Essay on To Kill a Mockingbird (Part 1):

This essay is for a middle school class and I am a freshman. Please read the essay critically and be honest. Thank you so much.<br><br>**Warning: The essay in spoiler. It is long**<br>-----<br><br>>“There’s someone new in town,” said Jem, “and they haven’t got a home.”¹ These words, spoken by a young boy in Harper Lee’s novel To Kill a Mockingbird, summarize the life of Arthur Radley, a man who has been ostracized by society because he is different. His inability to interact with other people has brought him to the point of becoming an urban myth, with the neighborhood children having never seen him, and the neighborhood adults scared of him. Many people consider Boo Radley to be a criminal and a threat to society; however, Boo Radley has become a friend to Jem and Scout throughout the novel.<br><br>>“Mister Radley brought out his shotgun and took aim at me,”² is the statement made by Boo Radley’s brother Nathan Radley to the sheriff after Boo has shot and killed a man who broke into his home. Boo Radley is then charged as delinquent and sentenced to the mercy of his father. After that day, Boo Radley never left his home and became a recluse. The people of Maycomb County do not know what to make of Radley and soon after he is seen as a monster. This fear was perpetuated by the Radley’s refusal to tell the truth about Boo. The people of Maycomb County are scared of Boo Radley because he is different, and they have never seen him, and so, they make up stories to make sense of the situation. Boo Radley is just one of many people who have been misunderstood and discriminated against because of their appearance or something they did.<br><br>>“He gave us two Indian-headed pennies for carrying out the trash,”³ said Scout after she and Jem had carried out the trash and received their pay. The person who gave them the pennies was Boo Radley. One day when Boo was out, he left his children presents in a hollow tree. These are kind gestures by Boo Radley to show he is a nice person and wants to be friends with Jem and Scout. Boo Radley has done nothing wrong and should be treated like any other person in Maycomb County. He should be shown kindness and respect, not violence and hostility.<br><br>>“If most people are not willing to see the difficulty, this is mainly because, consciously or unconsciously, they assume that it will be easy to put the solution into effect,”⁴ said Abbe Pierre. This is true for Arthur Radley. The people of Maycomb County know that Boo Radley is not a bad person, but they just don’t want to see it. Boo has become a sort of urban legend and the people of the town do not want to see him as a friend. Boo Radley has become a better person than the people of Maycomb County because he has the decency to treat people with kindness, while the townspeople do not. Boo Radley is a misunderstood person who has become an outcast in society, but he has the courage to try to make friends with Jem and Scout.<br><br>>“It takes a great deal of courage to stand up to your enemies, but a great deal more to stand up to your friends,”⁵ said Albus Dumbledore. Boo Radley portrays this courage when he is willing to be friends with Jem and Scout despite the fact that they live in a town that despises him. Boo Radley is not only a misunderstood person, but also a kind and courageous person. He is willing to go out of his way to be a friend to Jem and Scout.<br><br>>“The greatest glory in living lies not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall,”⁶ said Nelson Mandela. Throughout the novel Boo Radley stands up for himself and eventually gets the respect he deserves. Through the years Radley has tried to make friends with the children of Maycomb County. Boo Radley shows courage and strength through the years of being ostracized from the town, and eventually becoming a friend to Jem and Scout. He finally receives the respect he has always deserved. He gets it because he has the courage to do the right thing and stand up to society. Boo Radley has become a great person, not only in the eyes of Jem and Scout but to the reader as well.<br><br>>“You never understand a person until you consider things from his point of view.”⁷ These are the last words spoken by Atticus Finch during the novel. Boo Radley is someone who has been misunderstood by society because he has been given the short straw. Boo has tried to make friends with Jem and Scout as they are the only people who will give him a chance. Not only is Boo Radley a kind person but he has become a friend to Jem and Scout throughout the novel. Boo Radley is just one example of the twelve human beings in the world who are misunderstood by everyone else.<br><br>^1,2,3 Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott & Co., 1960.<br><br>⁴ Pierre, Abbe. Quoted in the Goodreads Quote Book. Goodreads LLC, 2021.<br><br>⁵ Rowling, J.K. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. Bloomsbury, 1997.<br><br>⁶ Mandela, Nelson. Quoted in the Goodreads Quote Book. Goodreads LLC, 2021.<br><br>⁷ Lee, Harper. To Kill a Mockingbird. Philadelphia: J.B. Lippincott & Co., 1960.<br><br>-----<br>This is a work in progress so please give me all the feedback you can.