Mashaal - Is Atticus Finch a good father?

I believe that Atticus Finch is an astoundingly well adjusted father for many reasons. First of all because he was a single parent with two children, he still managed time for his kids Jem and Scout. He is also a strict in discipline. As well he is a very brave and honest man. Atticus Finch is a single parent working a hard job to bring in enough income to pay his maid and supply the needs for his children. He is away most of the day at the courthouse defending his clients. Even though his job sometimes required long hours, he still made time to read to his daughter at bedtime and play ball with his son. Atticus would be considered very strict, and he was but he still allowed his children to have fun, especially during the summer despite how much trouble they got into. He was also able to raise two children by himself in the best environment he can provide, he is also able to pay his maid who he considered a member of the family. While raising his children he has taught them good morals and proper manners of how to behave in life. For all these reasons and more is why Atticus Finch makes a great father.

Saleha-To Judge a book by it's cover or not?

The whole story revolved around the prejudice views of this Southern community. The whole reason why the trial was going on was because of people views towards blacks in the south. Since the alleged rape victim's father has such a prejudice view towards black, he is embarrassed that his daughter was actually flirting with a black man. To combat this he falsely accuses the innocent Mr. Robinson of rape. If it wasn't for the prejudice view which existed in the south the accusation would had never been brought against Mr. Robinson. These racist views in the south created a double standard of justice.Dill had a drink of Mr.Raymonds drink, which everyone thought was whiskey. They thought that the only reason he would marry a black women is because he was drunk. But when Dill drinks it, it's Coca- Cola. Mr. Raymond explains to the kids that if he did this because of all the racism. In the book, Boo Radley, Tom Robinson are all judged like a book and a cover. All though I think that eventhough you shouldn't judge a book by it's cover and most people say that people still do. People still judge people by appearance not personality. I think that the cover of the book or the appearance of the person is still important but not that important as the actual book or the persons personality. There was a bright spot when it came to the Racism issue. This "ray of light" came in the form of Scout's father Atticus. Atticus represented hope. Hope that good people still exist. Even in a society filled with hate. Atticus represented the hope that one day things can change. Jem , Scout also understand the injustice and want to help, as well as Boo Radley who comes to Scout’s rescue at the end.

Saleha- Scout and Jem's Prespective

The story To Kill A Mockingbird is mostly about Jem and Scout’s childhood. The story is told from Scout perspective so you can see how a child can get really frustrated when everything that supposed to happen doesn’t. That childhood innocence the thought of humanity that privilege that we all got was taken away from Jem and Scout when they were young. As they grow older they realize and understand that the world is a cruel place and that most people are selfish. Jem and Scout see this happening as we do throughout the book with the guilty verdict in Tom Robinson’s trial and the cruelness of Bob Ewell. As the novel progresses, Scout and Jem struggle to maintain faith in the human capacity for good in light of these recurring instances of human evil. Jem and Scout see another side of their father that they may not have wanted to see. But when Atticus Finch, Scout’s dad, shoots the mad dog, Scout’s perspective of her dad changes. Scout’s memory of her father shooting the dog does pop up more than once in situations involving Tom. When Scout was going to sleep she remembers Atticus folding his newspaper and pushing back his hat but then the memory turns into Atticus standing in the middle of an empty street waiting, pushing up his glasses and she remembers the night’s events of shooting, and begins to cry. When Atticus loses the case Scout and Jem don’t understand how there could be so much injustice even after all that proof and just because there a different race.  They cry because they don’t like the reality of the people and how everything is so undignified. The relathionship of Jem and Scout changes Jem doesn’t want Scout around as much when he’s growing older. He finds Scout annoying .

Saleha-Setting Questions

1.     1.  Where did Scout's ancestors create a farm, and what was it called? 

Answer: Scout’s ancestors made a farm on the banks of the Alabama river and the farm was called Finch’s Landing, and supported the family for many years.

2.      2. Where did Atticus finch move to and where do they live presently?

Answer: They live in Maycomb, Alabama

3.     3.  Where did Jack Finch and Alexandra Finch go?

Answer: Jack Finch moved to Boston to go to medical school and his sister stayed to run the Landing

4.      4. What time period does To Kill A MockingBird take place in?

Answer:  The story takes place in the 1930’s

5.     5.   Was racism a big thing at that time and what was it during that time period?

Answer: The 1930’s were a difficult time for African-Americans in America; racism was as strong as ever, especially in the Southern states. Slavery had been illegal for quite some time, yet African-Americans were still mistreated. African- Americans rights were often snatched because of their race.

6.    6.   Do you think that during that time period and it being the united states that Calpurnia would have been a cook in a white persons house?

