INDEPENDENT UNIVERSITY, BANGLADESH

Book review ON
“TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD”

Course Code: ENG-102

Submitted To
Ms. Sumaiya Rahman
Department of English
Independent University, Bangladesh

Submitted By
Nusrat Jahan Amrin
Id: 2022193
Independent University, Bangladesh
Description:
The book I am reviewing is a novel by the American author “Harper Lee” The
name of the novel is “To Kill a Mockingbird”.

To Kill a Mockingbird takes place in the fictional town of Maycomb, Alabama, during the
Great Depression. The protagonist is Jean Louise (“Scout”) Finch, an intelligent though
unconventional girl who ages from six to nine years old during the course of the novel.

Main Plot:
When her father challenges the unjust justice system of the rural, Depression-era South, To
Kill a Mockingbird tells the story of the young narrator's journey from innocence to
experience. Scout, the narrator, gains insight into her town, her family, and herself by
witnessing the trial of Tom Robinson, a black man wrongfully accused of rape. Scout is
forced to question her convictions in the novel due to a number of events, the most
notable of which is Tom's conviction despite his obvious innocence. Scout confronts her
prejudices when she meets Boo Radial, a mysterious shut-in who Scout initially mistook for
a terrifying ghost-like creature. When Boo saves Scout and her brother, Scout learns Boo is
a truly human, virtuous being, and the novel comes to a close. Scout, on the other hand, is
inevitably disillusioned when she is introduced to the realities of human existence. Scout is
forced to accept socioeconomic injustice and the darker facets of society by her town's
entrenched racism, the unjust arrest and murder of Tom Robinson, and the cruelty of Bob
Ewell. Throughout the novel, Scout's father, Atticus, stands for morality and justice, but as
she becomes more aware of those around her, she notices the impact of his struggle to
remain pure in a tainted world.

Scout's brother, Jem, broke his arm when he was thirteen, and the book begins with this
framing device. Scout says she'll clarify what happened before the accident, but she's not
sure where to begin, which raises the issue of the past's effect on the present. She picks up
her story almost three years before the incident, when she is "almost six" and Jem is
"almost ten," after tracing her family's past and explaining how her father, Atticus, became
the attorney for Maycomb, Alabama. Maycomb is depicted as a sleepy, poor town whose
rhythms and customs are still rooted in the past. Scout and her brother play in the street all
day long during the summer, according to her loving portrayal of the town. Her more
mature, complex depictions of the town's darker dimensions and the price of its
connection to the past contrast with these opening scenes of safety and innocence.
Scout tells a series of funny stories in the following pages, introducing us to the book's
main characters and creating the town's social order. Scout and Jem try to persuade their
enigmatic neighbour, Boo Radley, to leave his house at the urging of their friend Dill. Boo
has been a hostage in his own home since he was a teenager, when he stabbed his father
in the leg with a pair of scissors when he was in his thirties. He's become the subject of
local rumours and speculation, and the kids are both frightened and intrigued by his
monstrous, ghostly appearance. We meet Walter Cunningham, the son of a poor but proud
farming family, when Scout starts school. Scout is reprimanded for insulting Walter's table
manners as he comes to Scout's house for lunch, one of her first lessons in empathy. Burris
Ewell, another student at school, introduces us to the Ewell family, who will play a key role
later in the novel. The Ewells are a ruthless, antisocial family who depend on government
handouts and only send their children to school once a year to avoid being caught by the
truant officer. Burris threatens the teacher with abuse, evoking his father's violent assault
later in the novel. Burris' father, Bob, is the book's antagonist, and he reflects the South's
racist and violent history.

Scout discovers from other children in chapter nine of To Kill a Mockingbird that her father
is defending a black man named Tom Robinson who is accused of raping a white woman
named Mayella Ewell. Mrs. Dubose, Scout and Jem's next-door neighbour, verbally
harasses the kids about their father's job. In retaliation, Jem destroys her yard. Mrs.
Dubose is made to read to him as a punishment, and Atticus learns that she is a morphine
addict who is determined to beat her addiction until she dies. This episode expands on the
concept of developing empathy for others through considering their circumstances. It also
introduces the idea of courage, which is described as devoting one's life to a cause. Atticus
admires Mrs. Dubose's willingness to die "clean," and Scout admires Scout's commitment
to his ideals, even if it means jeopardizing his personal protection. When he spends the
night patrolling Tom's jail cell, he demonstrates his conviction. The white community of
Maycomb is enraged and threatens to lynch Tom, but Scout intervenes and saves Tom and
Atticus by unwittingly reminding the mob of their own children. Despite the fact that she is
at the center of this case, she is unaware of its full implications. Scout's narration is
characterized by a mix of naiveté and careful witnessing throughout the novel.

