If Mrs. Dubose was a morphine addict and wanted to die not being high on it, why did she call Jem to read to her even though the book mentions that she didn't pay attention to a single word? Why does Atticus say that he would have sent Jem to read to Mrs. Dubose anyways? What was the significance of the alarm clock? And the camelia she sent Jem after dying? Why did Jem consider her a 'lady'? Why did she die "concious and cantankerous"? What does this whole thing mean? Some one please help!!
Questions about "To Kill A Mockingbird"?
She might not have listened to a word her said but it kept her off of the morphine. each day she set her alarm clock longer and longer until the day she died the alarm clock didn't ring. when the alarm clock rang she would go into a fit and have to have the morphine. she died a lady to jem bc she managed to beat an addiction. few people ever mangaged to do that in thier life.
Reply:The best way to understand and appreciate a book (gain insight) is to savor reading it. Here are some sample reviews from people who know how to.
It may help if you watched the movie starring Gregory Peck (1962).
The book came in 1960.
In 1961, it won a Pulitzer Prize
Review Summary of To Kill A Mockingbird
Haper Lee's semi autobiographical Pulitzer prize winner is a superb account of bigotry and injustice set in 1930's Alabama.
Becky Palmer, Resident Scholar
This 1961 Pulitzer Prize winning book makes you wish that Harper Lee had published other books, but if you're only going to publish one, To Kill A Mockingbird sure is the way to go. Told through the eyes of Jean Louise Finch, better known as Scout, the story is basically a study of racial prejudice in the South before the Civil Rights era. It is a well-plotted story with lots of action, but what makes it so special is the brilliant characterization. Once you meet Scout Finch, her brother Jem, and her father Atticus Finch who is the unsung hero of the novel, you will never forget them. A book worthy of the "Classic" label it has been given.
Bill Brumlow, Resident Scholar
To Kill a Mockingbird is one of the best accounts of the hysteria that racial hatred and false accusations could create in the deep South prior to the 1980s. The tireless efforts of Atticus to save the falsely accused black man are set in a tone to draw the reader into sympathy, surprisingly, with both the victim and his accusers. A classic that deserves the title.
Kelly Whiting, Resident Scholar
Scout and her brother Jem are just playful kids when their father is assigned to the case of a black man raping a white woman. They had never been affected by one of Atticus' cases before, and are surprised to have this one impact their lives. And, though Scout is growing up enough to realize the labels society places on people of different race and social status--and enough to have her aunt scolding her about her tomboyish behvior, she learns a lot more about life when this case comes about.
Sarrah, Resident Scholar
A girl and her brother go through their youth being kids but discover a new friend and try to understand and right injustices. They learn something new about other people in town as well as the justice system and their new friend.
Yasmin Miranda, Resident Scholar
To Kill A Mockingbird is a story of awakening - awakening to a not so perfect world. The narrator, six year old Jean Louise Finch (Scout) lives in a world that is shattered by her realization that racism and class discrimination are rampant in her town and will effect her family. Her lawyer father, Atticus seems to be one of the few righteous inhabitants of Maycomb and sets about defending a black man charged with a crime he did not commit.
Shel, Resident Scholar
Scout and her brother Jem wittness first hand that the world isn't always fair when their father defends a black man for a crime he didn't commit. Throughout the book, Scout and Jem both grow as individuals.
Kristian Herron, Resident Scholar
The novel is about three years in the life of the Finch family: Atticus and his son Jem and daughter Scout. They live in the town of Maycomb in Alabama, where whites are in control and blacks are second-class citizens.
Atticus is a lawyer and the central incident of the novel is when he defends a black man, Tom Robinson, against the charge of raping a white girl.
Andrew Haine, Resident Scholar
Two children, Scout and Jem Finch are dragged into a racial battle with their father. Their father, Atticus Finch defends a black man in court. The black man is accused of raping a white girl. This event in fact never happened. The black man, Tom Robinson was shot to death in prison before his final trial. This does not stop the attacks on the Finch Family. The two children are attacked on there way home from an evening school function, and Jem sustained serious arm injury.
