What Is To Kill a Mockingbird About?
The novel To Kill a Mockingbird is set in the fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama during the 1930s. It is told through the eyes of six-year-old Scout Finch, who narrates the story with her brother Jem and her friend Dill.
The novel deals with themes like racism, social class, and gender. Atticus Finch is a moral hero who defends Tom Robinson, an African American man accused of raping a woman named Mayella Ewell. The novel’s title refers to Atticus Finch because he was willing to kill a mockingbird—a symbol of innocence—to protect his children from harm.
The novel has been banned from some schools because of its racial themes. Critics have said that it promotes racism by portraying African Americans as inferior people who are not capable of living among white people without causing trouble for them.
However, other critics argue that Harper Lee does not promote racism but instead shows how harmful racism can be through Atticus Finch’s courtroom defense of Tom Robinson against an all-white jury despite overwhelming evidence against him. They also say that Harper Lee portrays Atticus Finch as a moral hero.