The book's climax happens at the end of Tom's trial and the announcement of the jury's
decision. Scout and Jem sneak into the courtroom and sit among the black spectators,
despite Atticus's prohibition on them attending. In his defence, Atticus claims that Tom was
unable to physically assault Mayella, and that Mayella asked Tom for sex, and that
Mayella's father, When Bob saw them together, he beat her. In asking Mayella about her
family's situation, Atticus paints a bleaker, more disturbing picture of Maycomb than
Scout's earlier depictions, exposing the economic gap between relatively prosperous
families like the Finches and poor families like the Ewells. In a climactic reversal of our
hopes that good will prevail over bad, the jury convicts Tom despite Atticus' defence and
the judge's implicit confidence in Tom's innocence. Scout is taken aback by the verdict, and
the comparison between her disappointment and her father's resignation highlights how
many misconceptions Scout still has about the universe. Tom is later shot and killed while
trying to flee custody. This incident exemplifies how badly the justice system has failed
Tom and Maycomb's black community. Scout and Jem must reconcile their newfound
worldview with their father's idealism and high moral expectations.

The book's falling action occurs on Halloween, a few months after the trial. Despite Tom's
arrest and death, Bob Ewell is embarrassed by the trial's events and seeks vengeance on
both Tom's widow and the judge. Bob assaults Scout and Jem during the Halloween
pageant, fracturing Jem's arm. They are rescued by Boo Radley, who kills Bob with his own
knife. Boo's reappearance demonstrates how society can be a strong protective force,
softening the trial sequence's social criticism. However, Boo's seclusion and Atticus's
admission that Bob Ewell was killed by his own knife show that these two men still see
society as a dangerous, potentially destructive force. Scout's confidence in humanity is
restored by Boo's goodness, and her statement that "nothing's really scary except in
books" shows that she is ready to face the world with her fresh, adult understanding of its
complexities. The novel's conclusion implies that humanity will be fine as long as we
remember to see each other as people and empathize with their viewpoints. Although the
novel's ending suggests that Scout has undergone a dramatic and positive transition, Lee
leaves the broader issue of the South's institutionalized racism and economic disparity
unresolved.

Summary:
During the Great Depression, To Kill a Mockingbird is set in the fictional town of Maycomb,
Alabama. Jean Louise (“Scout”) Finch, the heroine, is a bright yet unorthodox young girl who grows
from six to nine years old over the course of the book. Atticus Finch, her widowed father, raises her
and her brother, Jeremy Atticus ("Jem"). He is a well-known lawyer who instills in his children the
values of empathy and justice. He specifically informs them that killing a mockingbird is "a sin,"
implying that the birds are innocent and harmless. When one of the town's Black residents, Tom
Robinson, is wrongly accused of raping Mayella Ewell, a white woman, amid threats from the mob,
Atticus decides to protect him. He is confronted with a mob bent on lynching his client at one point,
but he refuses to leave him. Scout manages to defuse the situation unintentionally. Despite
Atticus's efforts to provide a more plausible defence—that Mayella was assaulted by her father,
Bob Ewell—Tom is convicted, and he is later killed while attempting to flee custody. His death is
compared to "the senseless slaughter of songbirds" by one character. Meanwhile, the kids engage
in their own miniaturized drama of prejudice and superstition as they become intrigued by Arthur
("Boo") Radley, a reclusive neighbour and local legend. They have their own opinions about him
and can't resist the temptation to trespass on the Radley estate. Their speculations thrive on the
dehumanization that their elders have instilled in them. Atticus, on the other hand, chastises them
and attempts to persuade them to be more sensitive. Boo makes his presence known through a
series of good deeds before interfering when Bob Ewell threatens Jem and Scout. Boo kills Ewell,
but the sheriff, Heck Tate, thinks it's best to assume Ewell died when he fell on his own knife,
avoiding unnecessary attention for the timid Boo. Scout agrees, stating that it would be "kind of like
shooting a mockingbird" to do otherwise.
Conclusion:
After Bob Ewell threatens Scout and Jem, Boo Radley comes to their rescue, killing Bob in the
process. Scout walks Boo home as Atticus and Sheriff Heck Tate discuss how to deal with the
situation.

Rating:
If I were asked to rate this novel, I would give it 4 out of 5. This book is a fascinating look at
the south and its inhabitants. Its incredible observations and strong message are both inspiring and
real. It is not intended for children under the age of thirteen, but the messages and reading level
necessitate that an individual be sufficiently advanced to get the most out of it. I would suggest to
all teenagers that they read this novel.