American Literature

Although Harper Lees To Kill a Mockingbird presents a number of themes, such as racism and social class in the American south, it is the coming of age of Jem and Scout that provides perhaps the most powerful theme in the entire novel.  The theme that arises from this coming of age of Jem and Scout relates to the essential nature of human beings more specifically, the novel explores in a very dramatic way whether people are essentially good and just or whether people are instead fundamentally evil and disinterested in objective notions of justice.  As children, under the guidance of their principled and very moral father, both Jem and Scout are compelled to endure events that test their existing beliefs, their faith in their fathers teachings, and their very perception and understanding of the nature of human behavior.  This essay will discuss how these characters reacted to events in ways that reinforced certain character traits and how they changed or developed in certain respects.
    More than any other character, in terms of viewing life and people in new ways, Scout functions in the novel as a sort of benchmark against which other characters can be analyzed.  This is because Scout is presented as a remarkably independent young girl who refuses to conform to any social standards except those which are espoused and taught to her by her father.  This independence manifests itself early on in the form of Scout forsaking feminine styles of dress or feminine interests and simply doing what makes her feel happy and comfortable.  She recognizes that she was different than other girls and notes in her narration that Aunt Alexandra was fanatical on the subject of my attire. I could not possibly hope to be a lady if I wore breeches when I said I could do nothing in a dress, she said I wasnt supposed to be doing anything that required pants. (Lee 85)  This is an important quotation because Scout establishes her independence of mind and her confidence to behave in a manner that is consistent with her interests and personal beliefs.  She seems to have derived this independence from Atticus, her father, and it is a character trait which persists throughout the novel.  Although she is taunted and subjected to an extraordinary variety of bitter experiences as a result of her fathers decision to defend Tom Robinson, she manages to maintain her independent mind and her belief that people can do good things if they try to understand other people better.  Indeed, at the very end of the novel Scout supports this type of persistent independence when she recounts while standing on Boos porch that understanding demands stepping into another persons shoes and understanding life from a different point of view.  Scout stays the same to the extant that she continues to think independently, that she continues to adhere to her fathers ideals, and that she believes that people have the inner capacity to be good.  On the other hand, she learns that people are often petty and hypocritical and her younger notion that all people were good is shattered.  Her coming of age story is about the loss of innocence in this respect, life experiences that destroy nave views of people and the world, and yet she still manages to remain fairly hopeful that people can be good.
    Sadly, Jem does not develop quite as smoothly as Scout and this contrast represents how the loss of innocence can lead to cynicism and a loss of faith in people and the world rather than a renewed hope.  Jem functions in many respects as a weaker version of Atticus ideals and this manifests itself as a weaker version of Scout.  Jem, for instance, tends to conform more to expectations specifically, he dresses and behaves like a boy and he has more difficulty than both Atticus and Scout in dealing with social criticism and social ostracism.  He even teases and criticizes Scout at times for not conforming to expectations because she does not think or behave like a typical southern girl.  It is not that Jem does not admire his fathers ideals and principles, for the novel suggests that he does, but unlike Scout he seems more traumatized by the racial and social divisions.  He seems more constrained by social conventions even though he seems fairly proud of his own social class and peers.  Indeed, at the end of the novel Scout sadly notes that
The summer that had begun so long ago ended, another summer had taken its place, and a fall, and Boo Radley had come out.... I was to think of these days many times -- of Jem, and Dill and Boo Radley, and Tom Robinson ... and Atticus. He would be in Jems room all night. And he would be there when, Jem waked up in the morning.  HYPERLINK httpwww.questiaschool.comPM.qstaod5000461052(Lee quoted in Shackelford 110)

    The clear implication is that while Scout has decided to view the coming of a new summer as her figurative devotion to justice, Jem is less optimistic and more traumatized by their coming of age experiences.  Whether Jem will ever be able to transcend the racism and the social constraints is questionable Scout on the other hand, boldly declares her firm belief in the principles and ideals articulated by her admirable father.  They become her principles, too.

    In conclusion, both of these characters continue to wish that life could be simple.  They recognize through painful experiences, however, that ideals and realities can be very different.  Scout deals with social hypocrisy by dedicating herself to keeping an open mind and trying to understand people more comprehensively Jem, on the other hand, seems as if he may concede his fathers values in an effort to blend into society.  This is the main change in the story with Scout defiantly maintaining her independent mind and Jem seeming to become more dependent on social expectations even if they are hypocritical.