While talking to Miss Maudie, Harper Lee shows the reader how the Finch's are a normal family in Maycomb, and makes the Radley house even more mysterious; by doing both these things she increases our understanding of the setting. When Scout goes to spend time with Miss Maudie, Scout says that: "Atticus don't ever do anything to Jem and me in the house that he don't do in the yard." (61) Miss Maudie then says “Atticus Finch is the same in his house as he is on the public streets." (61) If he is the same in private as he is in public, Harper Lee shows that he has nothing to hide. She shows that everybody knows everything about Atticus, and his family. This is true about everybody in the town except for the Radleys. Harper Lee make the Radley place more mysterious. Also if the Finch's are the same in public as in private, everybody knows about them, and what they do. This is also shown when Scout is in school and knows about each kid and their family. But again, the only house that no one knows what happens inside is the Radley house.
Do you think the Ewells are the same in public as in private? Do you think this helps establish the setting?
Harper Lee definitely made the Finch's the same in public as in private, but I am not sure about the Ewells. The Ewells seem to be a very loud and open group of people, so they might be. Although that is what they seem like, it might also make sense for them not to be. From what we know, they seemed confident, but they could have been hiding something. If you live by the dump, you probably have very low self-esteem. They could be projecting a brash exterior, because they were afraid, and worried about where the next meal was coming from even more than most in this town. If they acted confident, people would leave them alone, but might not otherwise. The Ewells are not important in the story so far, so I think we will have some time before we will be able to answer that question fully.
ReplyDeleteIt's true that the Ewells haven't been that important in the story so far, except to show that Miss Caroline didn't have a clue about anything that goes on in the little town of Maycomb. We did see that Burris was rude, filthy and lice-ridden in public, so he is probably rude, filthy and lice-ridden in private, too. He probably doesn't go home and get cleaned up.
ReplyDeleteThe Ewells add to the description of the setting of the town. Atticus says they don't work, and they live like animals. They are the disgrace of the town, and keep the town from being a utopia. They provide an opposite for all the hard-working characters of Maycomb.
Harper Lee Has set up the Finch family as a group of people that are confident, smart, and have nothing to hide. Therefore, they show the same actions inside as they do outside. On the other hand, the Ewells don’t have the same reputation as the Finch family. They live by the dump and only attend the first day of school. As shown in Miss Caroline’s first grade class, Burris Ewell threatens his teacher and displays an aggressive attitude towards the whole class. There must be a reason behind why he behaves in such an inappropriate manner. This could prove that he and his family have something bottled up that no one knows about. It’s likely that the Ewells present themselves differently in public than in private to hold their identities captive. Possibly, later in the story we will discover why the Ewells act the way they do and if they are hiding anything. This question helps establish the setting for Harper Lee’s readers, because it gives us further ideas of how the various characters go about their lives in different ways.
ReplyDeleteIf the Ewells are holding something captive, what do you think it might be?
Harper Lee creates Boo Radley as a mysterious character not by who he is, but who the town says he is. Boo Radley is a scary character, only based off of town gossip and lies. Nobody realy knows who he is, which is why he is so mysterious. Miss. Maudie knows this as she insults Stephanie Crawford on page 60. Miss. Maudie shows Scout that she should not believe these rumors and should treat the Radley's with respect.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Danny because since Boo Radley isn't an "open book" he is seen differently unlike the Finch Family. This shows a lot about Maycomb. I also think the Ewells are much like this, and are hiding secrets from the town. Which gives them a dangerous factor in their family name.
Who do you think is more respectable in town, the Ewells or Boo Radley?
I think the Ewells are the same in public as private because the book really shows no clue if the Ewells act differently when nobody is around them. Also the Ewells have developed a reputation as a mean family by the people in Maycomb. It's hard to change what people think about you once they made up their mind, so they probably gave up in trying to fix their reputation in Maycomb.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, Boo Radley is more respectable in town than the Ewells. Some people do disrespect and dislike Boo Radley, like Stephanie Crawford, but Boo Radley is seen as more of a mystery to the town rather than disrespected. Nobody really knows who Boo is and what he is like, because he stays in his house all the time. The Ewells on the other hand are seen as bad and impolite people, and the Ewell family is known for their bad character.
What do you think Boo is like? Do you believe all the rumors that the town of Maycomb has made up about Boo? Why do you think Jem and Dill are so interested in Boo?
I think that Boo is a quiet man with something on his mind at all times. As it says in the novel, Boo was laughing from inside the house. This creates suspense; what was he laughing about? Is he simply an immature adult, or is there something else to it?
ReplyDeleteI believe that some of the rumors are true, but definitely not all of them. As we learned, Boo was not stuffed into the chimney of his house. Boo may also not be such a bad person. He could have just made one mistake that made an entire town think of him a certain way. I also don't think that we know Boo well enough to judge his character, and how he acts.
I think Jem and Dill are so interested in him, because he is a mysterious character. They probably want to find out more about him, because of all the rumors they have heard. They specifically wrote the note that was meant to go to him to try to get him to come out, and to really figure out who he is. This shows that they are not scared, and also shows significant curiosity.
Arther Radley's (Boo) purpose for staying inside of his house is questionable. I think the main reason is prejudice. Scout mentions that she heard someone laughing at the Radley place. Any normal reaction to witnessing a funny event, the event being Scout being rolled in a tire, would be to laugh. That scene shows that maybe Boo watches interactions between people outside, he is obviously not chained to his bed or dead and shoved up the chimney. As a result of watching others interactions in the town he knows that everyone is extremely prejudice whether it is towards the color of peoples skin or how they go through their daily activities. I know if I were Boo I certainly would not want to be part of all of the prejudice in Maycomb. In a way Boo's house is like a safety for him, he doesn't have to be fully in contact with what he is most afraid of, prejudice.
ReplyDeleteI think that at this point in the novel Boo remains hidden because of prejudice, but there must have been some other reason before. Both his father and his older brother have been seen out walking, but Arthur (Boo) has always stayed inside. Almost no one has seen him, or has any evidence on which to build a story. Still, because of all the Maycomb gossip, the rumors have gotten so twisted and fantastic that if he went outside now, nobody would accept him. In a town like Maycomb, where people hardly ever go away, choosing not to be a part of the community makes you an outcast. When Boo Radley shut the doors, he was making a statement that he didn't want to be involved with the town. There must be some reason behind this.
ReplyDeleteWhy do you think he is so secretive? Do you believe the rumors or not?