The first section of “To Kill a Mockingbird” serves to describe the setting and circumstances in which the
story takes place, and also gives some insight into the characters and their
lives. This first section truly highlighted the different perspectives that are
present throughout the novel. One example of this is in the first person
narration that the author employs, telling the novel through Scout and her
perspective on Maycomb and its residents. Another example is the contrast
between Miss Caroline and her students in the classroom. As she comes from
northern Alabama and from a wealthy family, she cannot understand the actions
of some of her students and their backgrounds. This is best reflected in her
interaction with the Cunningham boy, as she cannot understand why the boy won’t
accept help from her, yet all of the other children understand this as they
know that the Cunninghams do not accept charity. These different perspectives
show how even a small, mostly white town in Alabama can be diverse, albeit in a
socio-economic manner, and it will be interesting to see how all these
different characters with different backgrounds and beliefs interact with each
other as the novel unfolds.
While it's true that there are seemingly different perspectives, what seems to be the dominant perspective? In other words, what does the author do (with both the Finch family as well as Miss Caroline) to illustrate the dominant perspective of Maycomb?
ReplyDeleteI believe that the author tries to make the point that Macomb is a very fixed place, as everyone has a trait that they identify with members of the community, and most everyone in Macomb knows everything about their fellow residents. This is true with Mrs. Caroline, as she cannot understand about the Cunningham boy, while to the rest of the class they are completely familiar with the thats associated with a cunningham.
DeleteRumi--
ReplyDeleteIt's also interesting how the narrator's perspective itself changes. Scout's childhood story is interspersed with narration from an 'older Scout' who uses a much more mature tone and has a more grown-up perspective.
Rumi-
ReplyDeleteI like how you mentioned the first-person narration as it really allowed me to see into the mind of Scout and her actions, along with her opinions regarding the town and its various characters.