To Kill a Mockingbird is about Scout, a young girl who lives with her brother Jem and their widowed father Atticus Finch. The story takes place in Maycomb, Alabama during the Great depression in the 1930s. Despite widespread poverty, Scout’s little family is fairly well off, since Atticus is a prominent lawyer in town. Scout and Jem have summers off from school, and one summer they meet Dill, a young boy who comes to stay in the neighborhood for the summer. The trio becomes fascinated with the Radley Place – a house where a reclusive man named Boo Radley lives but never comes out. They have indirect encounters with Boo, and some intense encounters with Boo’s brother Nathan, though Boo remains mysterious.
In town, a man named Tom Robinson, a black field hand, is falsely accused of raping Mayella Ewell, the daughter of Bob Ewell, a prejudiced man who angrily wants justice. Atticus is assigned to defend Tom Robinson, and the racist town begins to turn against the family. Scout and Jem are even bullied by other children. The tension reaches a boiling point when, before the trail, Tom Robinson is left in the town jail and a mob gathers at night to lynch him. Atticus stands outside the jailhouse and faces the crowd. Scout sneaks out, finds Atticus, and recognizes one of the men outside the jail. She questions the man about his son. He is obviously shamed by this, which helps to disperse the crowd.
At the trial, Atticus provides persuasive evidence that Mayella and her father Bob are lying, and that the wounds Mayella supposedly suffered from Tom Robinson’s attack were in fact caused by Bob’s abusive beatings. Despite Atticus’ defense, the jury finds Tom Robinson guilty. Following the verdict, Tom attempts to escape from the jail and is shot and killed. Bob is still bitter about Atticus’ arguments in court, so he assaults Scout and Jem as they walk home on Halloween night. Boo Radley saves the children by stabbing Bob, which kills him. The sheriff realizes that Boo won’t be given a fair trial like Tom Robinson, so he protects him by declaring that Bob fell on his own knife. Boo returns to his house, and they never see him again.
(My personal response to this novel is included within my video).
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