In chapter five, Harper Lee introduces Mrs.
Maudie. Mrs. Maudie is letting Scout, Jem, and Dill play in her yard as long as
they talk to her. Harper Lee adds Mrs. Maudie to add an insight to the life of
Boo Radley, whose real name is Aurthur Radley. Mrs. Maudie says to Scout,
"I remember Arthur Radley from when he was a boy. He always spoke nicely
to me no matter what other folks said.”(60) Her insight on him as a kind person
was put there has by Harper Lee to keep the reader guessing if Arthur Radley
will emerge from his house evil or good. Her saying this also makes her
character seem suspicious because of her past with Arthur she could be covering
up for bad things that he could have done.
Mrs. Maudie also is an outdoors freak, while
Mr. Radley is always indoors. Becaue of his beliefs he could become in a
conflict with Mrs. Maudie. Even though he is against women and thinks pleasure
is a sin. Those are two characteristics of Mrs. Maudie. Harper Lee is making
the reader unsure if Mr. Radley still likes Mrs. Maudie. Mrs. Maudie was added
to the book to cause conflict in the reader’s mind. Her insight into Arthur
Radley’s life makes you unsure of who he really is as well as taking away some
trust in Mrs. Maudie. The reader to think about is forced kind of think about
what kind of character Mr. Radley will be.
Who do you think Mr. Radley really is? Do you
think Mrs. Maudie is trustworthy?
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ReplyDeleteI completely agree with what Ben said about Mrs. Maudie. I think that Boo is just a person of fiction. I also think that Mr. Radley is actually quite a nice person, only he got on the wrong side of all the town gossip. I also believe that Mr. Radley is not what Dill and Jem think he is. This is a person who would injure his own parents, eat raw squirrels, and go out at night and stalk people. I think that Mrs. Maudie is a very reliable source because she has been living in the town for her whole life. However she could be slightly biased towards Mr. Radley, and thinking that he is nicer than what the gossip make him look like. What would you do if you were in Scout's shoes? Do you think that Mr. Radley is living in the Radley Place? Will Scout tell Jem and Dill that she thinks there is someone living in the Radley Place?
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