To Kill a Mockingbird 6

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• havo
• Leerjaar 5

English Literature 

Road Map

• Reading list 
• Harper Lee' life
• Style and Language 
• Read chapter 31 and do questions

Reading List

5H1:      Annely & Thomas: plan your oral exam.

                Jara, Mila, Jaimy: hand in your reading list!

5H3:      Sander, Lisa, Gijs: hand in your reading list!

                 Stijn, René:  plan your exam. 

Nelle Harper Lee 

1926 - 2016

Monroeville (AL)

To Kill a Mockingbird (1960)

Go Set a Watchman (2015)

Harper Lee

She grew up in the 1930s in a small town in Alabama, one of the USA's southern states. 

• youngest of four
• Father = lawyer
• The Great Depression
• Racial unrest 

Truman Capote

1924 -1984

Childhood friend of Harper Lee

Model for Lee's character Dill

Style

Two parts:

• I: Atticus, Jem and Scout
• II: racial prejudice

Language: American English

• narrated by Scout, informal

Themes

• Gender roles
• Heroism
• Racial inequality
• Social class
• Coming of age 

Language

Compare:

• Atticus's language 
• Scout and Jem's words
•  the Ewell's way of talking
• Tom Robinson's speech
• Calpurnia's way of navigating between two worlds

Test 

1. About 20-25 multiple choice questions on the novel

2. About 10-12 items in a 'fill in the gap'- exercise on Harper Lee's life

3. 30 true/false questions

4. 1 open question (you use about 60-80 words, either Dutch or English. Well-written English may give you bonus points). 

DICTIONARIES ARE ALLOWED (BYO)

Test Material

• The content from chapters of To Kill a Mockingbird  that you had to read
• The film
• The life of Harper Lee (booklet) 
• Style and language in the book (booklet)

Chapter 31

Chapter 3

Jean Louise beats up Walter Cunningham. After Jem explains to her why Walter said what he said, he is invited to the Finch's for lunch. During lunch, Cal teaches Scout a thing or two about common decency. At school, Burris Ewell upsets the teacher. 

Chapter 4

Scout finds a 'treasure' (some chewinggum) in a knot hole of a tree near Boo Radley's house. Dill arrives for the summer and the three of them (Jem, Dill and Scout) hang out a lot. One day, Scout ends up flying down the sidewalk in a tire, which results in her being dumped in the Radleys' front yard. Scout swears she has heard someone laughing inside the house. As a result of this adventure, Jem invents a game in which the children act out the life and times of Boo Radley.

Chapter 9

Scout gets into a fight with Cecil Jacobs at school because he badmouths Atticus (as Atticus is defending Tom Robinson who is a black man). They also celebrate Christmas at Finch's landing with aunt Alexandra and her family and uncle Jack. Here, Scout also gets into a fight. This time with aunt Alexandra's grandson, the obnoxious Francis. Francis tells Scout that, in aunt Alexandra's opinion, Atticus will ruin the Finch family because of his defence of Tom.

Chapter 10

In the eyes of Jem and Scout, Atticus is an old man of 50,  rather past his prime. When a rabid dog (a dog with rabies, called Tim Johnson) is spotted in the street, Cal calls Atticus who hurries home bringing with him sheriff Heck Tate. Heck tells Atticus to shoot the dog as he is such a good and steady shot. Jem and Scout hear that their father used to be called 'Ol' One Shot', as the best shot in the county. His level of coolness raises accordingly. 

Chapter 17

The trial takes places in Maycomb's courthouse. Heck Tate, the sheriff, and Mr Bob Ewell testify and are questioned by Atticus and the prosecutor, Mr Gilmer. Scout, Jem, and Dill are watching the trial form the balcony (where the African-Americans were also sitting bc. they were not allowed to sit in the same space as white people then). 

Chapter 18

Mayella Ewell testifies. She cries a lot and is very emotional. She also seems to be scared and insecure, perhaps because she is thinking of what actually happened on the night and she is  committing perjury, or perhaps by acting like this she thinks she can get the jury's sympathy. 

Chapter 19

Tom Robinson takes the stand and tells his side of the story. He is not being treated very nicely by the prosecutor, Mr Gilmer, who addresses him in a very condescending way. Dill tells Scout it just made him sick to hear how Mr. Gilmer was talking to Tom.

Chapter 20

This chapter relates Atticus' closing statement. He closes by referring to Thomas Jefferson's famous line that all men are created equal, and says that this doesn't mean that everyone is just as talented as everyone else, but that everyone is equal under the law.

Chapter 28

Jem and Scout go to school for a Halloween pageant in which Scout features as a ham. It's dark and Jem forgot to bring a flashlight. On the way to school they are scared by Cecil Jacobs. Later, when they're returning home, Scout is still in her ham costume. Close to the Radley house, Jem and Scout are attacked by Bob Ewell. As Scout is still in her costume, it is not really clear to her what is going on.  Jem and Scout are saved by Arthur - Boo- Radley. In the fight to save them, Bob Ewell is killed. 

Chapter 29

Heck Tate comes as does Dr Reynolds. Jem is unconscious and has broken his arm. Heck investigates what happened and questions Scout. Boo Radley is also present and Scout finally gets to meet him. 

Chapter 30

Atticus is convinced that Jem has killed Bob Ewell. Heck Tate, however, believes that Bob Ewell is responsible for his own death. As he is the sheriff, he is the one who decides whether or not to press charges. It is not specifically mentioned, but in all probability Boo killed Ewell and Heck does not want to see him go to jail. Scout understands: she said it would be like killing a mockingbird. 

Chapter 31

Scout takes Boo back to his house. Looking out from his porch, she imagines the activities of the past few years from his perspective.