Answer: I don’t think so because there was so much racism going on and during that time period black people were completely sepereated from the white people. They had different schools, different water fountains, different everything. They were basically told to use different facilities from the white people.

7.    7.   How do you think people would react to a situation where someone is being judged or criticized a certain way because of their race, colour, religion in today’s society?

Answer: I don’t think that anyone would tolerate that and would probably remind them that it’s not okay to say that and that you cannot judge a book by it’s cover. And that just because you’re a different race or colour it doesn’t change who you are and that we are all human beings and that everyone should be treated equally.

8.     8.  Do you think that because Harper Lee wrote this book it made a difference to society and if it did how?

Answer: I think that Ms. Lee did make a difference to society because people saw both sides of the story the injustice done to the black people because of there race and the overruling of the white people because of there race. I mean she also got an award and she really showed people that you should never judge a book by it’s cover.

Saleha- Foreshadowing and Symbols

There are many clues of foreshadowing and some symbols throughout the story. There are two big foreshadowing clues that indicate Tom Robinsons trial and then his death. The first clue being the fire like the first bad thing about to happen and Tom Robinson goes to court. The Second clue is the mad dog getting killed, at gunpoint, foreshadows Tom Robinson’s death as well and how he has to escape and gets killed. The dog’s name is Tim Johnson a coincidence, I think not Tim Johnson and Tom Robinson sounds like kind of the same. Burris is one of the eight children of Bob Ewell. When he makes an appearance in school it foreshadows the nastiness of Bob Ewell. The presents Jem and Scout find in the oak tree foreshadow the eventual discovery of Boo Radley’s good-heartedness. Jem and Scout think that Boo Radley is a mean person but then they start getting presents from him. They are still a bit confused about his attitude but know that he is definitely not a mean person, it foreshadows how Boo Radley saves Jem.  Bob Ewell’s threats and suspicious behavior after the trial foreshadow his attack on the children. Bob Ewell keeps threatening Atticus and his children and so the children are a bit frightened. But they did not know that Mr. Ewell was going to try to kil one of them. There is a really important symbol that represents the book very well and that is the mockingbird. The mockingbird in this story represents innocence and the transition is shown throughout the book as innocent people are hurt or even killed. Also gun symbolizes false strength, Atticus somewhere in the book says that a man with a gun is not a brave man. These symbols and foreshadowing clues help the reader understand the little details and the deeper meaning in the book better.

Alex: Theme Of The Book

The theme in To Kill A Mockingbird is to not judge a book by it's cover. A clear example is Boo Radley. Everyone in the town believed that he attempted to kill his own father, but at the end of the book, he becomes the hero. Jem and Scout both thought that something was weird about Boo Radley. It was either that he never got out of his house, or all the rumours that they kept hearing about him. After hearing the rumours, Jem, Scout and Dill kept going to the Radley house every summer and dared each other to touch the house and then run away. It was mostly Jem who was brave enough to do this. One time when he went to the house, he saw a figure in the window. He got scared and started to run away, Scout and Dill following right behind him. While they were running, they heard gun shots from where the house was. They never went back after that. After Tom Robinson was found guilty of raping a woman, the father of the woman Bob Ewell came up to Atticus Finch and spit in his face, telling him to watch his back. On Halloween night, Bob Ewell tried to kill the two kids to get back at Atticus, but they were saved by none other than Boo Radley, who killed Bob Ewell by stabbing him with a knife. At the end of the book, Jem and Scout start to appreciate Boo for what he did for them. Scout walks Boo home, and she never sees him again after that.  In conclusion, the theme in To Kill A Mockingbird is to not judge a book by it's cover. You should get to know a person first, before coming up with a conclusion about him. A great example is Boo Radley, who turned from a murderer to a hero.

Saleha- The Meaning of the Title?

The book To Kill A Mockingbird has a meaning hidden in the title that relates deeply with the story. The saying is that you shouldn’t kill mockingbirds because they don’t harm anyone they only sing. So in the story the mocking bird is Boo Radley. As you know Boo Radley saved Jem from Mr. Ewell. Even though Heck the police officer knew that Boo Radley was guilty of killing Mr.Ewell he still told Atticus that Mr. Ewell fell on his knife and that Jem did not kill him. Heck the police officer didn’t tell Atticus because he knows that Boo Radley had to kill Mr. Ewell to save Jem and so if he was sent to jail it would be injustice. So the story relates to this saying because even though all these years everyone thought that Boo Radley killed his father; when he saved Jem, Heck realized that Boo Radley was nice. So if he would go to jail it would be like in a way be killing the mockingbird. So the title relates to the book with a very deep and different meaning. The meaning of the title was really confusing to understand but Mr. Heneke told us how it related to the story.