Model Introductions

Topic #3

Harper Lee concludes To Kill a Mockingbird with the story of “The Gray Ghost” in order to encapsulate a central theme of her novel: quick judgments are almost always wrong. Lee develops the theme throughout the entire novel as Jem and Scout Finch learn for themselves that they have judged incorrectly. Their father, Atticus Finch, tries to teach his children to understand others by standing in their shoes, but Scout and Jem do not truly understand the importance of seeing from another point of view until the end of the novel.

The final scene of the novel reveals Scout’s understanding of . . .

Topic #2

The title of Harper Lee’s novel, To Kill a Mockingbird, reveals the central theme of the book: it is a sin to harm the innocent. Atticus Finch teaches his children that it is a “sin to kill a mockingbird” because they “don’t do one thing but make music for us to enjoy” (90). Lee develops this theme as Jem and Scout Finch encounter several symbolic mockingbirds and begin to understand the mockingbird rule.

At the beginning of the novel, Jem and Scout have no idea what their father means when he instructs them: “Shoot all of the blue jays . . .

Topic #1

In her novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee reveals her two central themes--it is wrong to harm the innocent and it is wrong to judge by appearance--through the development of her main character, Scout Finch. At the beginning of the novel, Scout believes every rumor she hears and doesn't understand why her father says it's a sin to kill a mockingbird. By the end, however, she realizes . . .

Model Body Paragraph

Topic #1

By the end of the novel, however, Scout has begun to understand the cruelty of racism. After hearing her teacher argue that Tom Robinson deserved to die for thinking he was a good as a white man and later hearing her criticize Hitler for being racist against Jews, Scout senses the contradiction. Feeling confused, she asks her brother: “Jem, how can you hate Hitler so bad an’ then turn around and be ugly about folks right at home” (247). This shows how much more perceptive she has become. Not only does she now see how horrible racism is, she also sees through the hypocrisy of the adults in Maycomb. Although she is only eight years old, she know that her teacher is wrong, that racism is wrong, and that the world needs to change.