To Kill A Mocking Bird
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Thesis: Harper Lee demonstrates that things are not always as they seem through her portrayal of many of the characters; one can see that their appearances in the community do not always match their personality.
Mrs. Dubose, the kids neighbor, acts like a vulgar woman. In chapter 11, she taunts the kids because Atticus, their dad, is a “nigger lover”. The kids do not like her very much because she makes fun of them frequently. Although Jems punishment for excising her camellia bushes was over, she decided to extend the sentence. Despite her attitude towards the kids, Atticus tells the kids to repay evil with indifference, for there might be a reason to her extension of the punishment.
In reality, Mrs. Dubose had an addiction to Morphine. She had a severe illness, and the doctor gave her morphine as a medication. This woman became an addict. Her reason for keeping the kids longer was not so she can listen to them read, but rather keep her from thinking about her morphine addiction. This woman knew that if she stopped her medication not only would she stop her addiction, but she would also die. By knowing she will die knowing that she broke an addiction, rather than living life high all the time shows her strong character. After her death, the kids found out about this addiction. To show that she understood why Jem was angry with her; she gave him a gift of a camellia.
Boo Radley is probably the epitome of how things are not always as they seem in the novel because in the community, all the people are scared of him. They think he is a murderer. All the people of the town are terrified of him because of the stories they have heard. These people not only believe these myths, but they have never seen Boo to say these stories about him. However, the sounds and things that they hear about the house affects what they think about the house and Boo, they are scared of the unknown.
Jem, Scout and Dill have never seen Boo, but they have had several encounters with him. For example, when Jem rips his pants and must take them off, Boo is kind enough to sew them back together. This implies that he is trying to befriend the kids. The whole town thinks poorly of him. The reason that Boo stays inside might be that he knows what the world outside his house is like, and he does not want to live in a world like that. Everyone is already against him, if he comes out the whole town will reject him. Although Boo is an example of how things are not always as they seem, many more characters in the novel depict this theme.
Calpurnia is not like the average black housemaid in Maycomb. Calpurnia talks, acts and dresses like the white folk in Maycomb. She disciplines and teaches the children. She also knows how to read. The children think that she does not do anything but cook, clean and take care of her. Calpurnia even scolds Scout sometimes; this was very uncommon for a black woman to scold a white child. They did not have those privileges. She also knew how to read, which was extremely rare for a black person to know how to read. She teaches Scout manners, just because she is black does not mean she is unworthy.
To Scouts surprise Calpurnia has a second identity. In chapters 12 and 13, Scout and Jem visit Calpurnias church there, she realizes her dichotomy. It is as if she is a different person; she speaks, talks and acts differently. Her vernacular differs when she is talking to the kids than when she is talking to her black friends. Scout understands why Calpurnia must change when she is around the white folk because if