother Jem, and the cook, Caponi, a lawyer but not well-off, as most of her clients are poor.

The entire book, through what scott Finch has been doing in two years since she was 6 years old, shows 4 truths that life has taught her.

1.Put yourself in other people’s shoes. You can never really get to know a person unless you think about it from his point of view

The Radley family, who live opposite Scott's house, live in isolation. There were all sorts of terrible and brutal rumors about Arthur Radley. Scott often played nearby with his brother and Deere, and once passed by Radley's house, they encouraged each other to touch the house. Later they often found small surprises in the tree holes, sometimes chewing gum, sometimes soap sculptures. After a while, they realized it was a small gift from Arthur Radley. Slowly, after a series of later events, such as breaking into his yard, the torn pants being sewn and placed outside the fence, and helping to put out the fire when the neighbor's house was on fire, they discovered that Arthur Radley was actually a kind person.

2.Don’t kill mockingbirds. Don't kill a mockingbird,

In the story, when the father asks the children to play with air guns, do not shoot the robin, because the only thing it does is sing, and it will not cause any harm. As the subject of the book, the robin here is a metaphor for those who are naïve and kind.

Keep fighting even if you know you'll lose.

Black Tom Robinson is accused of raping a white girl, Meyera. Yuel, and was arrested. Atticus was appointed to defend Tom. Atticus knew that due to racial discrimination, there was a good chance that the case would end in failure. But he tried to handle the case well. Most of the town are racist, and Scott and Jem are ridiculed for their father's defense of blacks. But Atticus wanted them to hold their heads high in the face of adversity. He led by example and taught children that true bravery is that when you face controversy, you will fight to the end, even if the odds are small. The children go with Addix to guard toad to the imprisoned Tom and watch the interrogation with the townspeople. Atticus' defense was very successful, on the other hand, Mayer's father, Bob, was very repulsive and did not look trustworthy, and Mayer had a mark on the right side of his face, but Tom could not use it due to a left-handed injury to his left hand as a child, so it is highly likely that the wound on Mayer's face was caused by her father. According to Tom's testimony, it was Mayer who tried to seduce him and was beaten by his father. Despite Atticus' excellent defense, the jury eventually found Tom guilty. White juries will not spare blacks accused of raping whites.

4.The world is not always fair The world is not always fair

Tom's verdict taught the children that sometimes the world is not on the side of justice, and even the judicial system is tarnished by injustice. Harboring a grudge against Atticus's defense, Bob attempts to kill Scott and Jem in the dark, he twists Jem's arm, Radley hears a shout and comes out to save the siblings, but because of the night, the two siblings do not find Bob stabbed to death by Radley. While Radley's killing of Bob to save his two children is not a crime and will even be called a hero by the townspeople, the focus of public attention could ruin Radley's life. On the other hand, after Tom's affair, the child sees the injustice of justice, and this time if Addix uses his friendship with the police officer to cover up the truth of the matter, he fears that the children will not respect him in the future. At this point, the story reaches its climax, and Scott says that she understands that if the truth is made public, it will actually be like "killing a mockingbird" for Radley, which means that the children have understood the profound meaning of the robin in the previous article, and once again emphasize understanding a person and thinking about the problem from the perspective of others.

Children see the injustice of the world and the value of life.

extract:

1. They have nothing to fear except fear itself.

We can't give up fighting for victory just because we have lost everything in the past hundred years

To be brave is to know that you are doomed to lose before you even start, but still do it without hesitation and persevere to the end no matter what happens.

A person does not need to show everything he understands, this is not a lady's style. Besides, people don't like that they know more than they do.