Natalie , Resident Scholar
To Kill A Mockingbird is told through the eyes of a six-year-old tomboy named Scout Finch. Her father, Atticus, is an attorney- at- law and defends a black man named Tom Robinson, who is accused of raping a white young woman. Atticus is an extraordinary lawyer, and the verdict is very surprising.
This plot, however, is not the only action happening in the novel. Down the street from Scout and her older brother jem, lives the Radleys. Arthur(Boo) Radley got in trouble with the law at a young age and has not been seen outside of his house since. The children are very curious about his man, and try various techniques to get him to come out.
Kristina Murray, Resident Scholar
The story Begins as Jean-Louise Finch or "Scout" for short, begins
recounting the events in her childhood which eventually led up to her older brother Jem's broken arm. Scout lives with her brother Jem, her widowed father Atticus (a lawyer) and their African-American nanny Calpurnia in the quite county of Maycomb, Alabama. It is the middle of the great depression, yet in comparaison to others, they're doing considerabley well. One summer Jem and Scout meet a boy named Dill, a visitor from out of town, and with his company they go on great adventures and pick up a new fascination with an old, spooky house down the street called the Radley place, but more specifically....a fascination with an odd character that dwells inside.
Finally, controversy hits the sleepy town of Maycomb. Even through the pro-white protest, Atticus, Scout's father, accepts to defend local black man Tom Robinson, accused of raping Mayella Ewell. Mayella Ewell is the daughter of Bob Ewell, a very simple man with a less than respectable reputation. The trial isn't the only event rocking maycomb though. A potential murder and a strange encounter follow closely behind.
Sarah, Resident Scholar
Reply:There were multiple reasons for Jem's reading to Mrs. Dubois. They include:
1. His reading distracted her for ever longer periods of time from the agony of withdrawal. At first she heard little, but later more and more.
2. Jem learned the importance of
a. Helping your fellow human beings compassionately.
b. The horror of addiction.
3. etc., etc.
Understand this portion of the book comes from understand the theme of the entire book. That can be succinctly stated at the very end when Scout stands on Boo Radley's porch and looking at her neighborhood from his vantage point, understands a bit more about him.
This book is about empathy, understanding, love and acceptance. It is about the idea that we cannot understand another human being (and/or love them?) until we have walked a mile in their shoes.
Hope this helps you get an A.
LOL
Reply:seems like u didnt understand a thing lol.............poor boy
Reply:You can gain access to all the book reviews on “To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee” via the link below. At the bottom you will find a short extract of what you can expect from these reviews.
http://www.freebooknotes.com/book.php3?i...
Mrs. Dubose
The bitter tongued, garrulous old neighbor of Atticus, who presents herself as an irritating and corrosive woman to the children, but who really is a very strong-willed and considerate person.
http://www.pinkmonkey.com/booknotes/monk...
Good luck.
Kevin, Liverpool, England.
Reply:Jem read to her to keep her mind off the pain. Atticus was a good man who felt that the company would do Mrs. Dubose good even if she was only going to die. No idea about the alarm clock as it has been too many years since I read it.
Reply:It was to teach Jem a lesson for cutting down her flowers, whether she listened to him or not, and Atticus also wanted to instill dicipline and to face his own consequences. Having someone beside her eased her pain, and perhaps allowed her to drift off into her own thoughts.
Some of your questions cannot be answered with a "becuase xxx" answer. Although Harper Lee knew, to the rest of us, it's open to interpretation.
How did you see the significance of the alarm clock? Why would Mrs Dubose send Jem a flower that she knew he hated after she died? It will really only make sense when you asnwer these questions yourself, and these events will also have provide understanding for what happens later in the book, during and after the trial.
By the way, is this English Lit homework?
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